diff --git "a/OriginalStoriesSeparated/Farscape.txt" "b/OriginalStoriesSeparated/Farscape.txt" new file mode 100755--- /dev/null +++ "b/OriginalStoriesSeparated/Farscape.txt" @@ -0,0 +1,180 @@ +Talyn has landed on a jungle planet to fully recover from his injuries. Rygel and Stark are complaining that she and John Crichton were extremely loud during the night and are now apparently between bouts. In the next room, Aeryn and Crichton are in bed together, under the covers, and Crichton bangs on the wall pretending to groan. Aeryn tells him that, believe it or not, he was actually louder than that! As they kiss, Crais detects some ships in the vicinity and calls everyone to command. It's the Vigilante -- the ship that's after them -- and it's landed on the planet. Xhalax Sun and three Colartas, who are having problems with the planet's heavy gravity, emerge from a Prowler. The injured one says that it will earn its share, but Xhalax shoots it and tells the other two that their shares have just increased. Crichton, Crais, and Aeryn plan to go outside to act as decoys and keep the squad from finding Talyn until he has recovered. Rygel has been watching the chip of Aeryn and Xhalax, which makes Crichton angry and all protective over Aeryn's stuff. Xhalax is telling the Colartas not to screw up when they hear the sound of pulse rifles firing. On Talyn, Rygel and Stark find vines from outside growing inside him. Stark and Rygel start to try and cut them, but Rygel is convinced that Talyn will be able to pull free when he's fully recovered. Xhalax is watching Crichton, Aeryn, and Crais as they scout and opens fire. Much gunfire ensues and during the fight Aeryn draws Xhalax away from everyone. Crais is shot in the arm and elsewhere Aeryn manages to shoot Xhalax, but is distracted by Crichton calling for her. Xhalax grabs her from behind and tells her "move and you die". Xhalax asks Aeryn where he is and a fistfight begins, during which Aeryn knocks Xhalax unconscious. Crichton finds Crais bleeding from the arm and Crais tells him that they're using Colartas, who will find and kill him if he's left bleeding. One of the Colartas' hearts has burst, and the two agree to continue the hunt without Xhalax. Aeryn has tied up Xhalax and has patched up her injured leg. Xhalax asks who she is and she replies that she is Aeryn Sun -- her daughter. Xhalax says that if she is her daughter, then she is a Peacekeeper, but Aeryn responds that she is not anymore. Xhalax concludes that Aeryn must be with Crais. Stark tells Rygel that Talyn is almost completely healed and should be able to break free of the vines soon. Rygel is pessimistic about the chances of the others returning from an encounter with a Peacekeeper Retrieval Squad. Crichton is holding Crais up as they move on to look for Aeryn, as the latter is forcing Xhalax back to Talyn. Xhalax tells her that naming the gunship Talyn after her father is sentimental and weak, but Aeryn tells her that she has only kept Xhalax alive for possible use as leverage. Crichton and Crais are lost, but find some sludge that stinks which should cover their scent from the Colartas. Rygel tells Stark that as soon as Talyn's healed they are leaving whether the others have returned or not, just as Aeryn comes back with Xhalax in tow. The Colartas are confused since they are picking up no scent, but they manage to detect body heat. As Crichton is apparently trying to light a fire, he is visited by the Scorpius clone, who tells him that Crichton's subconscious summoned him. Crichton asks if the Colartas are everything Crais says they are, to which Scorpius responds by saying yes, in that at least, Crais was completely forthright. Crichton asks where Crais has not been forthright. Xhalax retrieves a blade from under her skin and cuts herself loose before inhaling some sort of booster that inflames her pupils and seemingly makes her immune to pain. She attacks Aeryn and Stark, and before Rygel can do it to her, she stabs him. She locks up Stark and Rygel, and Rygel is cut open and dying, barely managing to ask Stark for help. Aeryn is tied up, as Xhalax says how remarkable Talyn is. She's severing his higher functions so that she can take him to High Command. She tells Aeryn that her orders are to subdue the gunship for transport, then track and deliver the second target. Crais is tied up, as Crichton says that being a former Captain, he would know all the things that the Peacekeepers wouldn't want to get out and he mentions that he always wondered why Crais wanted Talyn so bad, but then it came to him -- Crais needs them. He knew they wouldn't help him but would do anything for Talyn -- the Peacekeepers are after Crais too. Crais adds that it's not the only reason he helped them, but Crichton says the Peacekeepers can have him, throws water over him and leaves Crais for the taking. On Talyn, Aeryn attempts to convince Xhalax not to sever Talyn's higher functions, saying that now she's finally found Xhalax she feels nothing but shame. Xhalax tells her that her sentiments won't work, and calls her daughter a traitor, telling her she is pathetic. Aeryn reminds Xhalax of the night she visited Aeryn, but Xhalax tells Aeryn that she paid for her actions. She says that she was given a chance to redeem herself -- by killing Talyn, Aeryn's father. The Colartas find Crais, but Crichton jumps them and manages to stab the two of them. Crais is angry at being used as lure for Crichton and tells Crichton that if he's going to execute him then to just kill him, but don't leave him to die. He then asks Crichton how he will command Talyn if Aeryn is not there or if she's dead. Xhalax watches the vid recording, as Stark tells Aeryn that although Rygel was dead for several microts, he managed to seal Rygel's wound with the vines, which are aiding the healing process. Xhalax says that it's dead history; Aeryn's father is dead and Aeryn will now face a tribunal on account of high treason. One of the Colartas wakes up in the jungle, as does Rygel back on Talyn. He says that he needs bed rest, but Aeryn wants him to go and untie them. Xhalax leaves Talyn and retrieves weapons from the prowler, as Crichton and Crais make their way to Talyn with the Colartas' tracking device. Aeryn is cut free and goes after Xhalax, while outside Crais is attacked by the revived Colarta. Crichton helps, and as Xhalax goes to fire from the bushes, Aeryn jumps her. They fight and Xhalax tells her that she would try and take Aeryn back, but her corruption is too advanced. Aeryn says that her corruption began the day that she was conceived. She tells Xhalax that her independence came from the woman she had only seen once and she is the part of Xhalax that wanted to be a rebel. Xhalax calls Aeryn an aberration, but Aeryn says that she is her child. Crichton and Crais kill the Colarta, and Aeryn manages to get a hold of Xhalax's gun. Aeryn says that they have to kill Xhalax, but Crichton says that she cannot be the one to do it. Xhalax says that Aeryn can't do it, because she's afraid. Crais tells Crichton that Aeryn is right -- they can't let Xhalax live - if they do, she will come after them again. Crichton says Aeryn will not be the one to kill her mother, so Crais tells him that he will do it. Crais tells Aeryn to go, saying that she must not witness this. Xhalax calls Aeryn a coward and Aeryn drops to her knees and asks if she is right and that if they let Xhalax live she will come after them again. Xhalax asks if Aeryn expects her to lie, to beg for her life. She says that Crais is right -- she will hunt them down and kill them. Aeryn says a heartfelt "Goodbye mother," as Crichton takes her away. As they clamber through the jungle, Xhalax tells Crais to do it. Aeryn remembers when Xhalax came to her and as she goes to turn back, they hear the sounds of gunfire and Aeryn is left to be comforted in Crichton's arms. Back on Talyn, Stark says that Rygel's recovery is a miracle. He says that Rygel is lucky to be alive again. Rygel questions "again?" and Stark tells him that for a while he was dead and that when he joined with Rygel to bring him back he met with Zhaan. He says that she looked contented and whispered a prayer of guardianship; she's watching over them. Crichton asks Aeryn how Crais is and Aeryn says that he is trying to splice his neural engrams with Talyn's so that Talyn will be able to navigate on his own again and they can finally get some sleep, or not. She tells Crichton that he doesn't have to wait up, but he says he wants to. She tells him that it's all that they can do, but Crichton is concerned that a large part of Crais' psyche will now reside in Talyn, but it's the only way to bring Talyn back to life. Aeryn then tells Crichton that with Xhalax gone, all her connections to the Peacekeepers are completely severed. + +Moya is in a stellar mist, which is so compressed that her sensors can only read what is right in front of her, and