Atticus Institute, The (2015)

[bunniefuu]

Good.

My dad had three kids.

Ahem.

Me, my sister, and the institute.

That's just the way it was.

You knew that if you had

a baseball game

or, I don't know,

some sort of special event,

there was always a good chance

he might not be there.

I mean, don't get me wrong,

he was there a good amount of the time.

Just not all the time.

I remember I tried to trick him

into thinking I had ESP.

Or that I was moving stuff

around with my mind,

hoping it might get him

to pay a little more attention.

And he'd play along

for a few minutes,

but then he'd leave for work.

I was four, um,

when it happened.

So I don't have too many

memories of my father.

I kinda remember what it felt like

to be with him.

Talking with me,

holding me.

One thing I've always remembered

is this game we used to play

on nights when

he'd put me to bed.

He'd ask all these questions

about animals.

How many eyes

does a fish have?

And I'd say, "Two."

How many noses

does a monkey have?

How many ears

does a gopher have?

That's really all there was to it.

I remember thinking it was fun.

We got married in 1965.

I wanted children right away,

but Henry wanted to wait.

'Cause it was about that time

that he was starting the institute.

And then he had

a different research lab job

at the same time

so we could make rent.

He worked a lot.

Even after we had both kids.

But he loved it.

You know?

A man has the right

to love his work.

Lawrence Henault: Our goal was

to conduct unbiased, empirical research

on exceptional human abilities.

Psychokinesis, ESP, precognition.

Things that are typically considered

fringe science or parapsychology.

Dr. West, and the rest of us,

quite frankly,

all believed that

there was real science

to be discovered

in these areas.

We had a good time

doing what we were doing.

We were underfunded,

of course,

but we were still relatively young,

so it didn't matter.

In the first few years alone,

we published close to

30 journal articles between us.

And there were

some truly exceptional cases.

All documented.

Well, we did a lot of different

kinds of tests, but, uh,

probably the most effective one

to measure clairvoyant abilities

were the Zener cards.

This one?

It's the lines.

The wavy lines.

Wheeler: Well, if you

select each card at random,

then the success ratio

will be close to 20%.

But we had several subjects

whose ratio was closer to 30%.

And that might not seem

like very much,

but if you realize

that we did each test

over 200 times,

you begin to understand

the virtual impossibility

of that figure.

Susan Gorman:

I think we were all secretly hoping

to discover the next Nina Kulagina.

She was a woman

from the former Soviet Union.

Truly remarkable.

Nina's psychokinetic abilities were

probably the most well-documented

and they stood up

to the strictest of scrutiny.

The closest we encountered

to that level was Norman LeClair.

French-Canadian man.

Norman's PK abilities

were astounding at times.

Dr. West: That's how it works.

Pretty simple, huh?

Yeah.

Try to vibrate the game board.

It's all right.

Take your time.

That's all right. You gave it

your best shot. We can try again later.

Henaufi:

Dr. West brought in colleagues,

some well-known and esteemed researchers

at the time,

to observe Norman.

All the necessary steps

were taken

to prevent any claims

of researcher bias

or improper testing methods.

Gorman:

All outside variables were controlled,

for this was to be

the moment the snickering,

the talking behind hands

would finally stop.

This was proof.

- God, I can't believe that.

- Explain that.

- As we said.

- How do you explain that one?

How do you explain that?

- What do you guys think?

- Oh, my God.

Wheeler:

Oh, they were clearly impressed.

Even though,

I'd have to say,

they didn't really

allow themselves to show it.

I was happy.

I was happy for Henry.

He had worked so hard

for that moment.

But then,

just before the researchers left...

one of them noticed

something odd

on the wristwatch

of one of our research assistants.

And it turned out that this watch

had been rigged with a small

neodymium magnet.

And every one of our tests

involved metal in some capacity.

Even the trace amounts

of iron in the cereal.

And this guy had been complicit

with Norman's ruse

right from the start.

Right under our noses.

It was--

it was a crushing blow.

For the institute's credibility

and for Henry's reputation.

It was-- it was awful.

Is there something else

we should know about?

Judith?

With you?

It's like, um...

it's like being

in a well sometimes.

I can see it, I can hear it,

but nobody knows I'm there.

I'd-- I'd like to help you.

