Poltergeist: The Legacy (1996) s01e14 Episode Script

[thunder rumbling]
[bird calls]
[bird calls]
[man]
God said unto Moses
"Thou shalt not
make unto thyself
any graven image,
for I, the Lord, thy God,
am a jealous God."
So I ask thee yet again,
Sarah Browning,
is this graven image
thine?
No.
Then why would
William Woodson,
with his dying breath,
swear to me that it was thee
who sold it to him
for this?
Sold it?
I never did such a thing.
Do not lie.
You have been consorting
with papists.
Having given yourself
body and soul
to these forces
of darkness,
you must confess.
You know I am no witch.
Tell them.
[thunder rumbling]
As God is my witness,
I never saw this cross
in my life.
No, Mother, please!
Tell them!
Abigail, we must
be quiet.
[Abigail]
My sister's
innocent!
Silence the child.
That is for God to decide.
I curse thee and thine,
Josiah Blood.
Damn thee
unto the 13th generation.
And whatever my fate,
so be theirs.
[thunder rumbling]
Immerse her.
If she lives,
she's a witch.
If she drowns,
then 'tis God's will.
And may God have mercy
on her soul.
No! [sobs]
No!
[sobbing]
What is meant to be
is meant to be.
[sobbing]
[man whispering]
Oh, my God.
Let us thank God
for this deliverance from evil.
Let us pray.
God is our strength
and our savior.
He leadeth us
through troubled waters
[Sarah whispering]
Damn thee.
Damn thee.
[Narrator]
Since the beginning of time
mankind has existed between
the world of light
and the world of darkness.
Our secret society
has been here forever,
protecting others
from the creatures
who inhabit
the shadows and the night,
known only to the initiated
by our true name
The Legacy.
[theme music playing]
"Having found a cross,
I did confront her.
And though she did deny it,
we put her to the test.
Sarah Browning did drown
as a witch in Hellsgate Pond
this, the 15th day of March,
God's will be done."
It has been more than 300 years
since these words were written,
and still they read
like signposts to the past,
guiding us through the depths
of the Puritan mind
at a time
when witchcraft
was seen as real.
Thus, we must conclude
the witch trials
were not trials,
but public executions,
born of ignorance and fear
in an age of rampant
superstition.
Thank you. Thank you.
[applause]
Well, I'm sure
I speak for all of us
in thanking Dr. Rayne
for sharing
the journal
of Josiah Blood,
and the Luna Foundation
for its generous support.
I think we have time
for one more question.
-Professor Slater?
-Cora.
Recently, some bone fragments
were recovered from the pond.
Is there any chance
they could be from the body
of this Sarah Browning?
It's an interesting
possibility.
However, hundreds of bones
have been recovered.
We've been asked
to help to
date and identify them,
if possible.
But as yet, we have
no definitive answers.
But suppose the bones turn out
to be hundreds of years old.
How can you identify them?
Since the breakthroughs
at Berkeley in the '80s,
we have the tools.
Coding present
in each bone's DNA,
today it's possible to trace
a family history for centuries
just using genetic sequencing.
[Slater]
Again, I'd like to
thank Dr. Rayne
for taking time
out of a busy schedule
to come
and speak to us.
Um, okay, that's it.
Remember, uh, paper topics
next class, huh?
Shall we go to my office?
Yeah.
[Slater]
You'll have to excuse the mess,
but this whole pond
preservation project
has taken on
a life of its own.
You have no idea
how much pressure
there is in the community
to just fill it in
and develop it.
[Derek]
Well, crusades are never easy.
How about Josiah Blood's
family tree?
There must be
a few descendants
willing to help
preserve the pond.
Probably. But genealogies
take time.
Hm.
Well, let me talk
to the Luna Foundation.
Maybe we can give you a hand.
Well, thanks.
God knows we need it.
Meanwhile,
since you're
gonna be in town
for the rest of the week,
is it too bold of me to ask
if I could make
a photographic copy
of Blood's journal
for the university archive?
Never leave my hands.
I'd do all the work myself.