it's also causing difficulties with navigation. Ka D'Argo and John Crichton are on command; John is waiting for Aeryn Sun, who has gone ahead on long-range recon. Zhaan has been meditating, and finds an old friend outside her quarters -- Stark has returned, and says he has something important to tell her. They go to command, where Crichton says that Aeryn's been gone one solar day. Suddenly Aeryn signals Moya and wants to come aboard. Pilot sees an opening forming in the mist with a planet below and Aeryn's pod comes through. Everyone goes to greet Aeryn, but when she doesn't step out, they all go in, noting that the transport looks like it's been in a battle. A plant has overgrown in the pod and Zhaan says it's the same type of plant that she gave Aeryn to recover from her headaches shortly before she left but insists the plant she gave her was tiny. Crichton finds Aeryn lying face down on the floor and when he turns her over she looks extremely old. She tells Crichton that they must get out of here now. Aeryn wants to go back to the planet; she says that the opening won't last long and her granddaughter won't survive without the transport pod. She only came back to warn them to get out while they can, but Crichton tells her that she's only been gone for one solar day. She says that she forgot how beautiful and young he was, and asks if she's only been gone one day, how has her locket got so old. She's adamant that she lived for 165 cycles, had three sons and watched them die, but then she starts going a little crazy, so Stark takes off his mask and soothes her. Zhaan tells Crichton that her tests show she's really Aeryn and she has aged 165 cycles. Pilot has analysed the mist and found nothing, but says the planet is acidic and Aeryn couldn't even survive one cycle down there. Rygel and Chiana are snurching Aeryn's pod, when D'Argo comes along, and tells Chiana there's no dignity in what she's doing. He asks her to go look after Aeryn who may be dying. Chiana is with Aeryn when she wakes up, and Aeryn distracts her then knocks her out with a needle. She goes to Pilot to convince the others to stay out of the mist. She tells Pilot that he won't see her again, but she's glad she got to see him one last time. She returns to the planet in the pod, and when Crichton finds out he wants to go after her. Pilot says that the mist itself is harmless, and Crichton says that he'll be on the surface 30 microts maximum. He finds Aeryn on a barren planet which is suffering from sand storms and says she couldn't have lived here. She says that she lived on another planet, and he tries to take her back by force, but someone shoots at him and tells him that she'll kill him if he touches her grandmother again. The woman asks who he is and when he says "John Crichton" she is surprised. She says that Aeryn wasn't making it all up. All of her life, her grandmother has talked about him and the ship. Her father, Aeryn's son, even thought she was crazy. But every cycle Aeryn came back to check if Moya had returned. Aeryn wakes and says that the opening only lasts four arns; he has to go, now. He will be trapped for 55 cycles if he doesn't go back, so Aeryn tells him to go, and return in eight arns or he will be trapped. Chiana asks D'Argo why Aeryn spiked her, but he apologizes for embarrassing her in front of Rygel. He says that she's one of them now, so there's no need to act like she's not. Chiana says she knows, but she's not going to change for them. Zhaan calls them because Crichton is returning. He tells them that he met her granddaughter, when the pod hits turbulence. Pilot says that the hole is closing, and Crichton starts to break up. The planet is disappearing from Pilot's sensors and they tell Crichton to break entry. He refuses, but he doesn't make it -- Moya is gone. Stark visits Zhaan, who is meditating for Crichton and Aeryn. He has a plan -- apparently he's heard of center halos, where time and space join and he thinks Moya may be stuck in one. He wants to join spirits with Zhaan because he's heard that Delvians can sense the time continuum when they're linked. He thinks that together they may be able to see if no time exists within the mist. His mind may overpower hers, but they do it anyway. While they are joined, Moya's readings go off the scale, and freezes. On another planet, sunny with trees and grass, Aeryn tells Ennixx--her granddaughter--that Crichton was happy for a few cycles, but something must have reminded him of the past. Apparently Aeryn has never shown any of her unhappiness and they've tried to make him happy, but Aeryn says he was always stubborn. All the while, an aged Crichton is walking along talking to a vision of Scorpius, with a full Southern accent. Zhaan and Stark tell the others what happened, and that Aeryn aged normally and it is Moya that is stuck in time and everyone they know outside the halo and the planet will have aged as well. Everything inside the halo becomes void of time forever when it hardens, and Pilot says it's hardening now. They want to leave and Pilot says the opening will reform in less than one arn. Crichton goes to Aeryn, where the trees they planted are now fully grown. Aeryn tells him to come and sit with her on a tree stump and he tells her he thinks that Ennixx's husband is boring. Aeryn says that she tried to want him to go back. She asks why he hasn't given up his past, but he says he doesn't want to be a gardener and all they do is plant things. Aeryn asks if he regrets spending the last 55 cycles with her. He says that she's the one thing that's kept him alive, but it's hope that keeps him going every day. Aeryn gets a pain in her chest, and as she stands up her locket falls off. She's anxious to get it back and Crichton asks who is in there. She says that he knows, but he doesn't think it's her husband, he thinks it's him. She denies it, and tells him to open it if he doesn't believe her -- he'll see his image, the only love of her life. He says no, he doesn't want to see his ugly face. They return to the barren planet and Crichton breaks out the comm he kept sealed for 50 cycles and tries to contact Pilot. Ennixx begs Aeryn to return with her, but she says that the Peacekeepers are born in space and die in space -- she belongs up there. They get nothing, and on Moya Pilot detects the opening in the mist forming. Crichton and Aeryn hear D'Argo reply, and they say that they'll come up right away. As they leave, Aeryn stumbles again, but says she's fine. The transport is docked, and as the others come to greet them, they see Crichton holding Aeryn in his arms -- she died on the way up here. She's gone. Crichton tells everyone that if they leave the mist there is nothing there for them: a colony, some planets, but nothing to make them happy. Crichton has a theory though -- if they exit the mist exactly where they entered they may be able to get return to the time just before Moya entered the rift. Pilot says to get to that point, he thinks they just have to go backwards. He thinks that the mist has moved with them -- Moya's back is at the edge, but the mist is now so hard that they can't move. A reverse starburst would possibly destroy Moya as she isn't built for it and Pilot suggests that instead they go forward towards the planet. Crichton reminds everyone that if they do then they'll have to live their lives on a world where they'll never see anyone they know ever again. Everyone else agrees, refusing to live in a world where they have no past and can have no future, so the plan to initiate a reverse starburst is set as Crichton then returns to Aeryn. Crichton tells Aeryn that there are so many people and places that he wanted her to see and says that he misses her already. He turns and says that he loves her and kisses her one last time. Grasping her locket, he opens it to find a picture of himself when he was young; the only love of her life. Pilot initiates reverse starburst, but everything starts to slow and then stops. Zhaan and Stark manage to join and Zhaan speaks to Crichton via their bond of Unity. He runs to command and just manages to manually initiate starburst before he stops completely and Moya exits the mist causing time to reset. On command, Crichton asks Pilot what it is and Pilot tells him that it's some kind of stellar mist. Chiana doesn't want to go in so Aeryn says that she'll fly a long-range recon to ensure it's safe. Zhaan breaks her meditation and runs to command. Her comm. isn't working, and she meets Stark on the way; they know what is about to happen. Pilot's about to enter the mist, but Zhaan tells him to stop. They ask what's wrong, and Zhaan and Stark realise that only they remember. Zhaan tells everyone that they had a vision and sensed great danger in there, so they avoid the mist. Zhaan asks Stark how Aeryn and Crichton are young again and Stark thinks that they remember because they were joined when Moya broke free. Stark says that it's