The Manifesto
Episode 12: "False Faces"
TEASER
INT. TELEVISION STUDIO – NIGHT
A glamorous news anchor, JANELLE FORD, sits at her desk, prepping for the evening broadcast. Her producer hands her a flash drive, marked with a chess piece.
PRODUCER:
This just came in—anonymous tip.
Janelle plugs it in. The screen flickers, then fills with a list of names—politicians, celebrities, business leaders—each paired with a digital composite image. Janelle's own face appears among them.
JANELLE (whispers):
What is this?
Suddenly, the studio lights cut out. The screen flashes: "You are not who you think you are."
ACT ONE
INT. BAU BRIEFING ROOM – MORNING
The team gathers as Garcia projects the hacked images onto the screen.
GARCIA:
Someone's using deepfake tech and stolen biometric data to create composite identities—digital ghosts.
REID:
These aren't just fakes. They're being used to open bank accounts, buy property, even run for office.
PRENTISS:
And the victims?
GARCIA:
Some are real people, some are completely fabricated.
ROSSI:
How many?
GARCIA:
Hundreds. Maybe thousands.
BENSON:
And Janelle Ford?
JJ:
She's the next target.
PRENTISS:
Let's get to her before the network does.
ACT TWO
INT. JANELLE FORD'S APARTMENT – DAY
Benson and JJ arrive to find Janelle shaken, clutching the flash drive.
JANELLE:
They say I'm not real. That my whole life is a lie.
BENSON:
You're real, Janelle. But someone wants you to doubt yourself.
JJ:
Have you noticed anything strange lately?
JANELLE:
Emails, calls from people I don't know—asking about things I've never done.
BENSON:
Classic gaslighting. They want you isolated.
JJ:
We'll keep you safe. But we need your help.
Janelle nods, determined.
ACT THREE
INT. BAU TECH ROOM – NIGHT
Garcia and Maeve analyze the composite identity files.
MAEVE:
The ciphers are modular—each identity is built from fragments of real people.
GARCIA:
It's like a digital Frankenstein.
REID:
And the network is using these identities to manipulate elections and launder money.
ROSSI:
We need to find out who's behind this batch.
GARCIA:
There's a pattern in the metadata—each file was created at the same location: a data center in Queens.
PRENTISS:
Let's move.
ACT FOUR
INT. DATA CENTER – NIGHT
The team moves in, finding rows of servers and a small group of technicians hurriedly wiping drives.
MORGAN:
FBI! Step away from the computers!
A technician bolts for the exit, but Morgan tackles him.
PRENTISS:
Who are you working for?
TECHNICIAN:
I don't know names. We just get paid to run the algorithms.
ROSSI:
Who gives you the orders?
TECHNICIAN:
Everything comes from "The Broker."
Garcia recovers a partial list of new targets and a video file.
GARCIA:
You need to see this.
She plays the video: Janelle Ford, on a live stream, reading a scripted manifesto.
JANELLE (on video, robotic):
The truth you know is a lie. Trust no one.
BENSON:
They've got her.
ACT FIVE
INT. TELEVISION STUDIO – NIGHT
The team rushes to the studio, where Janelle is on air, glassy-eyed, reciting the network's propaganda.
JJ (whispering to Benson):
They've drugged her.
BENSON:
We need to break the feed.
Morgan and Rossi find the control room, subdue the operator, and cut the broadcast.
Benson and JJ rush to Janelle, calming her as she comes out of her trance.
JANELLE (crying):
I didn't want to say those things.
BENSON:
It's over. You're safe now.
JJ:
You're not alone.
The team gathers, shaken but relieved.
TAG
INT. BAU BRIEFING ROOM – LATE NIGHT
Garcia reviews the recovered files.
GARCIA:
The Broker's accelerating his plans. The next targets are in government, law enforcement, and media.
PRENTISS:
He's trying to destabilize the entire system.
REID:
We have to stop him before more lives are destroyed.
The team steels themselves for the battle ahead.
END OF EPISODE 12