Project Blue Book (2019) s01e07 Episode Script

1 - There's something I haven't told you.
- What? Previously on "Project Blue Book" I keep seeing this.
9, 8 You realize you sound like a crazy person, right? Which is exactly why I didn't want to tell you.
Halt or I'll shoot! Master Sergeant Edward Rizzuto.
What were you doing at the test site? He's 100% full of shit.
Party member since he was in short pants.
We can't let the Russians know that we know.
What do you need me to do? You do know those were not meteors? What do you know about all of this? If I had all the answers, I wouldn't need you, - would I? - Need me? What the hell do you need me for? You're lying.
No, I'm not.
You kissed Rebecca Taylor.
No, I didn't! - You kissed her! - You kissed her! All right, boys, that's enough, that's enough.
You leave little Casanova alone.
What is that? Whoa.
Whatever it is, I think it's coming this way.
You stay put, boys.
Brian, just in case, you're in charge.
Scoutmaster.
What are you doing? Boys, you stick with Brian.
Brian, you stay with the boys.
All right, I'm sure it's nothing.
I'll go check it out.
I'll be right back.
Okay.
Be careful.
Run, boys! Run! - Go! - Let's go, let's go! - Let's go! - Get to the road! - This way.
- We're coming.
This is the last place we saw Scoutmaster Emmett.
Thanks for getting out here so quick, Dr.
Hynek.
Just so I'm clear, you called Project Blue Book 'cause the scouts believe aliens captured Emmett? Well, the boys definitely saw something strange in the sky.
Well, what do you think? I think Emmett York's a good man who went missing in the woods who went missing in the woods he knows like the back of his hand.
That's more than enough to get my attention.
So you agree with the scouts? Brian's a good kid with a very vivid imagination.
At this point, though, I think we need all the help we can get.
Hurry up! I think I found something! We've got something over here! Lord.
What happened here? Looks like a controlled burn.
Very precise.
That's his hat.
And his camera.
Project Blue Book, Captain Michael Quinn speaking.
Captain, I tried reaching you last night.
I'm in Bowling Green.
Ah, they told me.
Something about a scout troop seeing a space ship? More of a missing person at this point, but evidence at the scene did leave some questions.
How soon can you get down here? I can't, I'm afraid.
Supposed to meet with General Harding on some other matter.
You're on your own down there.
Everything all right? Paperwork stuff.
It's nothing.
Keep me posted on your end.
Okay, then.
I'm sure I'll be home soon.
Impossible.
Where's your partner? Took a call on a case down south.
Too many details.
You didn't tell him where you were going, right? You said "top secret.
" He's, uh he's in there.
I don't understand.
How did Rizzuto escape military custody? We let him go.
Intel figured he'd do us more good on the run.
We could trail him, and it would lead us right to his contacts.
Wasn't till after he left that we discovered a sensitive piece of material - had gone missing from the base.
- What kind of material? Well, let's just say if the Russians got their hands on it, they could win the arms race, hands down.
What do you need me to do? Well, we can't bring Rizzuto back in.
His handlers would scatter to the wind.
If they already have the material, we're sunk.
And you, with your skills, you could find this and bring it back.
That's our best bet right now.
I assume you haven't lost your touch? Mornin', sunshine.
Hope you're hungry.
I set the table for two.
We've got bacon, eggs, toast.
The coffee sucks.
Come on.
You're gonna want food.
This won't go well on an empty stomach.
Well you might want to You know, if I knew you were gonna cook me breakfast, I would've just let you in.
Burnt the bacon, though.
Who taught you how to cook? Air Force when I was stationed in Spain.
Hey, you know they got this bacon over there, comes from black Iberian pigs.
They run wild in the oak forests in the south.
All they eat are acorns.
Now, after the Spaniards slaughter them, they cure that meat for four years.
Imagine that.
Four years to wait for bacon.
I mean, it's good, but Eat.
Before it gets cold.
Can you pass the salt, please? You can reach it.
What, are you a cripple? Grab the salt.
Wasn't so hard, was it? The gun's empty.