Of course.
Excellent. Now, where are you
off to now, Derek?
Actually, I thought
I'd drive down to the pond.
Care to come along?
-Oh, I'm tied up
in meetings all day.
-All right.
-Thanks.
-Bye-bye, Jordan.
[bird calls]
[clicks]
-Beautiful spot.
-Beg pardon?
Oh, hi.
-I didn't mean to interrupt.
-No, please.
I come here all the time.
I'm doing a photographic study
of the pond
as part of my senior thesis.
Oh, that's why you were
so interested in the bones.
Well, I grew up with it.
Just over the hill,
New Haverford.
Uh, my family's been here
since before the Revolution.
They say it's haunted.
Yeah,
by the ghosts of the witches
who died here.
"Beneath still waters
lurking there"
"Let all who pass
this way beware."
You know it?
Oh, yes.
Elegy Beside Still Water
by Edward Clare.
It's one of my favorites.
Growing up, I used to think
he must have written it
right here.
Right on
this very spot.
Well, it's possible.
[Sarah]
Damn thee.
You okay?
Yeah, I'm fine.
There is something
embedded.
A crucifix?
[Derek] That's strange
to find it here.
[camera clicks]
"And so,
having found the cross,
I did confront her."
Very good.
You remembered
from the journal.
It reminded me of a passage
in one of the letters
that my grandmother gave me.
What sort of letters?
Mostly family.
My grandmother
collected them.
When she died,
she left them to me.
I thought Puritans didn't
believe in things like that.
They didn't.
It would have been
considered against God's law.
A graven image.
Just like a photograph.
Careful.
Some primitive cultures
still believe
photographs steal your soul.
Only if the photographer's
good enough.
[chuckles]
Well, time to get back
to campus.
Nice talking with you.
Yeah.
[Rachel]
Hm. Examining
these bone samples,
well, I would say
that they are the same.
Yeah, look.
Compare the pattern here
to the pattern here,
and the, uh,
sequencing's identical.
Where did they come from?
Some, uh, pond in Boston.
Derek said that they're gonna
fill it in or develop it
unless we can prove
some kind of historical value.
If we connect these bones
to a known genealogy,
we can show its historical
significance.
He's even asked us
to draw up a genealogy
for Josiah Blood.
Sounds pretty ambitious.
Anyway, given the DNA match,
I would say
that what you have here
are two bones
from the same body,
or, at the very least,
bones from members
of the same family.
Well, we agree so far.
I was beginning
to think
that the forensic
software was fried.
How many samples did you test?
A dozen.
And they all had
the same genetic pattern?
Yep.
All the bones
seem to connect
with what we've gleaned
from Blood's journal
about the woman
killed in the pond.
Interesting.
However, your sample's
still too small.
You can't jump
to any conclusions.
Probably right.
Thanks for that
second opinion, Doctor.
Any time.
I gotta go, though.
I've got an appointment
with a patient
who thinks he's
the mother of God.
"He"?
I really can't
talk about it.
How do you actually deal
with somebody like that?
Mm, be direct.
Role play.
Try to draw him out.
Just whatever it takes.
As long as he eventually
faces his psychosis.
Well, give him,
or her,
my regards.
[chuckles]
[buzzes]
[Sarah whispering]
Damn thee.
[screaming]
[gasps]
Damn thee.
[Cora] Hi.
Oh, hi.
Doing a little
postgraduate study?
Actually, I'm trying
to date this crucifix.
Any luck?
Yes, actually.
"One of the many
such crucifixes
cast by the silversmith
William Terry
for the Archbishop
of Canterbury,
circa 1670."
Probably thrown into Hellsgate
by Josiah Blood
or one of his followers,
as an act of faith.
Another un-Christian act.
Yeah. Much done
in the name of Christ
is less-than-Christian.
But does invoking
Christ's name make it right?
No.
Just the darker side
of human nature.
[sighs]
Remember the day
you found the crucifix,
and I was
taking pictures?
Mm-hm.
Well, that night, when I
went to develop the film,
something happened.