Whatever is going on.

Wheeler: Judith was first

brought to the institute

in September of 1976

by her sister--

sister Margaret.

She had been reading

about the work we were doing

in a small magazine

or something.

And she thought we would

be interested in testing Judith.

The first thing she did

when she walked in

was she told me

it was my birthday.

Which caught me

a bit off guard.

Not because it was my birthday.

It wasn't, it was the day before.

Maybe it was a guess.

You see,

that's something

you always have to guard against

with the work we did.

Lucky guesses.

False positives.

If you let yourself fall victim

to a belief bias of any kind,

that's when you start

forcing the pieces together.

Even when they don't fit at all.

Judith...

she seemed average.

She's in her early 40s.

Can't say there's anything particularly

remarkable about her appearance.

She was kind of the type of person

that you would pass by

on the street in any town.

You might say hello, smile,

but that's about it.

You would have no idea

that Judith was what she was.

I was older than her

by seven years.

She was a silly kid.

And we had a lot of fun.

There was one day,

she was around 35,

she slipped on a patch of ice

on the sidewalk

and hurt her back

pretty badly.

And after that,

she had a little trouble moving,

getting around.

And her pain was consistent.

It was chronic.

It was enough that

my husband and I decided

that she shouldn't be

living alone anymore.

So she moved in

with us and the kids.

About a year after

Judith moved in,

she began to withdraw.

I mean, she would stay

in her room for days.

I'm not sure

she would even eat.

I don't know what she did

when she was alone.

She was reading

some very unusual books.

And that's when it all started.

And I knew things weren't right.

There were things--

there were things

that I saw her do

that I just--

I had to do something.

And to this day,

part of me still regrets

doing what I did,

but I had to.

Gorman: But Dr. West was intrigued

with Judith almost immediately.

Yeah, we all were.

By this point,

we'd researched hundreds of cases,

brought in almost as many

subjects into the lab.

Judith was different, though.

We just had no idea

how different at this point.

Dr. West: Um, ahem.

Can you tell us your name, please?

Ahem. Judith Winstead.

And what's your date of birth,

Judith?

February 18th, 1935.

And your marital status?

I'm not married.

Have you ever been?

Okay.

How many siblings do you have?

One.

Are your parents still alive?

- Judith, are your parents still alive?

- No.

Okay. Are you right-handed

or left-handed?

Judith's behavior was always odd.

Even from the first day she arrived.

But in our field, it wasn't uncommon

to encounter odd people.

So we didn't give it much thought.

Wheeler: Ms. Winstead?

Right-handed.

Dr. West:

And when did you first realize

you had certain abilities?

Are you-- are you all right, dear?

Oh...

You're bleeding.

Oh, my God.

Wheeler: Here's some...

Dr. West:

Give her some towels.

Wheeler:

Oh, uh, tilt your head back, okay?

Pinch your nose.

Dr. West: It's not her nose,

it's her hand. Her hand is bleeding.

Wheeler: What?

Did you-- did you bite yourself?

Dr. West: Why?

Susan, let's get her--

get her to the ladies' room, please.

Gorman:

As long as you're okay with it.

That's all right.

Just take her-- that's all right.

Dr. West:

Just take care of her.

Gorman: Judith?

Wait, is she-- no, no, no.

What is she doing?

Stop.

- Gorman: Just stop. Calm down.

- Judith: Let go.

Dr. West: Ms. Winstead.

Judith, stop, please.

Well, for starters,

Judith came to us in an unusual way.

Most times, we learn of someone

and seek them out.

We had no idea

Judith was even out there.

Nevertheless,

she tested beyond

what any of us thought

was even possible.

There was no measure.

Truly no measure

for her abilities.

If you can, try for seven this time.

Any combination.

Dr. West:

Three and four.

One and six.

Three and four.

One and six.

Two and five.

Uh, Judith, what I'd like you

to try to do

is to move the wheel

without actually touching it.

Try to concentrate your mind.

Focus your thoughts.

She outperformed every subject

we'd ever studied.

There was no comparison

to be made.

I understand how peculiar

it might seem

to hear her abilities described

in this way, but they were godlike.

Okay, Judith,

what do you see this time?

- Judith?

- Star.

- And this time.