time to tell D'Argo why he came aboard. Stark and Zhaan join D'Argo on command and Stark shows D'Argo a picture that he found of a slave being sold to some mines -- the manifest lists him as Jothee, son of Ka D'Argo! D'Argo attacks Stark, asking him how long he's known and Zhaan tries to stop him saying that Stark wanted her awake before he told him. The auction isn't for a few days -- they have time to rescue him. D'Argo tells Zhaan that they have to find a way. Crichton tells Aeryn that he has a feeling something happened between them, but he doesn't know what. Aeryn opens the locket that Chiana found in the transport, but the contents have disintegrated. As the locket is turned, and the contents fall as dust, John and Aeryn gaze intensely at each other. + +Talyn and Moya are drifting in space, with another ship nearby. On Moya, Naj Gil offers Jool the chance to join him on the medical ship that he's preparing to leave for, but she initially declines. Aeryn Sun returns from recon, reporting that the ship is definitely a medical facility with five or six hundred on board and they have agreed to take Naj Gil. John Crichton is on command, and Chiana asks if there's been any word from Rygel and Ka D'Argo. John says no, and she asks if they're definitely going ahead with the plan to go to Scorpius' command carrier. John replies that they will so long as they can make a deal with Scorpius and Rygel thinks he will. Chiana gets worried and argues that Scorpius doesn't deal and is probably frying D'Argo in the Aurora Chair right now. Chiana says that it doesn't matter because she's splitting at the next planet they pass. Suddenly, she has a premonition of Peacekeepers. In a diner on a rather desolate-looking planet, D'Argo and Rygel are eating, awaiting the arrival of Scorpius, although D'Argo is expecting a double-cross. Lt. Braca arrives to check for any others before Scorpius enters. Scorpius ensures that they're unarmed before his troops storm in. D'Argo can't fend them off and Scorpius tells Braca to prepare to execute them! Braca asks where their rescue squad is and Scorpius asks Rygel, who is still eating, if he isn't afraid of death. Rygel tells him to aim for the head and says that if he's finished his games they can get on with it. Scorpius answers that he had to be sure that they were alone and tells his troops to lower their weapons. One by one, D'Argo starts punching them out, while asking Scorpius if he's sure he wasn't going to kill them. Rygel says that they're here to talk and D'Argo takes their comms and stamps on them, telling Scorpius to send the troops back to his ship. Meanwhile, in the kitchen, the cook, Voodi, and the waitress, Essk, are unsure of what to do with Peacekeepers out there. Jool runs to the hangar, calling for Naj Gil, but Chiana explains that he just left. Jool remarks that she has nothing against the Peacekeepers, as she was never a prisoner, so she is leaving. Chiana describes a premonition in which she mourned over Jool and when Jool says she doesn't believe her premonitions, Chiana knocks her out. Back in the diner, Scorpius asks if he's understood them right -- they want transport on his Carrier, full amnesty and relocation to a planet of their own where they can be free citizens, and in return, John will help him with his wormhole research. Rygel says yes and Scorpius asks what prompted this. Rygel and D'Argo explain that the goal for the Charrid/Scarran alliance is to discover wormhole technology and use it, and although they stopped the alliance once they may be unable to again, so John would rather Scorpius had it than them. Meanwhile, Voodi and Essk continue to argue. Pilot announces that Peacekeepers are approaching and Chiana lifts up Jool reminding her that she knew they were coming. John wants to starburst, but they're too close to the medical facility. Crais gets Talyn to target them, but tries to get him to stay calm. Chiana thinks that Scorpius saw Rygel and D'Argo and they are now dead. The Peacekeepers target them, prompting Aeryn to decide they have no choice; Crais tells Talyn to fire and he destroys them. However, as the hospital ship moves away, Talyn targets them. Crais attempts to stop him, but he destroys the ship. Jool slaps Crais, blaming him for 600 deaths, saying he could have stopped them and thinks that Chiana knew. Moya decides that she will not move, as Talyn is refusing to respond. Scorpius agrees to the terms, but D'Argo wants a guarantee. Braca has I-Yensch bracelets and Scorpius tells him to put one on and urges D'Argo to do the same. Despite Rygel and D'Argo's cautions, D'Argo puts on the bracelet and Scorpius tells Rygel to hit Braca. Rygel headbutts him, but both Braca and D'Argo fall to the floor. The bracelets have synchronised nerve impulses, allowing them to feel each other's pain. If one were killed, both would die. Rygel agrees that they're acceptable, but asks who will wear them. Scorpius suggests John and Braca, but Rygel laughs, knowing that Scorpius wouldn't hesitate to kill Braca if the situation arose and demands that Scorpius wear it. Rygel explains that the only way they'll trust him is if they can control him. Scorpius says that is unacceptable, so Rygel says no deal. Two armed aliens, Sko and Wa suddenly storm the diner guns blazing, one hitting Scorpius and Braca, the other finding Voodi and Essk in the kitchen. They say they want everything they have, but Rygel says they have nothing. One of the aliens notices that they're Peacekeepers, prompting the other to say that he never told them about Peacekeepers. One asks Scorpius where his troops are, and Scorpius replies he has none and has no comms because the Luxan destroyed them. They send Voodi and Essk to cook some food, and Braca spots an opening to attack, only to be shot in the leg, injuring D'Argo too via the bracelet's synchronicity. Crais says that Talyn is in shock, but has expressed absolute remorse for his mistake. Jool says that it's much more than just 'a mistake', but Crais thinks a case of panic and extreme paranoia is certain to happen again. He declares Talyn a danger to himself as well as them. He says they should shut down all his mechanoid systems and although Moya doesn't like the idea and gets uneasy, he continues. He says they would not be killing him, his biologics would remain in stasis, and they could go to a place where they could repair the anomalies in Talyn's character and come back with a full system replacement. Aeryn asks if he'd still be Talyn, but Crais says sadly no -- he'll be different, brand new, but something has to be done. Rygel tells the aliens to hold the Peacekeepers hostage as they'd be more valuable, to think bigger than just mere robbery. He says that the Peacekeepers will pay anything to get them back and the robbery doesn't seem to be going as planned -- he'd hate to see it when they mess up. One alien says that he'll make sure Rygel is inside when he burns the building down, prompting Rygel to realize that they're burning it down for Voodi as an insurance scam. Voodi and Essk emerge from the kitchen and the alien tells Voodi that Rygel knows he hired them to burn the place down. Essk gets angry at this and she and Voodi argue. The alien explains to his companion Rygel's plan, but Scorpius says he wouldn't do that. Talyn is refusing to let Crais aboard and Moya is still refusing to move. Aeryn asks what to do, prompting John to ask "you asking me?" She says they can still work together -- they always did that well. John says that someone needs to talk to Moya -- maybe her ? As she seems to share a special connection to Talyn. Aeryn asks Pilot to speak to Moya and she does. She says that Talyn has been home and saved their lives. She's shared the best and worst of times with him and she would never harm him, but Crais is right -- they must shut Talyn down. She swears that they'll all work to bring him back as he was; it's the only way. One of the aliens thinks he knows what the Peacekeepers will do, but Scorpius explains that they have a far greater source of wealth right there -- Rygel XVI, Dominar of Hyneria. He would get them a much bigger ransom. Pilot announces that Talyn has agreed to allow Crais on board, but he wakes up and shoots at Moya! D'Argo is trying to keep the injured Braca awake. Rygel says that Braca needs water, but the aliens say they only care about Rygel. They call the kitchen for food and water, when Rygel farts and in helium voice Scorpius says his bravery is convincing and Rygel thinks they bought it. Essk and Voodi continue to argue in the kitchen; Essk is unhappy but Voodi proclaims he wants to start over. One alien says they should just burn the place down; if they do the hostage plan, someone will die. The other one wants to take the opportunity handed to them rather. Scorpius tells Rygel that they only have a limited window before they discover no one would pay anything for Rygel. Scorpius says they'll