bottom of the advertisement: "Sponsored by Illusions of Empire."
MANAGER
Ah, yes. Our little magic show. You don't want to miss that. It's the only show in town, so to speak.
He hands them two keys.
MANAGER
If there's anything you need, please don't hesitate to ask me. I'm always at the disposal of my guests.
EXT. MAIN STREET - LATE AFTERNOON
Mulder stands on the sidewalk in front of the "Fix-It and Supply Shop." Scully is some distance behind him, talking on her cell-phone. There is a sign on the shop's door: "BACK AT SEVEN."
Scully ends her phone call and walks over to Mulder.
SCULLY
That was Skinner. They're not having any luck on their end. On top of that, the terrorist cover story seems to have backfired: an official at the Syrian embassy in Washington was assassinated about two hours ago, and the Syrians are calling it an "act of retribution" on the part of the United States.
MULDER
Retribution for what? Oh, no--Johnson's murder?
SCULLY
Exactly. And since it's too late to retract the terrorist story, they're just going to have to ride it out.
MULDER
Washington must be a real madhouse. For the first time today, I'm glad we're in Crampton.
SCULLY
Speaking of which, what's the story with the Fix-It Shop?
MULDER
(checking his watch)
We've got about a half hour before Fred's due back. Let's have a look at the hall where this magic show is supposed to be held.
They cross the street and walk the half-block to the Masonic Hall. From the outside, it looks like every other ruined, abandoned building along Main Street, except for the rather cryptic Masonic symbols adorning its face, which Mulder stands contemplating for some moments.
SCULLY
Don't tell me you've never seen a Masonic Hall before.
MULDER
You know, Scully, there are thousands of these things in cities all over the world, but the origins of Freemasonry itself are all but unknown. In the prehistoric period they were one of the first secret societies--possibly the first cult. Some scholars trace the beginnings of the Freemasons to the Egyptian god Thoth, the god of wisdom and learning who's thought of as a source of the earliest writings that attempt to illuminate the mysteries of existence. Thoth is also considered by some to be the first sorcerer or magician, and by others--
SCULLY
(interrupting at the word "magician")
Hold it. Are you trying to tell me that this is some kind of conspiracy involving the Freemasons?
MULDER
Jeez, Scully, when you say it like that, you make it sound ... kinda stupid.
Scully tries the hall's main door. It is unlocked. She pushes it open and the agents look inside. Pitch black.
MULDER
Looks like a flashlight job.
SCULLY
Great.
INT. MASONIC HALL
For a second, everything is black. Then a flashlight beam slices through the darkness.
Even by flashlight, the agents can see the Masonic Hall is a total disaster: broken chairs and debris litter the floor, dust and filth has accumulated in piles in the corners. There is a stage, the wooden planks of which don't look like they can support a person's weight. Still hanging across the stage is a curtain, obviously once quite ornate but now in tatters.
SCULLY
I don't know about you, but I don't think there's going to be a magic show here tomorrow.
MULDER
That's okay--I really hate matinees, anyway.
The beam of the flashlight flickers and goes out. They are plunged into complete blackness.
MULDER
Scully, I think I'm having déjà vu all over again. Scully?
SCULLY
I think I'm having it, too. Not déjà vu exactly. It's like you said: not something you've already done, but something you already know.
There is a CRACK, not unlike that of a hand smacking a flashlight. The beam blazes back to life.
MULDER
(pointing the flashlight)
Is that an office back there?
INT. MASONIC HALL OFFICE
The agents enter the tiny office, the beam of the flashlight roaming around the room. It stops on a desk, apparently the only piece of furniture in the whole building. On it
MANAGER
Ah, yes. Our little magic show. You don't want to miss that. It's the only show in town, so to speak.
He hands them two keys.
MANAGER
If there's anything you need, please don't hesitate to ask me. I'm always at the disposal of my guests.
EXT. MAIN STREET - LATE AFTERNOON
Mulder stands on the sidewalk in front of the "Fix-It and Supply Shop." Scully is some distance behind him, talking on her cell-phone. There is a sign on the shop's door: "BACK AT SEVEN."
Scully ends her phone call and walks over to Mulder.
SCULLY
That was Skinner. They're not having any luck on their end. On top of that, the terrorist cover story seems to have backfired: an official at the Syrian embassy in Washington was assassinated about two hours ago, and the Syrians are calling it an "act of retribution" on the part of the United States.
MULDER
Retribution for what? Oh, no--Johnson's murder?
SCULLY
Exactly. And since it's too late to retract the terrorist story, they're just going to have to ride it out.
MULDER
Washington must be a real madhouse. For the first time today, I'm glad we're in Crampton.
SCULLY
Speaking of which, what's the story with the Fix-It Shop?
MULDER
(checking his watch)
We've got about a half hour before Fred's due back. Let's have a look at the hall where this magic show is supposed to be held.
They cross the street and walk the half-block to the Masonic Hall. From the outside, it looks like every other ruined, abandoned building along Main Street, except for the rather cryptic Masonic symbols adorning its face, which Mulder stands contemplating for some moments.
SCULLY
Don't tell me you've never seen a Masonic Hall before.
MULDER
You know, Scully, there are thousands of these things in cities all over the world, but the origins of Freemasonry itself are all but unknown. In the prehistoric period they were one of the first secret societies--possibly the first cult. Some scholars trace the beginnings of the Freemasons to the Egyptian god Thoth, the god of wisdom and learning who's thought of as a source of the earliest writings that attempt to illuminate the mysteries of existence. Thoth is also considered by some to be the first sorcerer or magician, and by others--
SCULLY
(interrupting at the word "magician")
Hold it. Are you trying to tell me that this is some kind of conspiracy involving the Freemasons?
MULDER
Jeez, Scully, when you say it like that, you make it sound ... kinda stupid.
Scully tries the hall's main door. It is unlocked. She pushes it open and the agents look inside. Pitch black.
MULDER
Looks like a flashlight job.
SCULLY
Great.
INT. MASONIC HALL
For a second, everything is black. Then a flashlight beam slices through the darkness.
Even by flashlight, the agents can see the Masonic Hall is a total disaster: broken chairs and debris litter the floor, dust and filth has accumulated in piles in the corners. There is a stage, the wooden planks of which don't look like they can support a person's weight. Still hanging across the stage is a curtain, obviously once quite ornate but now in tatters.
SCULLY
I don't know about you, but I don't think there's going to be a magic show here tomorrow.
MULDER
That's okay--I really hate matinees, anyway.
The beam of the flashlight flickers and goes out. They are plunged into complete blackness.
MULDER
Scully, I think I'm having déjà vu all over again. Scully?
SCULLY
I think I'm having it, too. Not déjà vu exactly. It's like you said: not something you've already done, but something you already know.
There is a CRACK, not unlike that of a hand smacking a flashlight. The beam blazes back to life.
MULDER
(pointing the flashlight)
Is that an office back there?
INT. MASONIC HALL OFFICE
The agents enter the tiny office, the beam of the flashlight roaming around the room. It stops on a desk, apparently the only piece of furniture in the whole building. On it
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