- Square.

And what do you see this time?

Mm.

Judith, are you all right?

Are you all right, Judith?

Do you--

can we continue

with the exercise?

- I think she's--

- Judith?

I think she's okay.

All right, let's resume.

Judith, what--

- The card bent.

- What?

- That card bent. We're taking a break.

- What do you mean?

Dr. West?

Wheeler:

Looking back, I--

I guess I should've known better.

I mean, yes, we'd seen--

witnessed amazing things

in the past.

But nothing like that.

Nothing, nothing like that.

Inverse square law.

Conservation of momentum.

These were well-established

laws of physics

that were being violated.

The second law

of thermodynamics.

All of these.

We should've been scared.

Someone

with that much power would--

but we were too excited

to be scared.

We finally had the proof--

not another hoax--

that we'd been seeking for years.

We had our Nina Kulagina.

Gorman: What I remember,

she was due to...

stay overnight in the lab

through the weekend.

We did this quite often

with subjects

because anomalous events

sometimes occur

during the deep-sleep cycle.

And we monitored the subjects

through the night

using various recording devices.

During Judith's first overnight,

we only had one staff member present.

Kenneth.

I don't ever think

I knew his last name.

He was a graduate student

at the time.

Nice, quiet kid.

Came from a farming family.

I remember that because so do I.

He was-- he was alone

with Judith that night

sitting not far from her bed.

I don't even think he knew

that he was being recorded

because you can

see him smoking,

which he wasn't supposed

to be doing in the lab.

Nothing happened for hours.

Nobody ever found out

what happened.

But whatever did...

that was it for him.

Never came back.

W-we tried contacting

Judith's sister, Margaret.

We couldn't reach her.

She'd disconnected her phone.

It became clear at that moment...

that Margaret

had abandoned her.

The decision now

was what we were gonna do.

I could tell that Lawrence was already

reaching a bit of a breaking point.

It was obvious.

It wasn't so obvious

with Dr. West.

Not to me anyway.

Wheeler: Well, we simply

made the decision

that we were going

to continue our testing with her.

But after that night,

it became extremely difficult.

It was so unnerving.

Her behavior.

It was so incredibly...

she would say things

and do things that made you...

She would scream in that voice.

Grab her!

It wasn't hers.

It was like an animal.

Wheeler:

Henry seemed most affected by it.

He tried his best

to shield the others from that.

I knew him well enough to know

that he was deeply affected.

Steven:

I watched my father change firsthand.

And I have no doubt whatsoever

that what happened in that lab

caused that change.

Cathleen: I remember being

in the seventh grade

years later,

and other kids making fun of me.

Call him crazy.

They'd say I'd be crazy.

Patricia: Back then,

it was different than it is now.

Now everyone has a therapist.

They go for anything--

stubbed toe.

But back then,

you went if it was

something bad.

And especially

if medication was involved.

And in my husband's case,

it was.

Therapist on recording:

Why do you say that, Henry?

Dr. West on recording:

You don't understand.

- Therapist: Okay.

- I see what's happening.

Therapist: At work?

Therapist: I can't help you

if you don't tell me

- what you think is happening.

- Dr. West: I can't tell you.

Therapist:

What are you so afraid of, Henry?

I know it's very trying,

but we would really like

to continue.

- Can you please stop that, Judith?

- Can you please stop that, please?

We'd really like to continue--

We had about 10 different degrees

between us.

Including one in medicine,

three in psychology.

And we knew...

that was not normal.

Wheeler: Judith was not

a typical test subject.

She had made that

abundantly clear by that point.

And I felt

we needed help.

Robert Koepp: I received a file

from another analyst.

It was something he thought

I should take a look at.

We started a program to

investigate psi in the early '70s.

Psi-related phenomenon.

About five years after KGB

conducted similar studies.

I didn't have the highest

expectations going in.

I felt we'd already

been down that road.

And it proved to be

a waste of time and money.

But Marcus was a friend of a friend,

and so I went.

It's difficult to explain.

But you could feel something...

a weight,

an invisible weight.

The whole lab

took on that feeling

the minute he stepped

through the door.

Henault: It was if he represented

a challenge to her,

to her power.

Everything we had seen

up until that point,

everything Judith had done,

everything we'd witnessed,

it barely compared

to what happened after he arrived.