do this themselves, if Rygel is up to it and tells Rygel the combination to unlock Braca's bracelet. Jool and Chiana are cleaning the mess in Moya, as John, Aeryn, and Crais fly over to Talyn, after managing to convince him to let them dock. The aliens, meanwhile, describe their plans for the ransom, but Rygel says Scorpius' ship will just decode the transmission and they cannot outrun a Peacekeeper's attack marauder. To this an exasperated Sko again shouts - "aaarg, why so difficult?". Rygel says they could take his ship -- it's fast, but only D'Argo can fly it. Essk brings out some food and Voodi having had enough finally tries to assert himself angrily ordering Sko and Wa to just leave as they actually work for him - instead Sko shoots and kills him. A tearful Essk is left heartbroken as Voodi utters he's last words - to burn this place down in his honour. Meanwhile Rygel manages to whisper Braca the code to his bracelet, despite being caught chatting by the bumbling criminals. John, Aeryn, and Crais arrive on Talyn, who aims his internal guns at them. Gingerly Aeryn tells Talyn that he killed many innocent people and shot his own mother and he wouldn't have done so if he weren't ill; he just panicked. She doesn't believe he wanted to hurt Moya or to hurt them. She says he knows he's sick or he wouldn't have let them board, but he's not going to die -- he'll be reborn and get a fresh start. They can take the pain away. Aeryn's words convince Talyn to retract his guns. D'Argo and Braca are still lying down, when one alien tries to convince the other to just leave. Rygel explains that they were meeting Peacekeepers to negotiate their freedom -- they're prisoners. The aliens try to get Rygel to shoot Braca, since Scorpius is more valuable, as a show of trust. Rygel refuses, as it'll kill D'Argo too and they'd have no one to fly the ship. Instead, Rygel turns and shoots Scorpy, who flies across the room landing behind the bar! The aliens want to leave and when Essk walks past she whispers to Rygel that there's a knife under the tray behind the counter. John asks Aeryn if she's OK, adding that he and Crais could wrap it up, she could return to Moya. She declines, but thanks him for the offer, and after Crais promises they'll do everything they can and that he doesn't blame Talyn and calls him brave, they proceed to shut Talyn down. The aliens try to get Braca up and want to kill Essk. Rygel stops them and tells her to go back into the kitchen. Rygel goes behind the counter to get a kill souvenir from Scorpius. Rygel apologizes for shooting him, but says he knows how it is. Scorpius asks how Rygel knew he was wearing body armour, and Rygel replies that being held captive for 131 cycles teaches you some things, but even if he was wrong, it wouldn't be so bad for him, so Rygel tells Scorpius about the knife and asks if he has something to offer. Scorpius hands him a pulse charge that he had hidden in his coolant system - advising him to use it wisely as it has just one shot. Rygel goes out and tells the aliens he's changed his mind -- he'd rather be dead than deal with the likes of them. Rygel says they didn't have a plan and a struggle ensues. Scorpius throws the knife into the back of Sko, who spins around in pain firing his gun randomly, narrowly missing most everyone. Just as he's about to shoot Rygel, he uses the pulse charge to blow him through a window to his death. Braca, meanwhile, has put his bracelet on Wa and D'Argo has knocked him out by banging his own head on the floor - stating he has a harder head when asked if he's alright. Rygel goes over to Scorpy to talk about their deal. Scorpius thinks that there's now a basis for them to trust each other, then throws a piece of food into Rygel's mouth in gesture of their new forged alliance. D'Argo and Rygel return to Moya, with Rygel proudly saying to John that they got everything they wanted. Aeryn says she has a bad feeling about the command carrier, but they don't have a choice whether to go or not because if Scorpius masters wormholes. John says that some things you die for, but Aeryn tells him she can't watch that happen again -- it was perfect and he's just like him, he is him. John says that he is me, he was on Moya, that he missed that dance and says she shouldn't go. Aeryn replies no, that they started this together and that's how they'll end it. + +Aeryn Sun has discovered that the wound she suffered following the stabbing by Larraq was worse than originally thought - the knife pierced her paraphoral nerve. Since, when damaged, it does not regenerate, within fifty or sixty arns she will be dead. The only method of healing is a tissue graft from a compatible donor, so John Crichton comes up with a plan. Posing as Larraq, he plans to infiltrate the Gammak Base that Larraq and his team were headed to, using the coordinates that Moya was given. Reluctantly the rest of the crew agree to try and save Aeryn. Chiana volunteers her services as a distraction, and away they go! Crichton manages to talk his way on to the base, but when they dock they are met by guards. Using Larraq's ident chip, he passes the security verification, and he and Chiana proceed to the bar to acquire information. Chiana is acting like a tralk, propositioning every man in sight, while John talks to Commander Javio. When an unnamed ominous figure appears, Javio leaves and Crichton calls over Chiana. She reveals that she is behaving in this manner as a distraction, to draw attention away from John. As the two proceed to quarters, Crichton is required to give more id verification, as well as the ident chip he must submit to genetic verification. Amazingly, Crichton passes the verification, and on the way to quarters, John is called aside by a female Peacekeeper. It's Gilina, the tech, and she's been re-assigned from Crais' command carrier to the Gammak Base to work on a top secret project, which she assumes is weapons development. It turns out she is the one who overrode security and she agrees to help John in his quest to save Aeryn. Back on Moya, Rygel is pestering Aeryn until Ka D'Argo interrupts, and she tells D'Argo that if she cannot die in battle then she wishes to die alone. Zhaan tells D'Argo later that she can do nothing to save Aeryn, merely ease her through her pain. The toxins and poisons that have built up in Aeryn's body will kill her and Zhaan does not have the means to filter them out, but D'Argo reveals Moya has that ability. On the Base, Javio is now propositioning Chiana, and he offers her the chance to stay with him for double what Larraq is paying her, and she says she'll think it over. Meanwhile, Gilina tells John that there is a new way of healing the paraphoral nerve, and she has got the medics to synthesize paraphoral tissue that can save Aeryn. John and Gilina share a heart-warming goodbye, and she remarks that all they ever do is say goodbye. As John is leaving, he passes the ominous figure - a Peacekeeper named Scorpius - who is able to tell just by looking at him that he's an impostor and orders the guards to seize him. Crichton cannot overcome the guards but manages to leave the dose of tissue in a small gap in the wall. Scorpius puts Crichton in the Aurora Chair, a device that can extract memories from people and display them on a screen. Scorpius wants to know who John really is and whom he is working for. Crichton attempts to continue the charade so Scorpius begins memory extraction, causing Crichton extreme pain. Meanwhile, Zhaan and D'Argo have joined Aeryn to Moya, so she can filter out the toxins in Aeryn's blood to slow her death. Back on the surface, Chiana and Gilina discover that Crichton's been captured, and they attempt to locate him. Javio has done some checks on the missing Leviathan, and relays the information on Moya and the escaped prisoners to Scorpius. Scorpius finds memories of Crichton's encounters with Crais. Javio recognises him, telling Scorpius that Moya escaped from his convoy. Seeing that he holds Crichton responsible for the death of his brother and swore revenge, Scorpius realizes that Crais ignored orders to abandon the search and broadcasts a message to the Command Center telling of their prisoner, knowing Crais will turn up to collect his prey. More memories are ripped, revealing John's recent encounter with the Ancients. They see the encounter between Crichton and the Ancient masquerading as his father, however the scene being displayed is not one Crichton remembers. Jack had decided to give Crichton wormhole technology, however believed that if Crichton wasn't smart enough to use it properly then he doesn't deserve it. As well ensuring that Crichton didn't remember that part of their encounter, the Ancients implanted the knowledge in his unconscious, and they say that he must discover it himself, but what they have done will be enough to help him continue on the right path to do it. This makes Scorpius happy, since the secret