05x19 - Vegas

[bunniefuu]

Detective Sheppard.

Detective Sheppard. Come on, John.

- I'm breaking this with or without you.
- What's she doing here?

Is this victim related to the others?

If we have a serial k*ller on our hands,
people have a right to know.

The victim was most likely a white male.

Most likely?

No clothes, no ID, wasn't k*lled here.

Got tire tracks leading from the road.

Based on size, tread-wear and spread,

we're probably talking
an older model pickup.

We've got radiator fluid down here.
Looks like the vehicle has a leak.

Pretty much the same as the other seven.

- Same chest wound.
- Yeah.

No!

I thought I'd seen everything.

Yeah. Me, too. One day, we'll learn.

Thomas Crane.
Reported missing three days ago.

- Thirty-nine years old.
- You think this guy was 39?

Check the dental records.

- It wasn't natural causes.
- Nope.

Looks like some sort of
rapid cellular breakdown.

The other victims

had the same chest wound,
that same bizarre aging.

I read the other autopsies.
The cause was undetermined.

All I know is
we're not dealing with a contagion.

No chemical residue?

Detective, you'll get a copy of my report.

The previous victims all had
radioactive residue around their wounds.

When I'm done.

What'd you say your name was again?

Keller. Jennifer.

I've got eight bodies in three months,

and I don't like it

when the lead coroner on my case
gets replaced by somebody

who doesn't look old enough
to be in medical school.

I guess I'm flattered.

As far as protocol goes,
I've been assigned this autopsy.

And if you have a problem with that,

I'm sure there are other people
you should be talking to about it.

Well, I already did.

Maybe someone feels the need
for some fresh eyes on the case.

They should have just replaced me.

Do you have any leads?

I got a bunch of bodies
being dumped in the desert,

and it looks like
the life's been sucked out of them.

You really think that's possible?

I don't know where you're from,
but out here, anything's possible.

Anyone treated with symptoms
related to radiation poisoning,

go back a month.

No, it's not going to come back to you,
I promise.

Hi. I don't know.

I told you,
they said it was a virus or something.

Probably food poisoning.

You should see the place
they've got me at.

Not exactly Bellagio.

Whole trip's been
a useless waste of time, too.

My nose is bleeding again. I better go.

Yeah, I will. Love you, too.

Turn it down, will you?

Son of a bitch.

Sheppard, this is Agent Woolsey, FBl.

Nice to meet you.

What the hell happened to your eye?

This case move jurisdiction?

Not yet.

I'm not at liberty to discuss our interest
at this time,

but I'd appreciate your cooperation.

- Well, I got nothing.
- I'm surprised at that, Detective.

The victims are turning up
much more frequently.

This is obviously a progression.

First few bodies were buried.

We only found them because
coyotes dragged one onto the 564.

Now they're just being dumped out
in the open for the vultures.

So is that more careless or more bold?

Somebody want to tell me
why the coroner's report

on the latest victim shows no signs
of radioactive... What do you call it?

Isotopes.

I assume because there weren't any found.

Well,

there were on the first seven.

- Where are you going?
- I gotta go see a nurse.

Well, this guy was seen yesterday.

- Where is he?
- Well, he's an out-of-towner at a motel.

- The chart should say.
- And you just let him go?

He was seen by a doctor.

We get people in here
with flu-like symptoms all the time.

All right. Well, what made it stand out?

He was also having nosebleeds.
Could have been unrelated.

Also common because of the dry air,

but then you mentioned
radiation poisoning...

Thanks.

Hey, look, if he really was exposed,
it could be serious.

I'll track him down.

Do you want me to take a look
at that eye, John?

No, no. I'm fine.

- Hey. Are you gonna call me?
- Yeah. Yeah, sure.

Do you know that guy?

He checked out yesterday.
That a medical report?

No.

If he had something, I gotta know.
Have that room cleaned up properly.

Wash the sheets, you know?

Yeah, wash those sheets.

In the meantime,
let me look at your register.

They were fighting.
She tried to break it up.

You know, it was an accident.

- You couldn't find the finger?
- We were up all night looking for it.

Yeah, but you found it?

Out on the lawn, when the sun came up.

I got it in the fridge.

And where's the housekeeper?

She's at the hospital.
She lost a ton of blood.

Really? Don't they need the finger?

Nah, it was too late to reattach it.
She'll be all right.

- What finger was it?
- Pinky.

And you still got it?

What are you supposed to do
with a finger?