Koepp: I assumed they'd run

through the usual battery of psi tests.

The cards, the elaborate devices

with the numbers, but they didn't.

They told me that those tests

weren't right for her.

Dr. West: This here's a way

to convince anyone.

Easiest and simplest way

to begin the demonstration.

Now you understand

why we've called you in here.

That can't be accounted for

through any known

rational explanation.

And she's able to repeat it

with a variety of different materials.

Breaking the third law

of thermal dynamics.

Gorman: By the time the man

from the Defense Intelligence Agency,

Robert Koepp, arrived,

we'd given up on

our standard testing procedure.

Well, we'd simply talked to her.

It was so difficult.

She knew...

too much.

Think of any object.

- Koepp: Something in the room?

- No, it doesn't have to be.

No, let's make it something

not in the room.

- German: Okay.

- Koepp: Okay.

Draw what you see, please.

And what object

were you thinking of?

A hammer.

- Excuse me.

- Susan?

- Susan.

- Henry, she--

You don't frighten me!

- You don't f*cking know!

- Susan! Stop it!

- What are you doing?!

- Dr. West: Marcus!

- Susan, calm down.

- Susan: How dare you?!

- You don't know anything!

- Take her outside, please.

Just take her outside.

German:

She had drawn a shamrock.

Back in 1973,

three years earlier,

I had travelled back to London

for my mum's funeral.

I was devastated.

Her family had immigrated

to London from Ireland

and she was very proud

of her Irish heritage.

And in her casket,

she had worn the same brooch

that she'd worn

almost every day of her life.

It was a shamrock.

As soon as I saw that picture,

I realized what Judith

had whispered to me.

"You weren't there."

Which is true,

I wasn't.

My mother died

the day before I made it home.

And that woman...

that thing

somehow knew that.

And how much guilt.

She wanted me

to behave that way.

She wanted me to react that way.

To humiliate me

in front of my peers

by turning me into everything

I had tried so hard not to be.

Well, the incident with Susan

was very unsettling

because it demonstrated

Judith's ability to influence us.

She was definitely

influencing Henry.

He started to pull back.

Which was unlike him.

I thought he was gonna fight

the government's involvement,

but that didn't happen.

He withdrew

and they took over.

Judith: My arm!

Man:

Use the strap right there.

- Man #2: Please, step back.

- Man #3: You're gonna break her arm.

- Man #2: Please, step back.

- Dr. West: What are you giving her?

Man #4:

Tell Robert.

Heartbeat's back again. Mark it.

14 minutes and 27 seconds.

- Any physical deterioration?

- Nothing.

Jesus.

Koepp: She's pissing again.

Get the towels.

Man:

It's over there. Get it.

- Judith: No.

- That's good. Thank you.

Step back.

Check her! Make sure she's all right!

Man: Not that, that.

Once they witnessed

the things we'd all seen,

it became

a very different scenario.

It didn't matter what

my preconceived notions were

before visiting the institute.

What mattered now

was national security.

We left nothing to chance.

All evidence

was thoroughly reviewed

by top Defense Department

analysts.

Tissue samples were extracted.

Blood samples taken.

Plans were immediately put in place

to contain the situation.

The institute was locked down.

We assumed control of all testing

and information collection.

Strict security protocols

were put in place.

This was a coordinated

military effort

with support from the highest levels

of the government.

Soldiers were stationed

around the clock inside the lab,

all of them armed.

Koepp:

We were there because we believed it.

Now we wanted to see it.

Man:

The camera's ready.

- Man #2: Lights ready.

- Man #3: Flashing.

Man: I think he's having a seizure.

- Henault: Henry?

- Man #2: Doctor, Doctor!

- Get a hand under his head.

- Man #3: Turn the lights on.

- Man: Keep his mouth open.

- Man #3: Turn the lights on!

Man #2: Where is she?

Man #3:

Stop the flashing now!

The DIA report prompted swift action.

We looked at the evidence,

we reviewed the footage

of the seizure incident.

Dr. West had no history of epilepsy

or any related condition,

so it's highly unlikely

that the flashing lights

could've triggered it.

We could not say definitively

that Ms. Winstead

caused the seizure,

but we certainly

couldn't rule it out either.