Sometimes when you
work in a darkroom,
you lose track of time.
But this was different.
It was more like a dream.
Describe it.
Well, there was a
a strange man.
An old silver coin.
I really couldn't see it,
but as soon as
he touched it,
he started to strangle.
[screams]
It was horrible.
But what makes you think
it was more than
just a bad dream?
This.
The clipping is from
this morning's newspaper.
But it's the photo
that doesn't make sense.
If I took it,
I don't know when.
But it's the same man.
What are you saying?
You think you witnessed
or caused his death?
I don't know.
I mean
I felt like he was running
from me.
But that's not possible,
is it?
Anything is possible.
Let me look into it,
and I'll let you know.
Thank you.
I've gotta get to class.
Call me?
[siren wailing]
Detective Longbow?
You've found him.
Interesting name.
Iroquois. I'm the original
Boston brave.
You got a problem?
Well, I understand you are
the investigating officer
on the Brian Chang case.
If you say so.
Businessman found dead in
an alley south of Beacon Hill.
Heart attack,
three nights ago, right?
Who are you?
My name is Derek Rayne.
"Dr. Derek Rayne."
What kind of doctor?
Biological anthropology.
But I specialize in forensics.
If you need a reference,
you can call Robert Jaycox.
The police commissioner.
What, was this Chang
a friend of yours?
No.
Just saw the article
in the paper.
Did you happen to
find a coin
near the body?
Coin?
What kind of coin?
I'm not sure.
Since the article
didn't mention it.
Then how do you know
one exists?
Well, if it didn't,
you would have already said so.
So much for lunch.
[siren wails]
Three nights ago, this Chang's
in town on business.
He goes to his car,
and he drops dead.
No signs of foul play
and no witnesses.
What does the coroner say?
Congestive heart failure.
Heart attack is not murder.
We found this in his hand.
[Derek] A silver shilling.
Dated 1696.
In mint condition.
So they tell me.
Who told you?
A friend.
Not good enough.
I need a name.
I'm sorry, it's confidential.
So is this.
Three more bodies
over the past six weeks.
Same M.O.
Ask your friend
to think about it.
[Rachel]
Kind of late for a run.
Ah, once a SEAL,
always a SEAL.
Old habits die hard.
Hey, what's your excuse?
I just need a break from
Josiah Blood's family tree.
It's taken me three days
just to get to 1800.
Well, I'm ready
to call it a night.
When is Derek due back?
Uh, 6:00 a.m.
Red eye from Boston.
-[both] See you.
-[Dominick] Excuse me, ma'am.
Dr. Rayne is on the line.
Thank you,
Dominick.
Hey, Derek.
I thought you were
supposed to be on a plane.
I need to stay here
a few extra days.
Oh, yeah? Is there anything
I can do to help?
[Derek]
Well, maybe.
The police have
a couple of
unexplained deaths
that need looking into.
-Do they have any suspects?
-Not yet.
But there's a young woman
experiencing
chronic memory loss
who's afraid she may
have done it.
Well, what makes her think
she's responsible?
She can describe one of
the murders in great detail,
but she doesn't know where
the information came from.
Sounds like
a dissociative disorder.
Possibly a fugue state.
But, uh, it's hard to tell
without actually seeing her.
Listen, is she under
any specific stress?
Possibly. But I'm not sure.
You want me to fly in?
Not yet. Let me see
how it goes.
Okay.
But be careful,
because if she's going
through some sort
of personality disintegration,
then she might try
to wrap you into her problems.
Thank you.
I'll keep it in mind.
Okay. And Derek?
Get some sleep.
Yeah. Good night.
[knock on door]
Hey, hi.
You're early. I thought, uh
Just on my way
to my 3:00.
I, uh
thought you didn't need
the darkroom till tonight.
Well, working late sometimes
gets a little spooky.
[chuckles]
If you don't mind.
No problem.
How's the thesis coming?
Slower than I'd like.
The work in the darkroom's
taking longer than I thought.
Actually, I was wondering
if I could get an extension.
Sorry. Rules are rules.