Besides, I thought maybe
she'd still want it, you know?

- And what about the dogs?
- Well, what about them?

- You gotta get rid of them, no?
- What do you mean? I love those dogs.

I know. I'll see him.

Nice hand. Got me again.

- It's almost like you can read minds.
- Only yours.

Look at this guy.
He won't even look at me!

You've been taking my money all night,
you won't even look at me?

Whoa, whoa. Leave it alone.
He's a freaking whacko.

Aren't you a little out of your league here?

What are you, my mother?

Go ahead. I'll ante.

$22,000 to call.

- He doesn't have it.
- Shut up.

He didn't have it! No way.

Wait, where are you going?
You can't leave now!

Look at this guy. Hey!

Oh, jeez.

You don't think that's contagious, do you?

You said the guy next door
checked out yesterday.

I never saw him. He used the TV.

Don't touch anything.

Sure.

What is it?

It's a crime scene. Get lost.

Detective.

We got another body here.
I was just about to call it in.

I heard about what happened
at the casino.

You following me?

There's a satellite locator on your car.

If you don't mind,
we'd like you to come for a little drive.

Do I have a choice?

Right.

No, I'm not FBl.

He won't sign it.

- Well, we should tell him anyway.
- We can't trust him.

Well, he might be able to help us.

Let me at least try.

Detective, I'm Dr. Rodney McKay.

Just need to ask you a few questions
about your investigation

and subsequent contact with the suspect,

and you can be on your way.

Well, I'm not signing anything
or talking to anyone

until I gets some answers myself.

I realize you have no way of grasping
what's going on here.

There's really only one thing
you need to understand.

If you fail to cooperate,
I have the power to ruin your life.

Well, then you don't realize
how little I have to lose.

I know everything about you.

You've never been married.

The only thing you own is a car.

You have $2,363 in the bank
and are $13,000 in debt,

not counting off-the-books
gambling losses to a guy named Mikey.

What else?

You finally passed your detective exam
after four years and two failed attempts

and now barely scrape by
on quarterly performance reviews.

Occasionally, you solve a case.

But, unfortunately,
the charges don't always stick

due to the means in which
the evidence was collected.

You don't have a partner, because
no one can stand working with you.

- Am I getting this right?
- I also like spearmint gum.

Have some.

- I was joking.
- No, you weren't.

Let's go back further, shall we?

You were a helicopter pilot in Afghanistan

but were dishonorably discharged
for disobeying orders

and trying to rescue a field medic
trapped behind enemy lines.

You were sh*t down, obviously survived,
but unfortunately,

the crash k*lled four American soldiers
along with eight civilians.

You avoided jail time.

The record was sealed
for various political reasons.

These things happen, right?

Somehow you've managed
to live with yourself since then,

but I'm not sure other people would
if they knew the truth.

I don't really care.

Yeah.

That's too bad.

You know,
I once met another version of you.

He was very different.

- What?
- Nothing is what you think it is.

That really doesn't come
as a surprise to me.

Look.

We're not bad guys.
We just want to keep the planet safe.

I doubt that very much.

I don't expect you'll believe me at first.

I'm about to tell you
some incredible things.

Wormhole travel through
a device called a stargate,

ancient races of humans on other planets,
other dimensions in space and time,

even infinite variations
of our known reality

where alternate versions of you
and I play out events

in ways you can't possibly imagine.

Space aliens?

It was found under a mile of ice
in Antarctica five years ago

and later moved here.

It runs on a power source
that extracts energy from vacuum space.

We call it a ZPM. Well, ZPM.
Sorry. I'm Canadian.

If you have the right genetic code,

it allows you to control some pretty cool
weaponry remotely, with your mind.

It's how we were able to defeat
the Wraith hive ship

that att*cked Earth three months ago.

- Are there more?
- What, chairs?

- No, aliens.
- Yeah. Lots more.

Fortunately, they're in another galaxy.

And, for now,
they don't know where Earth is.

Detective?

They're called Darts,
small, fast, single-pilot att*ck ships.

We're lucky we took out the hive
as quickly as we did.

Each one can carry
hundreds of these things.

As it was, our 302s had quite a dog fight,

our own space-worthy fighters

developed from alien technology
gathered from stargate travel.

And the guy dumping bodies in the desert?

He's an alien, a Wraith.

A genetic hybrid between human beings
and something called an iratus bug.

Feeds on human energy,

literally saps the life out of people
using a sucker on their hands.