Several meetings were held to discuss

the seriousness of this threat.

I can't speak to the specifics

of what was discussed,

but suffice it to say

if you're gonna inform the White House

of something as crazy as this,

you better be damn sure it's true.

Koepp: All psychological

and pharmacological

explanations were ruled out.

Her blood samples came back with

impossibly high electrolyte levels.

A completely unknown

molecular compound

was found in her tissue.

Something was inside her.

No doubt about that.

Not a disease.

Not a parasite.

An evil.

Therapist on recording:

Do you think you know

what caused the seizure?

- Henry?

- Dr. West on recording: Yes.

- Are you taking the new medication?

- It has nothing to do with that.

Henry, it is important

that you keep--

Dr. West:

I am taking it.

I'm seeing things at night.

I can't stop thinking

about everything.

I try, but...

And even when I'm with my family,

I feel it.

I'm afraid.

I'm afraid of what might

happen to them.

But, yes,

I am taking the new medication.

Wheeler:

The story was that when the KGB

learned about

Nina Kulagina's ability,

they performed a test

with a living frog.

This was back in 1970.

The Soviets wanted to see if Nina

could telekinetically affect

the bioelectrical impulses

in living tissue.

To speed up and slow down

its heartbeat.

And allegedly,

she did.

So our government

wanted to see

if they could replicate

those results with Judith.

German". Good God.

Man: Jesus.

- Man #2: Why's he barking?

- It's her. She's still doing it.

Koepp:

She's doing it to the dog.

No, her!

Man: Turn on the lights!

Turn on the lights!

Secure this room now.

Right now!

All right, quiet.

Quiet.

Quiet! Everyone, quiet.

Don't move.

- Man: What the-- somebody look.

- Dr. West: Robert, what's happening?

Koepp: Take it down. Quiet.

Shh. Quiet.

German". Marcus.

Koepp: Shh. Shh.

- Nobody move. Nobody move.

- Gorman: Ah! Who's touching me?

Man: Turn on the light!

Turn on the light now. Turn it on.

Man #2:

Turn that light back on.

Man: Grab her!

Imagine being 22, 23 years old,

best shape of your life,

armed to the teeth.

And you scared

of some lady looked like

she could've been

your primary school teacher.

That's what was going on then.

You understand?

Things took

a significant turn after that.

I think in total,

there were...

six or seven unexplainable

incidents that occurred.

All outside the institute.

One of the government

researcher's cousins

almost died in a car wreck.

There was, uh, a soldier's father

was attacked by a dog.

There was a house fire,

if I remember correctly.

And on and on it went.

Now, each of these things on their own

could be a coincidence,

but the likelihood that all of them

would happen together

to the family and friends

of this same group of people

in the same span of time

is astonishingly low.

My son Jeffrey started

waking up night after night

screaming with night terrors.

My wife and I found out that

that was common

among toddlers.

I don't know.

I don't know if it is or not.

It was-- it was so eerie.

I just...

I was starting to think that maybe

my work was following me home.

I felt bad for Sarge.

His father got bit up real bad

by some stray.

Pit bull, I think.

And let me tell ya,

she knew.

The day after it happened,

she kept staring at him.

He hadn't told any one of us.

Nobody knew

for about another week.

But she knew.

The whole time,

she knew.

It was late one night in the lab.

And I happened to notice

a paper clip on the floor

inside the air lock portion

of Judith's enclosure.

Now, that environment

was meticulously kept.

It was nearly sterile.

So there was no explaining

how it got there.

Anyway...

I picked it up,

I stuffed it in my pocket

and didn't give it

another thought.

We were at my sister's house

for my nephew's birthday.

My wife and I never had kids,

so Matthew was very dear to us.

And I remember

reaching for my keys

and thinking I heard something

fall onto the ground

from my pocket.

It was the paper clip.

Burt, knock it off.

- Claire, it's Matt!

- What?!

Matthew!

Oh, my God!

Man:

Matthew? Matthew?

- Oh, my God! Sweetheart!

- Woman: He's not breathing!

He'd stuck it

in a wall socket.

I could've worn

any other pants that day,

but I wore those.

And that paper clip just

happened to be what he found?