No extensions, no exceptions.
I tried to warn you,
five hours in the darkroom
can seem like five minutes
when you're printing pictures.
Anyway, don't worry about it.
You'll see.
It'll all be worth it
in the end.
Don't forget to turn out
the lights when you leave.
I won't forget.
Thanks.
[Sarah] [whispers]
Damn thee!
[screaming]
And you found this picture
when you woke up?
Just like before.
Was there anything
in the papers?
Nothing.
I checked every edition.
There's no mention
of anyone dying
who fits
this description.
Do you mind
if I keep this?
There's someone
I'd like to show it to.
Of course.
Why me? I mean,
what am I becoming?
I don't know.
But I'm going to find out.
Hey.
Here's the latest
on that DNA.
It's a mess. I don't know
what to make of it.
Lovely.
No rest for
the restless, huh?
Mm.
That's a pithy
little slogan.
Where did you get that?
In the Navy. Hmm?
How come you never
wanna talk about that?
I don't know.
It just hasn't come up.
Funny. I dated
a guy once,
he was determined
to become a SEAL.
Took this guy
three tries.
Said it was the toughest thing
he ever did in his life.
But he's still there.
I thought that was
the deal.
If you're good enough
to make the team,
you stayed there
the rest of your life.
That's the drill.
Hey, you know,
if you don't wanna talk
about this, we don't have to.
It's not that I don't
wanna talk about it.
It's just that I really
don't have that much to say.
Your friend
was right, though.
The training was a bitch.
You really gotta wanna
be there to make it.
Once you make it,
you gotta believe in it
to stay.
What does "it" mean?
The boys,
the team
unit integrity.
So, what happened?
SEALs are a covert
operations unit.
You drop in someplace
you're not supposed to be.
Sometimes it's
hostage recovery,
sometimes it's recon,
surgical strikes.
In our case, they, uh,
dropped us into the jungle
just south of the equator
with orders to, uh,
collect this certain drug lord.
Supposed to go
50 klicks upriver
to this villa,
grab the guy and get out.
The team that I'd been
assigned to was together
five years before Desert Storm.
And the team leader, Richter,
just loved to tell me
in detail
how the guy I was replacing
had died there.
Some people really
get their kicks
in strange ways, huh?
So I was on point.
I was still
pretty green then,
and that's where
they put the new guy.
I was scared shitless,
you know?
It's night, crawling
around in the jungle.
Every sound makes you jump.
They hit us
just before dawn.
Three helicopter gunships
just lit up the jungle
behind me.
It happened
so fast.
You know, I couldn't have been
more than 500 yards away.
By the time I got back,
all there were
was bodies.
And you're the only one
who survived?
It's ironic, huh?
I mean, you take
the point
thinking that
you're gonna die
and you're the only guy
who survives.
Except I don't think
I was alone.
I did a body count,
and Richter's body was missing.
You think he betrayed you?
When I got back stateside,
they listed him as MIA.
Later, I heard rumors
about a renegade American.
I tried to get reassigned,
go back in, but
a lot of red tape.
Just never happened.
So you never reenlisted.
You go into combat
you gotta believe
in the guy covering your back.
I just didn't
believe anymore.
I guess I had more to say
than I thought.
Well, whenever
you feel like not talking,
I'll be listening.
[chuckles softly]
Thanks.
Hey, Nick.
I guess you know, but
I'm real glad that you're
the one who's watching my back.
Where did you find
the body?
What body?
This one.
You got me.
Never seen it before.
Happened last night.
Really? Why don't you
leave the photo with me,
and when a body shows up
to match it,
I'll give you a shout.
Did you talk to
Robert Jaycox?
We don't exactly move
in the same circles.
But I asked some questions.
This Luna Foundation's
been around a while.
You guys worked on
the, uh, Boston Strangler case.
That's right.
Well, don't let it
go to your head.
[phone rings]
Longbow.
Yeah.
I want the case files
and all pictures on my desk
in half an hour.
That was the medical examiner.
This morning they found
a woman's body over bayside.
Matched this description.