I can see the chamber.
Can't you see the trust we've developed here? You know, it'll make this all go so much smoother, First rule of interrogation get them to trust you.
That is why you're here.
But what you don't realize, Captain Michael James Quinn of Battle Creek, Michigan, is that you are way out of your league right now.
He shouldn't have gone in there alone.
If we'd gone with him, maybe we could've helped.
It's not your fault.
Emmett did what he had to do.
We're gonna find him, boys.
- I give you my word on that.
- So, Dr.
Hynek You work for that alien project? Project Blue Book for the United States Air Force.
We investigate unidentified aerial phenomena.
If you're in the Air Force, why don't you wear a uniform? I'm a civilian employee.
A professor of astronomy.
I wanted to be an astronomer since I was 7.
It's one of my first merit badges.
I was 7, too.
That badge tells me that you know how important it is to relay exactly what you saw.
So, if any of you boys have information that might help us find Scoutmaster Emmett, you need to tell us.
Okay, then.
Think back.
Tell me everything you remember about that night.
Professor Hynek! Brian.
You okay after all that? I didn't want to say this in front of the boys.
They're scared enough, but I think there may be an explanation for what happened to Scoutmaster Emmett.
Go on.
It's a story that everyone around here knows.
Maybe it's not just a story.
After what happened that night, I can't help but think the story is real.
Story? What What do What do you mean? The story of the Star People.
Fire and ash, the ground will burn.
Beware the night when the Star People return.
Comforting rhyme.
Choctaw Indian legend.
All this land belonged to the Choctaw years ago, before they moved South.
But a special group stayed behind.
They believed that before man walked the Earth, the Star People lived here, and that one day they'd come back.
You don't really think this legend has something to do with Emmett's disappearance? Maybe.
I used to think it was just a tall tale, you know? Just a story to tell around the campfire to scare us.
But after what happened, what we saw Folk lore and myth can have a powerful psychological effect.
But it's important to always let the facts tell the story.
That's it.
That's the same ship we saw.
Identical.
Is it really possible? Fellow traveler.
Ever heard the term? No.
Please, continue.
I got lists of people who might be sympathetic to the cause.
That way, if I have a chance and find myself close to one, I can Turn them into a traitor like yourself.
Real patriots fight for a cause.
Not outdated ideals like the ones you believe in.
Communism is the future.
The revolutions in China, Korea, Yugoslavia.
The world is changing, Captain.
While you're out there hunting flying saucers, being a good soldier, following orders.
Boy, you Russkies are even dumber than we thought.
I fought for my country.
Why do you think I'm here? I enjoy this.
Breaking traitors like you.
You all give in, sooner or later.
Do you really enjoy it? Or do you just tell yourself that because what you're really trying to do is please the brass, hoping they'll feed you some scraps? Project Blue Book? With your background, how could you be okay with them treating you that way? All right, that's enough.
We know what you're worth, what you sacrificed! - I said stop.
- What they did to you overseas, pushing you into torturing war criminals, not giving a damn how that inhumanity - affects somebody - Last warning.
If you had any intelligence, anything you've acquired with your security clearance, Michael, we can take care of you.
We can h Don't doubt my motives.
Wash it off.
You and I have a little game we're gonna play.
Thank you again, Sheriff, for making the necessary introductions.
Mm-hmm.
I've known David Akule for years.
If there's anyone who can answer your questions, it's him.
Thank you for seeing us on such short notice, David.
Yes, allaying the fears of white men is a hobby of mine.
- Pleasure.
- Professor, please.
- Thank you.
- Sheriff.
So, David, what do you know about my fears? I know that the Scoutmaster is missing.
I know that you have some interesting theories on the, uh, subject.
Well, Brian, one of the scouts, he mentioned this sect that worshipped the Star People.
My people have been here for centuries and the woods have shown them, uh, miraculous things that they couldn't explain.
So, these stories of extraterrestrials, the petroglyphs in the caves all just ancient ways of making sense of these miracles? At least till "modern science" came along.
You seem to be quite the reader of modern science books yourself.