I suppose it all sounds
like science fiction to you.

I'm not really a fan.

We did a good job of cleaning up
the stragglers after the att*ck,

but, obviously,
at least one slipped through the net.

My team and I usually operate
out of Atlantis in the Pegasus Galaxy,

but we were called back to Earth
to deal with this situation

because of our expertise with the Wraith.

Now, the one that you've encountered

has obviously been doing a fairly good job
of blending in.

What, disguising himself as a human?

Based on your description
and the video surveillance from the casino.

What do they normally look like?

Normally, they look like that.

Why do they do it?

Feed on humans?
Well, that's just what they are.

We're just cattle to them.

Fish in a pond!
Busy, busy, lots to do, here and there.

This one fancies himself a bit of a poet.
Not good.

Dry as a desert outside. No place to go.

He's also delirious from starvation.

Eat up! Get stronger.

Think and hope. Think and hope.

Don't look now!

Keep dreaming.

There must be some other reason
for your existence.

Did you get anything from him?

Nothing. Believe me,
we've tried everything.

Defiance tastes like life itself.

No river. No water.

Dry as a desert!

Darkness all around.

The harvest moon is rising.

Wraith are never-ending.

I know the future.

Come inside.

I'll show you

your destiny,

John Sheppard.

They can get in your head.

You okay?

- People ever gonna know the truth?
- Not my decision.

Personally, I think people choose to live
in their own happy little delusions.

They don't really want to know the truth.

- Jennifer.
- Rodney.

The other victims
had radioactive residue on them.

They all did. Once we got wind of it,
and our suspicions were confirmed,

the whole thing was ultimately
gonna be covered up,

but you tracked down the target
before that could happen.

Well, in serial cases,

you're supposed to look for any victims
who got away.

Which is how you found the motel

and the man who reported
radiation sickness.

He was most likely exposed

'cause he was in the room
next door to the Wraith.

See, we didn't think to look for bystanders

that could have been accidentally exposed
due to proximity.

- To the alien?
- No. No.

However, we do believe
that the radioactive material in this case

is being transferred from the target
to the victims.

But the source is being shielded
from our scanning capabilities.

What is it?

Look, we know that the Wraith don't need
to feed as often as the target does.

I mean, they feed for pleasure,
but not in this case,

not if it means leaving a trail behind.

Some other reason?

If they're sick or injured,
they can regenerate,

but it requires energy.

We believe that the target
is unavoidably exposing himself

to high doses of radiation

and is having to eat
to counteract the effects.

What's the source?

He's building a device.

We're not sure of its intended function,

but we know that he was able to salvage
certain parts from his crashed Dart

before we could get to it.

- Well, what about the rest?
- The Wraith are smart.

It wouldn't take them long to learn
the ins and outs

of the way things work around here.

We have reason to believe
that he's already acquired

some of the necessary materials,
but he needs more.

He also needs untraceable currency,
or we would have found him by now.

So he makes money playing poker?
There's got to be a better way than that.

Well, I guess he could rob a bank,

but it's risky,
and it draws a lot of attention.

No, the Wraith love games,

and with their mental abilities,
they are very good at them.

The following is a worst-case scenario
should the device be detonated.

- Excuse me. Wait here.
- Based on the material that we suspect

has already gone into the core,

- there's a very strong likelihood...
- It's not a b*mb.

We need to be prepared
for every possibility.

What would be the point of overcooking
half the United States?

- Revenge.
- Not his first choice.

He wants to send up a flare
signaling the location of Earth

to the rest of the Wraith.

Excuse me.

Rodney, he would not need
that kind of power

to activate a Wraith communicator.

He does if he wants to send a message
to Pegasus and be rescued in his lifetime.

But that would require a massive boost.

Yes! It would require more energy
than he has now.

- Well, not even a ZPM...
- I know!

That kind of burst is uncontrollable.

I never said it wasn't dangerous.

It could open up any number of anomalies.

- Like the inter-dimensional rift?
- Okay. Would you stop bringing that up?

Why do you have to
constantly remind me?

- Especially in front of other people.
- You are such a child.

And yet, I am still smarter than you.

Don't worry. Everything's under control.

Thank you for your cooperation, Detective.

If you think of anything else,
call me at this number.

If he's not finished yet,
why did he stop hiding bodies?

I don't know.
Over-confidence that he can't be caught?

- He left money behind.
- How much?

A few thousand.

Not enough to worry about, I guess.