Out of all the things in the world--

a balled-up receipt,

a stick of bubble gum--

that's what happened to fall

out of my pocket at that moment?

Not at any point

in the five days before that?

Not-- not anywhere else?

Not in-- not in the hamper?

In the washing machine?

In the dryer? There?

On his birthday?

And the way the dog was barking,

it was-- it was-- it was like...

What happened

was no accident.

That was it.

I'd had enough.

It was 10 years until I heard

from Lawrence again.

He and his wife moved out of the country

shortly after it happened.

I was surprised he didn't leave

the institute sooner than he did.

It was a shame

what happened to his nephew.

I don't think Lawrence

ever really forgave himself.

Well, we couldn't discount the events

that happened outside the institute.

Too much happened

for it to be coincidence.

But what it did do is

make us rethink our strategy.

Man: What are we gonna use

to immobilize her?

Fentanyl.

The gas derivative of it

should knock her out in seconds.

Man:

It could also k*ll her.

Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey.

No, no, no.

- Man: Whoa, hey.

- Dr. West: You can't keep her in there.

- Now's not the time for compassion.

- She's a human being.

There are laws against that

sort of treatment for a reason.

Who do you think

makes those laws?

- This is my lab.

- No, not anymore it's not.

I have sat back and kept quiet

while I've seen you--

And you'd do well to stay quiet.

Get him outta here.

I never should've

called you people.

Hold on.

You really think

you're equipped to handle this?

Your little lab here with your

flash cards and ESP machines?

See it...

but then it's gone.

Now it comes back.

You can see that

in the rest of the pictures.

For those few moments...

it wasn't in the room.

Might not even

been in the building.

Do you understand

what I'm telling you?

We don't control this,

it's not just us who will be at risk.

And if you do control it,

then who will be at risk?

Koepp: We recognized

the danger of allowing it

to remain even

remotely unrestricted.

It was immensely powerful.

And rather than continually

try to explain it,

the decision was made

to attempt to harness it.

Repeat the following:

one, two, three, four, five.

Your instructions are clear.

Repeat the following:

one, two, three, four, five.

You will cooperate.

Now, this is a map

divided into a grid

consisting of five sections.

One, two, three, four, five.

I want you to listen carefully

and concentrate.

There are a*tillery

and biological weapons

being stored somewhere

in this region.

Look at the grid

and tell me

the number of where.

Tell me where

they're being stored.

You will cooperate.

Put it away.

Part of me will always

feel responsible.

Because it was my idea

to notify the military.

I don't know what

we would've done otherwise.

But I do wonder

if Henry might

still be alive today

if I had settled on a more...

reasonable solution.

Koepp: Sergeant.

Do you hear me?

Ms. Winstead,

your instructions

are to make Sergeant Parella

say exactly the following:

reposition all nuclear submarines

out of the Baltic Sea.

Once again,

reposition all nuclear submarines

out of the Baltic Sea.

Your instructions are clear.

How many eyes does a fish have?

- Koepp: Turn up his volume.

- How many ears does a gopher have?

How many noses

does a monkey have?

How many arms

does a whale have?

How many hoofs

does a horse have?

- How many noses does a monkey have?

- Koepp: Dr. West?

- How many stripes does a zebra have?

- Dr. West.

How many eyes

does a fish have?

How many ears

does an elephant have?

How many stripes

does a zebra have?

How many eyes

does a fish have?

- How many eyes does a fish have?

- Gorman: Henry.

How many noses does a monkey have?

- Koepp: Dr. West.

- How many noses does a monkey have?

How many noses

does a monkey have?

How many noses does

a monkey have?

How many noses

does a monkey have?

How many noses--

You can't control

something like that.

I don't care who you are,

how many weapons you have.

All those things that went on...

you don't get to play games

with the Devil.

And if you do, you damn sure

don't get to make the rules.

That type of evil...

just thinking about it,

talking about it.

Even you people

making this movie...

and the people watching it...

you're inviting

bad things into your life.

Too late for me.

All the things I've seen.

Koepp:

This wasn't like the books

or the movies

or false accounts you hear about.

If those cases were legitimate,

I can assure you,

we would've intervened.

This is real.

There was no speculative data.

There was no charlatan's

looking to make a buck.

This was the only governmentally

confirmed case of possession.