You know what I've learned from them? That as little as I know, science knows even less.
How so? It never considers faith as an answer to the unexplained.
Have you ever seen these lights in the woods? More than once.
Where, exactly? Just past Mill Road.
Well, that's right where Emmett went missing.
So tell me, what kind of game are we gonna be playing, 'cause, uh, you know, you did just ruin my football throwing hand.
Don't worry, it's more of a trivia-type thing.
I'll ask the questions, all you got to do is answer them You get 'em right, I'll scrub the pans.
You get 'em wrong Well So, first question.
Was it hard to steal? Was what hard to steal? Wrong answer.
Next question.
Why did you steal it? Steal what? I don't know what you're talking about.
Wrong again.
Bonus round.
Where is it? There's a timer on these, by the way.
I didn't steal Hey! You're crazy! Do you understand the rules now? Listen, I don't know what you're trying to get from me, but whatever it is, I don't have it.
What? "I don't have it.
" You know, most people in your situation, they wouldn't have said what you just said right there.
"I don't have it.
" So, that implies you know who does have it.
If you had no idea, you'd be totally confused.
"Why is this guy trying to kill me for something I have no idea what he's talking about," but you didn't say that.
"No," you said, "I don't have it.
" So We're gonna move on to round two.
This one gets a little bit harder.
If you don't have it, who does? Help! He's trying to kill me! You said he wouldn't kill me! Help! Hey! Help! Since you went away My heart, my heart, all it can say is Can you smell that? Is there a swamp or something around here? - Just up there.
- Swamp? That's where the skeeters live.
I hate skeeters.
I'd like to see this swamp.
I wouldn't drink that if I were you, Professor.
Yeah, methane, sulfur.
How often do people come by here? Oh, rarely.
Swamp stinks too much.
Even the animals steer clear of this water.
Maybe those Star People aren't just legend.
Maybe they're real.
- Maybe they are.
- Come on, now, people.
Easy, please.
Easy.
Look, my kids play out there in those woods.
We all deserve to know the truth.
We need to know! What? Are you afraid to leave the house now? May I speak? Ple Please, if everyone could just settle down for a moment.
- What are you hiding from us? - What really happened out there? Now, I've investigated the woods where Emmett went missing and performed a series of tests, and these tests have confirmed that the lights seen in the sky are not alien, but natural, the result of swamp gas.
- Come on! - Wha? In certain swamps and marshes, methane and carbon dioxide can become trapped beneath the surface.
These trapped gases, they build in intensity, and when the conditions are right, they can spontaneously combust into the atmosphere creating a violent explosion and a bright light, just like the one witnessed by the scouts.
- No way! - The swamp gas didn't burn those trees.
- Yeah! - Emmett didn't shoot at no gas.
- That's right! - Yeah! I can assure you this is a perfectly natural and common phenomenon.
People, please! Please, you have to stay calm! Please! Emmett? - Oh, my God.
- What happened? Emmett? Oh, my God, Emmett? - Oh, my God! - Scoutmaster? - Oh, my God! - Is he all right? What in the world? I've been camping in those woods for 34 years.
I bring my rifle 'cause sometimes I like to hunt.
You never expect to be hunted.
I knew the moment I laid eyes on it, it wasn't anything of this world.
It was the sound not like an animal.
It was like a whistle, like air over metal, like something moving through the sky.
It wasn't like anything I've ever seen before.
The light blinded me.
I couldn't move away.
Run, boys! Run! I fired at that craft.
All the while, those burns ate at me.
It felt like my chest was on fire.
And then, uh, the "craft" just flew away? I'm a serious man, Professor.
Ask anyone around here.
I served my country in the war, I donate my time to help with the children.
No one is denying that you thought you saw an Unidentified Flying Object.
Look, you were saying, the craft left No, you said that.
After I fired at that craft, it did not leave.
A creature came out of it.
And I shot at that, too.
A creature? Baby, I was scared half to death.
It played some sort of mental mind game with me.
All I remember after that is waking up 48 hours later, disoriented and forever changed.