I realize that this is not
gonna be easy for you.

I'll be in touch. In the meantime,
you're just gonna have to trust

that we'll handle things as best as we can.

I still can't figure out why you trusted me
in the first place.

There's something else I know about you.

It wasn't in the sealed file,
nor am I on record at the time.

That field medic,

the one you defied orders to go back
and try and rescue,

you knew her personally.

You were involved.

Yeah. You know everything.

It was a hard choice.

Certainly, you didn't intend things
to go as badly as they did.

Things just don't always go
the way we plan.

That's it? You're just gonna let me go?

We know where to find you.

Detective.

Remember when I told you
I once met another version of you?

Yeah.

I know you'll probably think
this sounds ridiculous,

but a little while ago,

we accidentally opened a rift
in space-time.

Went through to an alternate
version of reality.

It's very similar to ours in many ways.

I met a team,
much like the one I work with,

only you were the leader. You were a hero.

- Saved the world several times over.
- Doesn't sound much like me.

I don't think there's much difference
between you

and that other John Sheppard I met.

It's amazing how one incident
can entirely alter the course of your life.

Still, I'd like to believe
you have the same strength of character.

That's why I told you the truth.

What do you want me to say?

For now? Nothing.

Border blockades are in place.

Security at commercial airports
are on red alert.

And visual air and ground sweeps
are underway.

Yeah. Census scans from Daedalus
are still coming back negative.

Given the potential range of damage,
an expl*sive device of this kind...

How many times do I have to tell you?
It is not a b*mb.

Do you know,
you have been wrong before.

- Not nearly as often as you.
- Really?

There's been a Wraith out there
for months.

Somehow, he has managed to acquire
the potential capability

to compromise the safety
and security of this planet.

So far, despite all the brain power
and technology at our disposal,

some nobody detective
has come closer than anyone else.

Tell me, please,

how that's possible.

All right. I think...

Doctor, I am not going to accept
that all we can do

is hope the Wraith makes another mistake
and reveals himself.

Find him now,

before he unleashes
whatever he has planned.

What's going on?

They feed on human energy,

literally sap the life out of people
using a sucker on their hand.

Dry as a desert outside.

No place to go.

He wants to send up a flare
signaling the location of Earth

to the rest of the Wraith.

Wraith are never-ending.

I know the future.

But that would require a massive boost.

Yes! He needs more power than he has.

I'll show you your destiny,

John Sheppard.

Recalibrating the scanners to look
for similar isotopes

at maximum sensitivity just shows us
huge patches of radioactive desert.

From 40-year-old nuclear testing.

Yeah, we're talking
hundreds of square miles.

That's like a needle in a haystack.

Or he could've abandoned
whatever resources he had

and just gone into hiding.

Yes, he probably got a job as a Klingon
at Star Trek: The Experience.

- That shut down.
- Really? Damn. I wanted to see that.

Dr. McKay, there's a call for you.
John Sheppard.

- Hello?
- I found him.

- He thinks he's found him. How?
- I remembered

the trailer from the motel.
It's one of those old Silver b*ll*ts.

It's just a hunch.
You said he needed more power,

so I drove along some of the more
remote power lines into the city.

Harriman. He's gonna tap into the grid.

We should have
John Sheppard's coordinates.

Listen to me.

I know what I said, but do not engage.
Do you hear me?

Oh, crap.

ETA to target, three minutes.

We have widespread power outages
being reported across the state.

Daedalus is transmitting new sensor data.

Got it. A massive subspace event.

Ten times the power of an active stargate
and getting stronger.

Its scope increases
the longer it stays active.

What is it?

It's a transmission. Coded in Wraith.
I'm working on it.

Target has been acquired, sir.

Take it out.

We have a direct hit!
Target has been neutralized.

The transmission has ceased.

It contained the location of Earth.

- Is there a chance it reached Pegasus?
- No.

Rodney, I've seen
this energy signature before.

I know.

It looks like the device tore a small hole
in the space-time continuum.

- Do you think that was intended?
- No. Couldn't be.

Most of the energy meant to carry
the Wraith transmission

went through the rift.

To where?

- Well, there's no way to know for sure.
- Other realities.

I'm sorry,
but I only care about us right now.

If John Sheppard hadn't found that Wraith
when he did,

that transmission definitely
would have made it through to Pegasus.

He saved our asses.

Yes, but that transmission
would have been stronger

in any other reality exposed to the rift.

We could be in a lot of trouble right now.