Arguably the most significant

thing we learned

was that it had an intelligence.

That meant that

it was able to conduct

some form of

cost-benefit analysis.

Our plan was to utilize

its ability to reason

as a stopgap measure

to clear a psychological pathway.

So they essentially

offered it a choice

between cooperating

or suffering.

But it was a false choice

because both options

caused Judith to suffer.

Their belief was that if they

could control her physical body,

chiefly her mind,

they could control

how the force manifested.

Possess the possession

is what they would say.

As if it was gonna work that way.

Man: Clear, go again.

They pushed that poor woman

to her limits.

Judith Winstead,

the person.

I felt terrible for her.

But there was nothing

we could do to help her.

Judith: Please, stop.

Please, stop.

Koepp: We were eventually

able to devise a method

of governing the force.

Once we controlled her,

we could

effectively control it.

Once that happened,

the nature of our involvement

changed dramatically.

It was... shocking.

But it wasn't at the same time.

We knew something was coming.

I mean,

a few nights before that, I...

found him curled up in a ball

under the bathroom sink.

Talking to himself.

Crying.

I mean,

he was scared to death.

Henry was nearing

the end of his rope.

After a while,

he rarely even set foot in the lab.

He would lock himself

in the office for hours at a time.

Sometimes you could hear him

muttering from behind the door.

Things were reaching

a tipping point.

Koepp: I do. I do believe

that it drove Dr. West to that.

Trust me.

We did a complete background check.

We knew everything.

We knew about the therapy,

the medication.

What happened

was not a product of psychosis.

Therapist: Maybe you should

take some time away from work.

Henry?

Maybe take some time off?

It doesn't matter where I am.

It's everywhere.

It's like a shadow.

Except it's not mine.

So you feel like it's following you,

the shadow.

I feel like it's already caught me.

To be totally honest, Henry,

I find a lot of this very troubling.

Is that why you're using that?

- We always record the sessions.

- Not on a camera.

Well, I--

things seem different.

- Did they make you do this?

- Did who?

Is this to make sure

I don't say anything?

I don't know what

you're talking about.

They're pushing it too far.

They want to control everything,

but they can't.

It's too powerful.

It's too strong.

Take it easy, Henry.

I'm trying to make you understand.

There's something happening.

- To you?

- Yes.

To me, then maybe to you,

then maybe to them.

Whoever it chooses.

There's no science

left in the world for this,

but they think there is.

It doesn't even matter anymore

what I say.

It's gonna speak for itself.

So use your g*dd*mn camera.

Write my name.

Write my words across the sky.

I don't give a damn

because if it--

if they keep pushing it

the way they are...

Nod if you can hear me.

Good.

What I want you to do now

is focus on the person

on the television.

Nod if you understand.

I want you to tell me his name.

Your instructions are clear.

Tell me the name of the person

you see on the television.

Alan.

Tu rcott.

Next, I want you to tell me

his current location.

Hanscom.

Office.

Military office.

Let's get them on the phone.

- Tell them we're gonna try it out.

- Man: We're gonna try it out.

They're ready.

Listen very carefully

to what I'm gonna tell you.

What I want you to do now

is attempt to influence

Private Turcott's breathing.

Begin.

Your instructions are clear.

- Dr. West: Tell her to stop it.

- Stop it.

- Tell her to stop!

- Stop.

I said stop!

Okay. Hit her!

We eventually figured out

what was going on.

And we felt so foolish

for not having recognized

that that was the government's

intention from the beginning.

To weaponize her.

Having the ability

to remotely collect intel.

To be able to read the minds

of foreign leaders

to know exactly

what their plan of attack is.

Where they were and what they

were thinking at any given moment.

And, if necessary,

being able to collapse their lungs

and stop their hearts.

All from thousands of miles away.

We were looking at the future

of clandestine warfare.

Where attacks could be

as strategic

and as untraceable

as we saw fit.

Gorman: The rigors of their testing

protocol increased enormously.

The more they pushed,

the more defiant she became.

Well, it became.

We treated her like the discovery

of any new destructive force.

Much of what we did

mirrored the testing procedures

used in the early atomic testing.

We needed to

understand this power

if we were intent

on utilizing it.

What are you?

How do you choose your host?