Professor Hynek developed the photos from your camera.
So you saw what I saw.
You know I'm telling the truth, then! I know something happened out there in the woods.
But those photos, they are not conclusive enough to prove an alien encounter.
I'm not sure that any of us can be completely certain Certain? You want to be certain? That thing's still out there! I know because I killed it, and I can show you where it died at my feet! - He never came back.
- No.
Hey, I did what you asked.
He tried to kill me.
No, you didn't do as we asked or he'd still be here.
You screwed up, is what you did.
And he was never gonna kill you.
He's trained not to kill.
Not without my authority.
You heard me ask him.
He denied everything.
What do you think he was gonna say at first? You you didn't even give him a chance! Captain.
Under the table, right? What the hell are you doing? Rug, maybe? Captain! Captain.
Light? Seems about right.
Let's you and me take a walk.
Why?! We're all friends now, huh? Say what you got to say.
That's an order, Captain.
Move! Outside! That's for my hand, you son of a bitch! - Hey! - I'm done! Come here you little piece of shit! Come here! Go! You stay.
I'll deal with you later.
That's far enough.
Captain! You will stop right there and give your commanding officer the respect that he deserves.
Yes, sir.
I didn't hear you, sir.
I just want to say that I'm relieved.
You're more than I thought you were.
Loyal, effective, and one tough son of a bitch.
You already had my respect, but now you have my admiration.
We turned Rizzuto at White Forest.
Figured that.
He's a double agent now.
Highly valued in today's climate.
So I was the one being interrogated in there? Something did go missing from the base just after you left.
So, if you had my intel What? You believed I could turn into a traitor like that piece of shit? A Captain that had clearance to go anywhere he wanted on the base, and the day he shows up, some sensitive material goes missing from a classified project? Yeah, for a moment.
I certainly couldn't pin it to that egghead partner of yours.
Right.
No, sir.
The game plays differently at my level.
I have to protect against all threats.
"Fellow traveler.
" Was he making that up? Is that what you suspected me of? I know nothing about that.
But now that I know who you really are, more doors will open.
Yes, sir.
Good man.
We'll talk soon.
Oh, and Captain.
Four years for bacon.
Sometimes the finer things just take time.
There's a clearing up ahead.
This is almost the same area where we found your hat.
There.
Here's your proof, Professor.
Just like I said.
You believe me now? Take this.
Hand me the skull, please? What exactly are you doing? Replica skulls are made from a new synthetic fiber created during the war called "acrylic.
" Feels like bone to me.
The flame will help ascertain whether this skull is real or a forgery.
Acrylic will shine.
Bone will not.
It's not shining.
I told you.
It's real.
We should keep this between us until I can be certain.
You just tested it! What more do you need to be certain?! If this is a skull of an alien creature, and I'm not saying that it is, it will lead to dangerous levels of panic in the general public.
But if we are under attack, isn't that something everyone should know about? I'm sure Dr.
Hynek knows what's best.
Maybe we should hang fire until he's sure, like he says.
Bullshit.
Thinking like that, Paul Revere would have stayed in the God damn barn.
Emmett, take it easy now.
I need to get to a telephone.
Of course.
Captain.
Professor.
Glad you called.
I'm in Bowling Green.
We have a situation.
What kind? A local man swears he shot and killed an alien and there are physical remains.
Sounds like a pickle.
I need to see you, Captain.
As soon as possible.
Now there's a coincidence.
As it happens, I need to see you, too.
Got a good arm, kid.
Doing good.
- Hi, there.
- Get over here, right now.
You stay away from him.
Boy, am I glad to see you.
Back at you.
Your mission was successful? Still ongoing, as far as I'm concerned.
I'm gonna need to bring you up to speed.
I'm gonna need you to pause right there for a second, Professor.
We need to talk.
About our trip to White Forest.
Morning, uh, Dr.
Hynek.
Yeah, good morning.
Should I be worried that you brought the Army along? People around here have complicated feelings about Army men.
Well, you've got nothing to worry about.
I'm Air Force.
Come on in.
Where did you get this? Emmett.