Preliminary reports indicated
the cause of death
was a broken neck.
When they found that she was
clutching a silver shilling,
they checked again.
Congestive heart failure.
Does that mean
you need help?
No. It means, where did
you get this picture?
I told you,
it's confidential.
Wrong.
See, I don't care
who your friends are
or what club you belong to.
I've got a serial killer
running around,
and I need some answers.
Even if it means I have to
throw you in jail to get them.
Go ahead.
But it won't stop
the killings.
[sighs]
Well, what will?
Access to the case files.
And just a little
cooperation, Detective.
[tapping keys]
-Oh, hey, Nick.
-Hey.
I'm glad
you're here.
Derek left a message
on my machine.
Something about cross-typing
the tissue samples
of the murder victims
sent from Boston.
What are you doing?
Uh, well, apparently,
the Boston police
have been a little
less than cooperative.
-So the tissue samples
just arrived.
-Great.
Meanwhile, you remember
the bone fragments
from Hellsgate Pond?
Well, I just got
the carbon dating back
from the lab,
and I'm checking it
against the DNA.
Something just doesn't track.
Well, no kidding.
Chronologically,
you're all over the place,
right from the 1600s
on to the present.
And look at how many times
the same DNA pattern repeats.
-83%.
-That's ridiculous.
Did you have the lab
recheck the data?
Twice.
It's impossible.
Yeah, it is.
Except that
I did the work myself.
And the facts don't lie.
No, it means that
more than four out of five
of the victims who drowned
in Hellsgate Pond
in the last 300 years
were related.
Go figure.
[knock on door]
Jordan?
[Sarah whispering]
Damn thee. Damn thee.
Damn thee.
[screaming]
Derek, what are you doing?
Oh, I thought
you were in class.
I was going to
leave you a note.
Oh. I'm sorry. I-- I was just
developing some film.
And, you know,
sometimes in the dark,
your imagination
just runs away with you.
Hm.
Where did you find these?
Uh, the shillings?
Hellsgate Pond,
along with the bones.
Found quite a few
of them.
Oh, I forgot.
The journal
of Josiah Blood.
Thanks for letting me
make a copy of it.
I ran into a student of yours,
Cora Richland.
She talked about
some letters.
Yeah, dating all the way back
to the 1600s.
One or two of them actually
mentioned Blood himself.
They're very interesting.
I'm letting her store them
here in the darkroom.
Uh, she's agreed to make
some photographic copies
when she finishes her thesis.
Hmm.
Do you think I could have
a look at them?
Uh
I, uh, think
you should ask her.
I wouldn't wanna show them
to you without her permission.
I'd feel funny.
You understand.
Of course.
So, uh, if I'm still
in town tomorrow,
let's get together.
Right.
[computer beeping]
So Josiah Blood
was pretty prolific.
[chuckles]
How's it coming?
It's done. All I have to do
is fax it to Boston.
Great. Then we can send it
to Derek, along with these
DNA gene sequences.
[Nick]
Where did you get these?
Where?
Where do you think?
From the, uh, tissue samples
Derek sent us
of the Boston murder victims.
What's wrong?
Well, I mean,
this can't be right.
Why not?
Because I've been amplifying
these same DNA sequences
for the last two weeks.
I mean, I have
done this so many times,
I could probably
do it in my sleep.
C, T, GGG, T, AA,
TT, CCC, A.
Okay, then we've
gotta call Derek.
Because we either have
a serious bug in our system,
or somehow
the dead bodies back in Boston
are related to the bones
from the pond.
[Abigail]
March 13th, 1759.
Dear Eloise,
Thank you for your letter
of the first.
I realize how strange
it must seem
to learn of an aunt
you never knew you had.
It's been more than
three score years
since I saw
my sister Sarah die.
Yet even now,
I cannot erase it
from my memory.
So I ask thee yet again,
Sarah Browning,
is this graven
image thine?
No.
Do not lie.
You have been consorting
with papists.
Having given yourself
body and soul
to these forces of darkness,
you must confess.