Now.

Tell me your name.

They were getting very frustrated

because everything she said

sounded like gibberish.

They kept shocking her.

When she didn't give them the answer

they wanted, they'd shock her again.

They'd up the voltage

and shock her again.

Pruitt: Our analysts

were eventually able to isolate

certain elements

of Judith's speech.

Turned out she hadn't been

speaking gibberish at all.

What are you?

How do you choose your host?

This will all be over soon.

It just proved that

she was in control the entire time.

Just drawing us in.

Drawing us in closer.

And instead of stopping

like we all knew we should,

we kept g0il19-

We were too close

to something

truly revolutionary to stop.

It was affecting everyone,

but that's the nature

of any struggle, any battle.

Push and you will be resisted.

That's why you want to be

the one pushing the hardest.

You would hear them discussing

new ideas and strategies,

disruption techniques,

but nobody would talk

about what was obvious.

That there are certain things

in this world

that we will never understand.

And Judith Winstead

was one of them.

It was acutely averse

to all things

related to religion.

Even more than it was

to electroshock.

And that poor priest...

he was just a pawn.

Koepp: We were very much against

involving the Church.

We didn't want to turn this

into a sideshow.

At the same time,

we had to gain

control somehow.

This one, too.

Uh, thumbprint

on that one as well.

- Do you understand everything?

- I do, yes.

Into the camera, please.

I understand.

Okay.

Do you have any questions?

No.

Good.

That last night in the lab was...

it was crazy.

They told us to double up

on our a*mo just to stay safe.

There was a big buildup.

Everyone was mentally preparing

for what might happen.

We needed to get it

out of the lab

and we couldn't do that

with a civilian.

We had to transfer it

into one of our own.

When I arrived

at the lab that night

and found out

what was going to happen...

I froze.

I wanted to scream

for them not to try that.

But I didn't say a word.

I wanted to get out of there

real bad.

I remember, I wanted

to sneak out the back door

when nobody was looking

and just go.

And of course I couldn't.

I should've.

Man:

Go ahead.

Copy that.

Get ready, Corporal.

Man: Hey, hey, he)!-

Dr. West:

Stop the transfer.

The power of the blood of Jesus

commands you!

Bow to the Lord!

Koepp: Get him out of there.

- Hit the gas. Hit the gas.

- Priest: Help! Help!

Pull him out!

Man: Pull him out.

Make sure he's okay.

Are you okay?

- I'm gonna clear it.

- No. No, no, no. Hold on.

Man on radio:

Did it work? Did it work?

L-- I don't know.

Give her a quick charge.

Man:

She's still out.

No, no. The electrodes

got disconnected. See?

sh*t.

- Are you positive she's unconscious?

- No.

- Can we gas her again?

- It might be too much.

Well, I'm not going in there

unless I know she's completely--

- Then don't go in there.

- Don't go in there?

- We've got nothing if it's dead.

- If we don't get the electrodes--

- Are you crazy?

- We've got nothing if it's dead.

- Hit her again!

- Robert, don't do it.

- I'm not gonna hit her again.

- Now!

- Hit her again!

- Don't--

Robert, don't.

Koepp:

Bilateral?

Man:

Uh, bi-frontal.

What are you doing? What are you doing?

You need to step back.

I'm gonna check him.

I'm gonna check his pulse.

- That's it?

- That's all.

Let's start clearing again--

Get him outta here.

Let's go. Come on. Let's go.

The situation was a disaster

in all possible ways.

Local law enforcement

got involved,

the media.

They all wanted to know

what happened, naturally.

They had a right to the story.

Just not to all of it.

I'm still not at liberty to discuss

much more than I have.

Especially as it pertains to the events

that took place after that night.

But I can tell you this--

the measures taken were done

with the best interests

of this country in mind.

Margaret:

It wasn't until fairly recently

that I found out

what happened to my sister.

And as horrible

as it probably sounds,

I preferred it that way.

She was a good person.

She was.

But people change.

Even good people.

I know that the official story

was that he was crazy.

He was a mad scientist

who had finally lost the last

of his widely scattered marbles.

But believe me when I tell you,

Henry West was not crazy.

Which I suppose...

leaves us with

the alternate explanation.

What is this?

Judith: Please, help.