The Manifesto
E 2: "Gaslit Victims"
TEASER
INT. SAFE HOUSE – NIGHT
The room is dimly lit. MARIA, a survivor from the previous episode, sits across from PRENTISS and REID. Her eyes are wide but unfocused, haunted.
MARIA:
I don't know what's real anymore. They told me my memories were lies. That I was crazy.
PRENTISS exchanges a glance with REID.
ACT ONE
INT. BAU BRIEFING ROOM – MORNING
The team assembles, tension thick in the air.
PRENTISS:
Maria's not alone. Several survivors report the same thing—hypnosis, drugs, gaslighting. They can't trust their own minds.
REID:
It's classic MK-ULTRA tactics. Trauma bonding, memory suppression, and chemical manipulation.
ROSSI:
And it's working. Victims are too disoriented to seek help or testify.
JJ:
One survivor managed to recall fragments of the manifesto. It's incomplete, but it's a start.
FIN:
We need to find more survivors and piece together what Diane's network looks like.
ACT TWO
INT. INTERROGATION ROOM – DAY
The team interviews another survivor, LISA, disoriented but determined.
LISA:
They used gaslighting. Made me question everything—my family, my sanity. I thought I was losing my mind.
REID:
Did they use any drugs?
Lisa nods weakly.
LISA:
Scopolamine… they called it "the devil's breath." It erased parts of me.
PENELOPE GARCIA joins via video call, holding up digital files.
GARCIA:
I cross-referenced medical records and found patterns of scopolamine poisoning in several victims.
JJ:
So Diane's network is systematically erasing identities and controlling victims chemically and psychologically.
ACT THREE
INT. BAU TECH ROOM – NIGHT
REID and GARCIA pore over encrypted files from Diane's manifesto.
REID:
Maeve Donovan's name appears repeatedly, but her records are fragmented, altered.
GARCIA:
She's been gaslit and chemically manipulated, but she's fighting back—leaving subtle clues in the cipher.
REID:
The manifesto uses modular arithmetic and folding patterns. It's a psychological weapon as much as a map.
ACT FOUR
INT. SAFE HOUSE – NIGHT
REID visits MARIA again, gently guiding her through memory exercises.
REID:
Try to focus on one moment. Anything that feels real.
Maria's eyes flicker with recognition.
MARIA:
There was a room… cold… with a chessboard.
REID's expression tightens.
REID:
That's Diane's signature. She's playing a game, and we're the pieces.
ACT FIVE
INT. BAU WAR ROOM – DAY
The team gathers around a large map dotted with locations tied to the manifesto.
PRENTISS:
We're closing in. The manifesto's layers are unraveling.
ROSSI:
But Diane's network is vast. And she's always one step ahead.
BENSON (via video):
We need to prepare for a psychological battle. Diane won't just fight with guns—she'll use minds.
TAG
INT. DIANE TURNER'S HIDEOUT – NIGHT
DIANE watches surveillance footage of the BAU's progress. She smiles coldly.
DIANE:
Let the game continue.