As soon as I saw it, I called a colleague of mine at the university in the anthropology department.
He told me you might have the answer.
Hand me the skull.
The practice of head-binding has been misunderstood for hundreds of years.
And, yes, it has been confused with the extraterrestrial.
It began about a month after birth and continued for about six months, shaping the skull into something holy.
This was a common ritual? Yes, it was an ancient way of honoring our gods, but much like worshipping the Star People, today, it is nothing more than a custom which is no longer practiced.
Coyotes sometimes disturbed these graves, but this This is something else.
Grave robbers.
So this was all a hoax.
Starting with Scoutmaster Emmett.
Sorry we're late.
Thank you for coming.
Emmett, Dorothy.
Can I, uh, apologize? I know we were a little hot earlier.
Um After all he's been through, you can understand, right? Of course.
I think I have a better idea, too, you know, what we've all been through.
That's my skull.
What are you doing with that? And my picture.
Do you remember the shape of the moon that night? Shape of the moon? No.
According to the weather service, it was full.
Full moons are bright in Bowling Green.
Bright enough to cast shadows.
Take a look at that picture and tell me what you see.
No shadow.
Now, there are no shadows because that photo was taken two weeks earlier during the New Moon.
You created the image of the spacecraft days earlier with flood lights, and then, using a method of trick photography known as double exposure.
The camera is prepared to take two photographs simultaneously, superimposing one image on the other.
That's hogwash.
My husband saw that craft.
He took that picture.
The truth is sitting right in front of you.
Sorry we're late.
Just getting started.
Doctor.
Now, about this skull.
It is not yours, Emmett, and it is not alien.
Now wait a minute here It is a sacred relic stolen from a Choctaw burial ground.
What?! No.
I told you I shot the damn thing.
It tried to kill me! No, you lied, and you planted it in the woods for us to find.
I swear I didn't steal any Indian skull.
No, you didn't.
After all, you had to stay hidden in order to keep the mystery of your disappearance alive.
That meant someone else had to dig it up for you.
Someone who could access the reservation without fear of scrutiny.
There's the clearing up ahead.
Over there! Why are you all looking at me? Oh, come on.
Dirty hands don't make me a grave robber.
No, Sheriff, I suppose they don't.
Not completely.
Did you bring it? Did you know Brian works three jobs to help support his family and still finds time for his scout troop? But guess where he works when he's not doing his "duty to God and country"? Sheriff Donnelly, you certainly didn't.
The Sheriff sent a telegram the morning after you disappeared.
The answer came this afternoon.
From Hollywood, California.
It looks like good news.
"Dear Mr.
Donnelly.
Stop.
Eager to hear your flying-saucer story.
Stop.
Reward still unclaimed.
" Imagine that, a radio star offering $100,000 for proof of alien life.
The problem is the Sheriff sent the telegram before you were found.
Before you even led us to the proof that was going to make the three of you rich.
All I hear is a lot of smart words and not a lick of proof.
Sheriff's right.
I know what I saw that night.
Look what they did to me! I'm telling the truth, Brian, I swear! All right, you listen to me, Doctor - I didn't - Stop, both of you.
Don't make your situation worse than it already is.
Why don't we start with filing a false Missing Persons Report with federal authorities and see where that takes us? Hey, Doc.
Need you for a second.
Look I need to ask you a question.
I want an honest answer like I was asking an Eagle Scout.
Yeah, of course.
I say this 'cause you've lied to me in the past, kept secrets you shouldn't have the lab, the man who was following you.
What's the question? Did you steal sensitive material from a classified program at White Forest while we were on the base? Did I what? Did you steal sensitive material from a classified program at White Forest? Is this what was so urgent? Is that what your investigation was about? Like I said, Professor, it's still ongoing.
This is where it all started.
Where what started? He He led me right here.
I'm here when you need me.
I'm here when I need you.
The government isn't trying to erase our minds.
They're trying to use us.
Good.
You're nearly ready.
Alan, phone call! Be right there! 8, 1, 5, 4, 5, 6, 5, 9.