project of the Gammak Base is just that - to research wormhole technology causing Crichton to laugh at the irony. So that his brain does not melt, Scorpius lets John recuperate before the next session. He is placed in a cell, where he meets Stark, who has been in the Chair so much that it has driven him insane, so much so that he calls the Chair his own. On Moya, the treatment is stopping Aeryn from deteriorating further, but she is not getting any better. When asked, Zhaan tells Aeryn it was Pilot's idea for the treatment, as D'Argo doesn't want Zhaan to tell her it was his. He tells Zhaan he respects Aeryn's words that she wants to die alone, although he does not believe them. Zhaan tells him she does not believe Aeryn either, but he did the right thing. Suddenly Moya trembles as she starts to have contractions, indicating she is close to giving birth. Due to the harm they're causing to Aeryn, the treatment has to be stopped. On the Gammak Base, as Gilina and Chiana hook in to main control, Captain Crais arrives. Stark is in the Chair, when Crais enters demanding Crichton. Scorpius says that he can have him once he has finished with him, even though the Chair may kill him. Crais cannot argue, as Scorpius knows that he has gone renegade from PK command. Gilina discovers that John is in a cell, and patches through a communication. John reveals the location of the tissue sample, and tells Chiana to fetch it, and he will die if necessary. When Crais enters, communication is severed, and Gilina asks Chiana why John won't save himself, and asks if it's because he loves Aeryn. Chiana says no, he loves Gilina and that Moya's crew will come back for John and Gilina. In the cell, Crais tells Crichton that he's captured Moya and her crew, and that he will let them go if John stops resisting the Chair and gives himself up. John suspects he's lying, so he asks if the crew are all OK. When Crais says they're all at full health, Crichton knows he's lying. Gilina covers up Chiana's escape by rigging a reactor overload, which means immediate evacuation. Chiana gets the sample but on the way to the prowler, she meets Javio, but manages to torch him to death and escape. She returns to Moya and Aeryn is injected. She asks to see Crichton, but the others don't reveal his capture and say she will soon, and leave whilst D'Argo watches over her. Back on the base, John is put back in the Chair, when Scorpius is told of the missing prowler. He realises it's a diversion and wants to know who triggered it. When they say they don't know, Scorpius turns and says that John will tell them. + +Aeryn Sun is trying to remove a Peacekeeper communications enhancer, and the rest of the crew are helping with the sweep, attempting to flush out any leftover Peacekeeper systems, since the DRDs are all helping with routine maintenance. Ka D'Argo enters a tunnel and finds some sort of device, and he tries to ask Pilot what to do but his comm. link is garbled. He pulls a wire and suffers a shock, and falls down a chute. He finds another device down there, and tells the others, but he kicks it off when he realises the comm. is still garbled. Some fluid bursts out causing Moya to lose stability and shake, whilst D'Argo falls further down the chute. Pilot manages to locate him, but not on the ship, rather floating in space! Aeryn collects him, but he's frozen from being out there half an arn. Luxans can survive in space for a quarter of an arn unless they are revived soon after. Moya again shakes as D'Argo awakes, calling Zhaan by the name Lo'Laan. He doesn't remember what happened and falls back unconscious. Pilot says he is receiving odd readings from Moya's system, and Zhaan finds a piece of debris in D'Argo's body. Aeryn and Crichton go to D'Argo's last known location before the accident, when Pilot tells them the DRDs aren't responding, and he himself is clearly in pain. John Crichton notices that the air smells stale, and behind him the DRDs are fixing up the hole that D'Argo fell through. Pilot isn't reading any DRDs in the area, but one turns around and shoots some sort of glue at Aeryn, sticking a hand and foot to the floor. Zhaan says the scan system is less efficient than usual, but Pilot doesn't respond. Crichton has some debris in his had, and Zhaan analyses it. Crichton notices that the two pieces of debris are genetically identical and uniform in size, which if they're debris they most certainly shouldn't be. Crichton starts to loosen Aeryn's hand and foot with a substance that Zhaan made, and she manages to get them off. They think Moya has a bio-mechanoid virus implanted by the Peacekeepers, and triggered by D'Argo. Crichton says it could be in the air generators, so they could be breathing it. Zhaan helps D'Argo back to his room, and he confesses how much he loves her, and sees them together in the future, still calling her Lo'Laan. Zhaan asks who Lo'Laan is, which upsets him. Crichton wonders how Moya's immune system will respond to the virus, and Aeryn tells him it'll start fighting back. She eats something, but it's spoiled; the refrigeration unit is not working. Crichton calls Pilot, who says it's not a malfunction; he's seeing signs of intentional sabotage. Aeryn goes up to his chamber, telling Crichton and Zhaan that his vitals are extremely low. Every system is out of control, and Moya's showing many chemical surges. She seems to understand many of Pilot's systems, and gets them under control. Environmentals are still not functioning, and the air will soon run out. Rygel tries to take some of D'Argo's possessions, when he wakes up calling him Jothee, and picks him up, hugging him. He thinks he's upset because the others are treating him like an outsider. Rygel says he's upset because he's gone mad. D'Argo says that when Jothee's mother's family first saw him, they despised him. He says he loves his son, and always will. Zhaan is finding the air is getting staler. Crichton asks her if Moya can function without Pilot, and Zhaan confirms this; Moya is an independent living being, Pilot and the DRDs are merely in her service. Pilot's job is to regulate the environmentals as they are not for Moya's benefit but for any passengers. Aeryn finds out that Pilot's blood has been nutrient starved, and Crichton assumes that the virus has caused this but Zhaan says it's no virus -- her test confirms that the particles are no distinct organism, they're a part of Moya, but can't be fragments since they're all uniform in size. . Crichton says what D'Argo saw before the accident must be the answer to why the ship has suddenly turned on them all. They call Rygel, who says D'Argo thinks he's his son, Jothee, and he's out looking for Lo'Laan. Crichton hoes to him and D'Argo says he feels unsteady. He turns and calls Crichton Macton. Crichton asks who Lo'Laan is, and D'Argo says he may despise him for marrying his sister but he shouldn't mock her. D'Argo recognises Crichton as himself, saying he was in a shaft and saw a Peacekeeper shield. He quickly turns again, attacking Crichton as Macton. He asks how Macton dares dishonour his own sister even though she's dead, and breaks down in tears. Crichton goes to find the shaft, when all the lights in the section go out. He finds the DRDs blocking the passage, so Aeryn tells him of another way through. He again is cornered by the DRDs, who attack him! He yells at Aeryn to shut down the DRDs, so she does. Zhaan, Crichton and Aeryn discuss what to do, as the DRDs are vital Moya's operations. Zhaan asks if the DRDs are affected by what they'd assumed was a virus, but Crichton points out they DRDs totally mechanical -- they only do what someone tells them. Aeryn says Pilot is unconscious, and they realise that Moya must be causing all these failures and intentionally stopped Pilot's nutrients so he couldn't help them. This leaves the crew with only one conclusion. Moya is trying to kill them. They go through Moya's diagnostics, but the work is slowed as they are forced to look through printed diagrams as accessing Moya's systems may tip her off to what they're doing. Crichton is trying to find a way to access her higher functions so they can shut down, although it would end up leaving her totally incapable of any independent impulses and there is no guarantee they can be restored.  