jacob? hi. i'm michael newman. friends call me mike.
surprised, huh? i told you you'd know me. i've been tracking you for a long time. i just wish i'd spoken to you before tonight.
observation, mainly. clinical study. you were one of the survivors.
come on, we're not safe around here.
so first i'm arrested, right? best lsd i ever made, right down the drain. i figure this is it, twenty years in the joint, if i'm lucky. that was '68.
next thing i know i'm on rikers island. ever been there? suddenly they take me from my cell to the visitors room with those bank teller windows, you know. four army colonels, medals up their asses, are standing on the other side. they tell me if i'll come to vietnam for two years, no action, mind you, just work in a lab, they'll drop all the charges and wipe the record clean. well, i'd only been in jail for thirteen hours and i already knew that nam couldn't be any worse.
no shit. they had me by the balls. next thing i know i'm in saigon .  in a secret lab synthesizing mind- altering drugs. not the street stuff mind you. they had us isolating special properties. the dark side, you know? they wanted a drug that increased aggressive tendencies.
right. they were worried. they figured you guys were too soft. they wanted something to stir you up, tap into your anger, you know? and we did it. the most powerful thing i ever saw. even a bad trip, and i had my share, never compared to the fury of the ladder.
that's what they called it. a fast trip right down the ladder. right to the primal fear, the base anger. i'm tellin' you, it was powerful stuff. but i don't need to tell you. you know.
we did experiments on jungle monkeys. they bashed each other's heads in, gouged out their eyes, chewed off their tails. the brass loved it. then they made us try it on charlie. they took these pow's, just kids really, and put 'em in a courtyard. we fed 'em huge doses of the stuff. they were worse than the monkeys. i never knew men could do such things. the whole thing still blows me away.
anyway, this big offensive was coming up. everyone knew it; time magazine, huntley-brinkley. and the brass was scared 'cause they knew we couldn't win. morale was down. it was gettin' ugly in the states. hell, you remember.
a couple days later they decided to use the ladder, on one test battalion. yours. just in an infintessimal dose in the food supply, to prove its effectiveness in the field. they were sure your unit would have the highest kill ratio in the whole goddamn offensive. and you did, too. but not the way they tnought.
hey, want something to calm you down? made 'em myself.
a couple of days later. it was fierce. you guys never saw it.
yeah. but not with the cong.
you killed each other.
it was brother against brother. no discrimination. you tore each other to pieces. i knew it would happen. i warned them. i warned them. but i was just a hippie chemist, right? jesus! and i helped 'em make the stuff .  i talked to the guys who bagged the bodies. they're in worse shape than you, believe me. they saw what was left. it's a blessing you don't remember. of course the brass covered the whole thing up right away. blamed it all on a surprise attack. he pauses) i needed to find you. the ladder was my baby.
i always suspected the effects might come back. that's why i had to follow you. i had a hell of a time getting hold of your records.
the truth can kill, my friend. five hundred men died out there. this isn't a story they'd ever want out. when paul's car blew up i realized the scope of the thing. i knew they meant business.
because i can get rid of the demons. i can block the ladder. i have an antidote. we can kill them off, chemically speaking. they'll all disappear. it's chemistry, my friend. i know. i created it. come with me. i can help.
sometimes. when it's convenient.
hey, i'm not the problem. you've got bigger problems than me.
i came up with the formula back in nam but i never got a chance to use it.
i'd hoped i'd never have to. just open your mouth and stick out your tongue.
don't worry. take it. it'll free your head. come on.
"yea though i walk through the valley of the shadow of death i shall fear no evil," but no one ever said i wouldn't be shittin' in my pants every step of the way, huh? stick out your tongue. that'a boy. now why don't you just lie down and relax.
it's strong stuff.
pleasant dreams.
just relax.
take it!
don't fight it. it's your own mind. it's your own fears.
so, how you doin'?
it was better than you expected, huh?
and no more demons. i told you they'd be gone.
better living through chemistry, that's my motto.
well that's good to know.
glorious. i'm not surprised. i fed you enough of that stuff to send a horse to heaven. i'm just glad you came back.
i'm sure. you've got nothing but troubles waitin' for you here.
come on.
here. i've got every credit card ever printed. take this. stay here till you can arrange to get away. it's on me.
what? you want the plaza? don't be foolish. here. take this, too. this is my place on prince street. it's got my phone, everything. call if you need me .  but you won't. everything's gonna work out. you just get outta town as fast as you can. the new york police can be effective when they want to be.
save the words .  just send back my credit card.
take it!
i am with you, jacob.
it's all right now. it's over. you've won. you're here. trust me.
come on. don't make me do it all. stand up. you can do it.
stop hobbling. your flesh can't hold you anymore.
go on, jacob. it has come for you.