[Abigail]
The way she looked at me,
I knew she was innocent.
But no one would listen.
When Reverend Blood
ordered them
to lower her into the pond,
I pleaded with my mother.
You know I am no witch.
[Abigail]
But she refused to speak out.
-Please! Tell them!
-Abigail, we must be quiet.
In the end,
my sister did curse them all
unto the 13th generation.
And it is my belief that
-No!
-given the events that
have since come to pass,
this curse still remains.
[man] Slater?
[door opens]
Professor Slater,
you in there?
Called your office.
They said
you were out here.
What are
you doing?
Trying to humor
my lieutenant.
The coroner's on a tear.
He thinks someone's been
tampering with evidence.
In what way?
He sent samples
of the fluid
they found in the lungs
of those heart-attack victims
to the lab.
They came back
contaminated
with pond water.
Pond water?
Yeah, so now he wants us
to check every pond
from here to Fall River
on the chance that
there's a connection.
[coin clinks]
[Sarah whispering]
Damn thee.
Wait! Drop the coin!
[choking]
Drop the coin!
[demonic howling]
Yeah, send paramedics
to Hellsgate Pond.
Now!
Well, it's hard to say.
They're moving him now.
Have you seen
the genealogy?
[Rachel]
Longbow is Josiah Blood's
descendant on
his mother's side, right?
[Derek]
Thirteenth generation
like Brian Chang
and all the other
recent victims.
But if the DNA matches
the bones dredged up
from Hellsgate Pond,
then that means
they're all related.
That's right.
What are we
dealing with here?
An angry spirit
that died before its time.
Seeking revenge on
the descendants
of Josiah Blood.
Exactly.
You got my message?
Dr. Rayne,
it's happened again.
I've had
another episode.
[Derek]
I know. I was here.
You were here?
Oh, my God.
Yes, I saw it happen.
Well, I don't understand.
Who's doing this?
Well, that's what
we're here to find out.
I read your grandmother's
letters.
You're related
to Sarah Browning,
the woman tried
for witchcraft.
That's right.
From her sister, Abigail.
Yes.
[car horn honks]
Professor Slater.
Come to help us
find the truth.
[Slater] Cora?
What are you doing here?
We were just
discussing witchcraft.
[chuckles]
Witchcraft?
Here, today?
[scoffs]
You're not suggesting
Cora's a witch?
No.
But three centuries ago,
her ancestor, Sarah Browning,
was tried as one here
at Hellsgate Pond, and drowned.
Don't you mean murdered?
Yes, murdered.
Whatever happened
to Sarah Browning
had nothing to do
with justice.
Neither has
what happened since.
Since?
What do you mean?
Almost all the bones
found in the pond,
and all
the heart-attack victims
baffling the police,
have one common
genetic link
Josiah Blood.
So it was witchcraft?
Well, that's what we've
been misled to believe.
But it's not.
Then what is it?
The spirit
of Sarah Browning
carrying out her curse.
For 300 years?
You can't
be serious. How?
By waiting here
beneath the waters of pond
and claiming the descendants
of Josiah Blood
whenever they came
too near.
Only recently, with the pond
threatened by development,
the spirit has become
more aggressive.
It needed a host,
whose body would
allow it to leave the pond
and search out
its victims.
Someone like you.
-I beg your pardon?-Our search of your genealogy
shows that you're
the 13th generation.
You're a direct descendant
of Josiah Blood.
The spirit could have
killed you,
invaded your body,
using it to kill again.
No.
[growls]
[thunder crashing]
Run, Cora! Run!
I can't!
You must stop!
Never!
Murder can never
justify murder!
Begone!
In God's name!
[yells]
You okay?
Then Professor Slater,
he was just another victim?
Yeah.
Like all the other descendants
of Josiah Blood.
[Cora] I don't understand.
How can I be related to
something so awful?
Because perhaps,
in a strange way, we all are.
What do you mean?
Man's injustice to man
doesn't end
with the passing
of a single generation.
Or 13. Or 30.
It's always there.
We must never forget.
Come.
I'll drive you home.