D'Argo brings Rygel to command, where Zhaan confronts him, but he still calls her Lo'Laan. He says he loves her more all the time, and asks how she could give up everything to be with them. Zhaan asks D'Argo for help since their ship is hurt, but D'Argo says that he destroyed their ship so they could not trace them here. Crichton tells D'Argo to keep his hands of his sister, and says he rejects D'Argo, and their marriage. He says that D'Argo cowers from her memory and is not worthy of her. D'Argo says Lo'Laan's memory burns in his soul. He says she is dead, but he doesn't want to remember. He attacks Crichton saying he killed her to keep her from him. He says he never had the chance to tell Jothee why his mother and him left their world; he had to send Jothee away because he was charged with Lo'Laan's murder. He got Jothee away before he was arrested, praying Macton and the others like him would never find him. He says he cannot be sure he's safe until he sees him again. When Macton arrested him he saw Lo'Laan's dried blood on his hands. Crichton is confused, as he thought that D'Argo was arrested by a Peacekeeper, and D'Argo says it was quite a coup for him. Zhaan realises that if Macton was a Peacekeeper then Lo'Laan was a Sebaecean, D'Argo then produces a hologram that confirms this. Aeryn is trying to shut down Moya's higher functions. Crichton is on his way to the source of the explosion, but Aeryn reveals that she can't access the higher functions, she can only sever them, which they all agree to do. D'Argo finds he hole, sealed by the DRDs, and kicks it open. Crichton goes down the tunnel and finds another opening, whilst Aeryn begins severing the higher functions. Crichton finds something, and asks Zhaan about Leviathan physiology, because he thinks Moya is pregnant! The particles were a catalyst for the pregnancy, so Moya was actually protecting herself and the foetus. Aeryn then comms through says she's almost done severing Moya's higher functions, and everyone starts screaming at her to stop. Luckily she makes out what they're saying on the garbled comm in time and puts the saw down. Crichton wishes he could tell Moya that what she's doing for her baby is killing Pilot, and them. He then sees the inactive DRDs and realises that as the baby needs them, by turning them off they're killing it. So he gets a confused Aeryn to turn them back on. They go to attack him again, but Crichton takes a chance and tries speaking to Moya through one. Putting his weapon down in its sight, Chricton reassures Moya that they'd never hurt her or her baby -- they're happy about her child, but he asks if they have to die for the baby to survive. The DRDs back off, and atmosphere returns. Crichton asks Pilot how Moya could do this without him knowing. He says he is here to serve her -- she can do anything she wants for her, and now her offspring's, survival. Moya needed resources to nourish the foetus after inception. It is now alive and well. He says he has no special knowledge of the Leviathan gestation cycle, so frankly he doesn't know what to expect. Aeryn goes to see D'Argo, who thanks her for saving his life when he was floating in space. She says he's welcome, and that she didn't know Macton Tal. She then asks to see Lo'Laan. He shows her, and she says she's quite beautiful. He asks if it surprises her that someone like that could love him. She says it's engrained in Peacekeepers from birth to keep the bloodlines pure, so such unions are evil. He asks if she thinks his son is evil, and she says no, because in his eyes she sees D'Argo. She says that no matter what happens she'll never tell anyone about his son. + +During an extremely tense and unpleasant dinner, during which they constantly bicker with each other, Moya's crew discuss the prospect of leaving her because she is pregnant. Aeryn says she will not abandon Moya, but Zhaan agrees with D'Argo -- without starburst they're all at risk. Crichton doesn't want to leave either although admits its more due to her being where wormholes are likely to appear, and Rygel says that relationships change all the time and he wants to trade Moya for a faster vessel. As the argument continues, Pilot appears on the comm and says that he and Moya want them to stay since they are most fulfilled when serving others. He says that they should have been included in the discussion, and to prepare for immediate starburst to prove that Moya is capable. During starburst they appear to hit something, and everyone falls from their seats. Aeryn says that they must have hit something, and the fibers on Zhaan's arm are damaged. They suddenly notice that Rygel is missing, and a white light is surrounding the ship. D'Argo goes to walk to command when he suddenly disappears in front of their eyes into red light, then when Aeryn walks forward, she disappears into blue light! Crichton makes it to command, where Pilot says that most systems are out, and Moya's frightened and in great pain. He reads Rygel on tier eight and Aeryn in maintenance bay three, he's still looking for D'Argo. Chiana wants to leave, but Crichton says not without everyone else. Zhaan goes to comfort Pilot in his den, whilst Crichton tells Chiana to look for Rygel. She says no, but Crichton says Pilot can't get the outer doors open, and so she goes to find Rygel. Crichton goes to the maintenance bay, but Aeryn is not there. A table begins to shake when suddenly Crichton gets sucked into red light. Suddenly, everything, including Moya, seems red. He gets nauseous and throws up since the light is blinding his vision. He goes to Pilot's den, where the controls are moving but Pilot is not there. D'Argo is also nauseous in red Moya, and he sees Crichton walk past but he can't get to him. Crichton hears another sound, and climbs on a table, hoisting himself up when suddenly he gets sucked into something and Moya turns from red to blue. Crichton's vision returns, but a piercing noise is deafening him. He finds Aeryn at her Prowler, but they can't hear each other, so use hand signals to ask if either has seen D'Argo or Rygel. Both say no, and they go to where Crichton hoisted himself into the blue Moya, but this doesn't work, showing that the portals only work one-way. They walk along the corridor, when something rips through the air behind them, revealng a bright light. They continue to Rygel's quarters, but he is not there. Crichton spots his tape recorder on the table, but when he reaches for it he gets sucked again. This time, Moya turns yellow, and he can see and hear properly, seeminlgy no effect this time. Crichton finds Rygel there, who is just laughing at everything, and calls him cute. Crichton explains what happened, and he starts to laugh too. Apparently the effect in the yellow version of Moya is hilarious delirium. They go on, continually laughing. He tells Rygel to listen for a noise, but Rygel won't take him seriously so he leaves him. As he walks along the corridor, he hears the noise down a chute. He slides down, laughing and gets sucked in. This time, he appears into the normal Moya. Chiana and Zhaan tell Pilot that he's giving them false information as to the others' locations, they are not on board. Crichton enters and tells them that there are at least three other Moyas, and asks Pilot if he knows anything similar to what is happening. Pilot says that starburst is the seam between space-time dimensions; Moya rides the stream and is pushed out at a random location. She entered starburst without adequate thrust, so they appear to be stuck in starburst, with whatever is on the other side. Crichton explains about the creature, and tells them to get guns whilst he works with Pilot. Pilot explains how to reverse thrusters, and says they're still getting sucked in. Crichton says that Moya didn't have to starburst, but Pilot says it is no time for recriminations; they should have been up front, and he says that Moya is very scared. Crichton tells Zhaan and Chiana that he has a plan. Crichton, Zhaan and Chiana must go through the Moyas and activate maximum thrust in all Moyas. Zhaan is acting like the mother of Chiana, Crichton then changes the plan, ordering Zhaan to stay behind and shoot the creature. Crichton and Chiana go to where Crichton went to Red Moya and they get sucked in. The light doesn't affect Chiana, and D'Argo walks in with a mask asking what is going on. Chiana says she's heard of it before -- her people's weapons scientists once poked a hole through to another dimension, but once widened they lost control, and the whole solar system, four planets, dissolved into dust. Crichton tells D'Argo that they have to get the engines going all at once, when the creature bursts through. They shoot it, and it retreats. They reach Pilot's den and D'Argo thinks that since Chiana is not affected by Red Moya, she should stay. Chiana refuses and D'Argo stays. Next, after some arguing, Crichton sends Chiana to Blue Moya and follows. Chiana starts screaming, the noise seemingly amplified in her head. Crichton picks her up, carrying her away, and sends her through to Yellow Moya. The creature bursts through, and Crichton just stares at its scratch marks. Aeryn appears and shoots at it, then gives Crichton a headset so the can speak. She asks why he didn't shoot the creature, but he doesn't know. He tells Aeryn the plan, and she says to go, she already knows what to do. Crichton says that Pilot was very specific, but she recites what to do for full reverse, after all she has some of Pilot's DNA. Crichton promises not to doubt her again but then notices more scratch marks, and then goes to Rygel's quarters and to Yellow Moya. The Moyas continue to be sucked in, already taking tiers. Crichton goes to Pilot's den, where Chiana and Rygel are joking together. He performs the sequence for full reverse, and tells her if anything goes wrong to restore the green knob. Crichton then again slides down laughing and gets sucked back into the normal Moya. Pilot reports full reverse power, but says they're still being drawn in. He and Zhaan go to command, where Crichton again notices the scratch marks. Pilot says that Moya has an idea which might help: she could purposely lose the baby, since that would increase the power and both she and Pilot blames themselves for the situation due to attempting Starburst prematurely. Both say no, that is not an option and whatever happens they will go together and keep the baby. The creature bursts through, with the rip being much larger than before. Pilot tells them to shoot it, because Moya is so scared. Crichton tells Zhaan to hold her fire, noticing that the scratch marks are all grouped in prime numbers, so it must be trying to communicate. He goes and enters the hole, where everything is white and there are at least 4 Crichtons. They spot the creature, who says that they have breached his realm, and its function is to repair the breaches. It says that it will destroy them, and if they reverse it will tear the rupture beyond repair. It says to go forward, it will attempt to conduct them to the space that they began. Crichton comes out of the hole, and Pilot and Zhaan say he barely got his head in the hole, so there was no time to speak. Crichton says they must starburst forward, and Pilot explains that they have to reverse the last four controls. Crichton says to give him 500 microts. He runs into Red Moya and explains to D'Argo what to do -- go forward in 300 microts. Then he returns to Blue Moya, where the moving is getting harder as more and more tiers are getting sucked in. Crichton puts on his headset and tells Aeryn to go forward maximum thrust in 150 microts. He has to take the long route to quarters, because the ship is sucked. He then, with many difficulties, goes to Yellow Moya and puts it in maximum thrust at the right time. The four Moyas converge, and she exits starburst with everyone on top of Pilot's controls. The relief of having survived combined with being in such ridiculous positions causes everyone to descend into laughter as Pilot calmly states that he fails to see the source of their amusement. Soon, the crew are once again eating around the dinner table, except they are now enjoying each other's company, telling stories and joking. D'Argo asks if it is him or is this the best food they've ever had. Aeryn says she could live on anything here for a cycle. The jokes continue until Pilot interrupts and asks how they can be so jovial after such a near miss. Aeryn assures him that they weren't unaffected by what happened, in fact it affected them all deeply and asks how he and Moya are handling it. He says well enough to alleviate their concerns about starburst problems. Pilot reports a change in the baby, and everyone is initially concerned however this is good news although she can't be certain exactly when, Moya feels the day she gives birth is near. The crew decide this is a cause for celebration, and they toast to a healthy and happy baby. + +A loud, wailing siren wakes John Crichton, making his left eye twitch. Pilot neutralizes the noise but John keeps twitching. Aeryn identifies the disturbance as a Paddac beacon, hastily installed on Moya during captivity. But even with the siren off, the beacon continues to broadcast Moya's location to any Peacekeeper ship within a quarter light cycle. John's twitch bugs Aeryn. He suggests they insulate Moya's hull with water, by landing on a planet they just passed. Pilot says that landing a Leviathan has never been tried but Moya is willing to try. The landing is rough and Moya begins sinking in a swamp. Moya sinks deep enough to smother the beacon but it still needs to be removed from Moya's primary neural nexus, a highly sensitive and cramped area in a Leviathan, Rygel is the only one small enough to help. But removal will cause Moya great pain. Zhaan asks about an anaesthetic and Pilot suggests clorium, one of the Leviathans' forbidden cargoes. As the crew prepare to search outside for clorium, John reminds a moody Aeryn that he too has lost his home but if they don't fix the beacon problem then they'll all end up as a permanent tourist attraction on this planet. John, Aeryn and D'Argo exit Moya by an upper hatchway into a quiet, alien night and John says the planet reminds him of Louisiana or Dagobah. Aeryn gives him a wary sidelong glance. They detect a weak trace of clorium but vehicles suddenly appear with trackers. D'Argo says that he and Aeryn will distract the locals so that John can use a particle analyzer to search for a concentrated source. He waits till he hears the locals firing at the others then runs, discovering a barn like building next to a huge antenna array as daylight dawns. Pilot tells Zhaan he has finished tracing the complex links between the beacon and Moya's primary neural nexus. Zhaan wonders how the beacon came to be onboard without Pilot knowing about it. He confesses that a captured Leviathan is always dosed with a sleeping agent whilst Peacekeepers attach the control collar and make adjustments to propulsion and guidance controls. There was nothing he could have done to prevent it. In the barn Crichton discovers fertilizer that gives off a strong clorium signature. He contacts his shipmates but is disturbed by approaching footsteps and drops his comm badge. John hides and a young humanoid boy enters the barn. The boy spots John and asks what he is doing? Crichton tries to placate the boy by introducing himself. The boy says his name is Fostro then flees when he guesses John is from outer space. Crichton pursues Fostro, into the boy's house where Fostro panics and zaps John with a wand device, which leaves John temporarily paralyzed. Fostro calls his mother who appears from a back room, about to tell Fostro off for disturbing her phone call, until she sees Crichton and drops her phone in surprise, breaking it. Slowly Crichton regains movement and explains who he is. The mother is scared but secretly delighted to be talking to an alien, in her kitchen. She is still wary and determined to contact the authorities. Only some fast-talking from John saves his hide and gradually both mother and son begin to relax. Moya's pain worsens. Zhaan knows they can't wait for the others so uses diplomacy to persuade Rygel to help, as the beacon will not allow anything metallic near it. In return Zhaan says she will share Moya's pain. Rygel is doubtful. Moya is a very big ship. Aeryn and D'Argo disagree over strategies whilst hiding up a tree. D'Argo advises caution as there are too many locals around but Aeryn wants action. Meanwhile John explains to the wary but excited Woman, Lyneea that he is looking for something for his ship. She guesses where Moya landed and Fostro wants to tell the authorities. John sympathizes, assuring Lyneea that he really does understand the impact his arrival will have on her people's beliefs. But Lyneea is disappointed that their species are so similar. She expected aliens to be radically different. John asks for star charts, to get a fix on the Milky Way and Fostro guesses that John is lost. Rygel prepares to cut the beacon free with a bone knife from D'Argo's quarters and Zhaan links with Moya. Meanwhile Aeryn and D'Argo share a joke at Crichton's expense. D'Argo derides the locals' retrograde technology and says they're savages and Aeryn gets tired of waiting. She heads back to Moya whilst D'Argo goes looking for John. Lyneea prepares breakfast for Fostro and John. She says her work is military funded and John would be a real coup for her but she is concerned about how he would be treated. She gets a shock when John's particle analyzer detects clorium in the food and with a slight misunderstanding, John grabs the wand thinking they are going to attack him. He tracks the clorium signal to what looks like a large saltshaker and demands to know what it is? Lyneea and Fostro look terrified. To calm the situation, John apologies and gives the wand to Lyneea, who warily keeps her distance. John asks again what is in the saltshaker but they hear vehicles draw up outside and Lyneea quickly tells Fostro to hide John in the back room. Rygel's cutting causes Moya intense pain and as a power loss leaves him in the dark, Zhaan passes out. Rygel gets scared. He comms Pilot but gets no answer so tries to revive Zhaan. Shortly the power comes on again and Rygel hears Pilot asking if anyone can hear him. Moya is succumbing to the pressure. Zhaan comes round, much to Rygel's relief as the power fluctuates again. Lyneea has a visitor. Commander Ryymax and he wants to know why Lyneea's phone isn't working? Why is she nervous? She covers by saying she has doubts and wants to recheck her data but Ryymax is ready to congratulate her. John waits in the backroom and Lyneea appears, asking Fostro to go and see Ryymax but act normally. Lyneea explains to Crichton that the military have made her home their Center of Operations and John fears he will be captured. He must contact his ship to let Pilot know he has found the clorium. Aeryn returns to Moya where an exhausted Zhaan is lying down. Rygel says they have to take off immediately but Pilot is refusing to listen to him. Zhaan is weak but manages to get up, saying they have to continue removing the beacon. Rygel says he won't do it. Aeryn makes a grab for him and he bites a chunk out of her arm. She recoils in horror then makes a lunge at Rygel but is restrained by Zhaan who tells Aeryn to leave this to her. She realizes that Rygel hides his fears behind violence. He confesses that he doesn't know what he is doing. Zhaan consoles Rygel, saying they will face the pain together. Outside the room she offers to bandage Aeryn's wound but Aeryn is more concerned about Moya and how Zhaan will handle the pain. Zhaan admits that she can only take some of Moya's pain and momentarily mistakes Aeryn's concern for a genuine concern for her wellbeing. Outside Lyneea's home, Commander Ryymax is preparing for containment. He is sure that this time the sightings are real. Meanwhile, Crichton explains about wormholes. Lyneea understands the theory but refers to the phenomena as ribbon holes. She helps John to establish a visual comms link with Pilot, through the antennas outside and is surprised when Pilot's image looks so different from Crichton. Suddenly Fostro bursts in. The Military have caught another alien! Through the window John sees D'Argo fighting a few soldiers before getting zapped by Ryymax. A little later and D'Argo is restrained in Lyneea's barn. Ryymax warns Lyneea and Fostro that they have to leave the area. It is no longer safe for them. Lyneea returns to her house and rails against John, demanding to know what kind of ship he was on. She thought he was a scientist. John states he is a scientist but confesses that Moya's crew was prisoners. Still furious with him, Lyneea reaches for a large sack of the clorium spice, onlux, thrusts it at John and tells him to leave but John won't go without D'Argo. Back on Moya Rygel works his way along the nexus. The pain is so great that Zhaan needs Aeryn's help to keep her physical link with Moya. Aeryn calls for Rygel to hurry up. Lyneea sets up a diversion for John by showing Ryymax a recording of Pilot then gives false co-ordinates to send Ryymax in the opposite direction from where Moya is. The ruse works. In the barn, Crichton sees Ryymax enter and order a team to follow him, leaving only two soldiers guarding D'Argo. Fostro discovers John's comm badge on the ground and approaches D'Argo, distracting the guards' attention. John sees his moment and grabs a large spade then knocks out both guards and releases D'Argo. Outside Lyneea's house once more, John thanks Lyneea. She thanks him for altering the perspective of a whole planet. John kisses Lyneea on the cheek and she blushes. Fostro shakes D'Argo's hand and says goodbye and as he and Crichton leave, Lyneea tells Fostro that one-day he will have a very special story to tell but not yet. On Moya, Rygel has nearly finished cutting. Zhaan is in a bad way, even with Aeryn's help. As John comms to say he and D'Argo are back, Aeryn calls for Pilot to take off. Pilot cannot activate Moya's propulsion because the pain through the nexus is blocking the signals. John appears just in time as Rygel finishes. He passes Rygel a bag of the onlux and says to spread it wherever he cut. Rygel does so but can't resist eating a little of the spice himself. The clorium spice works and Pilot calls for everyone to prepare for lift off. As evening falls Lyneea sits on the stairs outside her home. Fostro is asleep with his head in her lap, so only Lyneea witnesses Moya rising from the swamp and sweeping up into space. Aeryn finds a wistful John watching the departing planet through Moya's forward viewer and asks if he is going to miss that rock. "No, not that rock," John answers cryptically. Aeryn leaves him to his musing. + +Moya is still trapped in the asteroid field, but there is now a bigger problem. Rygel has taken a transport pod and is headed towards Crais' command carrier. The rest of Moya's crew aren't happy, apparently his eminence is out to strike a deal with Scorpius and Crais. Crais, meanwhile, wonders why Rygel is on his way to them alone, and Scorpius remarks that perhaps he wants to become part of Crais' collection, referring to the Hynerian trophies in Crais' quarters. Crais thinks it's all just a game to Scorpius, however he denies it saying he cares a great deal about one thing -- the wormhole technology that Crichton holds. Lt. Braca brings in Rygel, who says they want the Leviathan, its gunship offspring, the defector Aeryn Sun and especially John Crichton. Are they interested? Pilot has plotted a course out of the asteroid field using the charts from Br'Nee, but Moya refuses to leave her offspring who cannot Starburst. It can't use its weaponry effectively until it's fully grown. John tells Aeryn and Ka D'Argo he will not be taken alive by the Peacekeepers -- he's been in the Aurora Chair, and he will not go back. He asks what would happen if one of them pretends to dock at the command carrier but at the last second drives the transport pod straight into the bridge. Aeryn says it won't cripple their operations, but Crichton asks what would happen if it is loaded with explosives. Rygel is now having a full on meal on the Carrier, when Scorpius says he could easily put Rygel in the Chair, but he says it will not work, and Crais agrees that a Hynerian would die instantly. Scorpius agrees that he will exchange Rygel's freedom for Crichton, saying the rest is insignificant, however Rygel wants a ship, crew and more. Scorpius says he's lying about why he's here, but Rygel denies it. Scorpius tells the guards to lock him up, but he says no -- Crichton will not be taken alive. Scorpius asks him if he will help them capture Crichton. D'Argo tries to convince Chiana to wear chains when the Peacekeepers come, so they think she's a prisoner, but she rejects that with a vengeance. Meanwhile Zhaan is whipping up a substance that becomes explosive when mixed with certain items, and she says that she has made a family on Moya but feels it's all coming to an end. John replies that for what it's worth, she is family. Aeryn is with Pilot, trying to comfort him, since he is sharing Moya's pain. He says that they have grown close in their time together, and her prowler is still on board so she can leave and not be captured. She tells him she is not going anywhere, and when she finally has a name for Moya's son, she will give him one that it will bear proudly, it's her honour, and she will do it in freedom. John is trying to record a message to his father, but cannot find the right words for it, when Aeryn walks in on him and tells him how lucky he is, because she knows little about her mother, and even less about her father. Crais walks in on Rygel having a bath, and says he must discuss Rygel's future. Scorpius has ordered his execution, and asks if he really thought he could strike a bargain with a Scarran half-breed. Rygel asks why Crais tells him this, and he says they are in similar situations, but he wants to survive. Rygel returns to Moya, and the others fear it is a trap, even though he was not followed. D'Argo, Zhaan, Crichton and Aeryn all point their guns at the door, as Rygel hovers in saying not to shoot. He tells them not to let their reaction to what they will see next include weapons fire, as Crais follows behind! He says he asked Rygel for asylum, and had it granted! He asks to be placed in a cell so he won't be harmed. D'Argo takes exception to his presence, and beats on him until he reveals that D'Argo was wrongfully imprisoned -- Crais knew thay D'Argo was not guilty of the murder of his wife but could not reverse his conviction. Crichton considers this an easy answer, but Crais counters that as they are all proof of, life isn't fair. Rygel tells Zhaan and Chiana what he saw -- it was no act, Scorpius was in control on the Carrier. Rygel recognises Crais' value, but Zhaan says he went to sell them out. Rygel replies, "You bet I did but I didn't!" D'Argo and Aeryn are preparing the explosives, when they say they have come to rely on each other, and she wishes she'd seen his son. He tells her he misses him more every day, and she says he has his father's blood, so he's probably just like him. John is watching over Crais, saying he wants a male-to-male conversation. Crais says he understands now that John didn't purposely kill his brother. He says he thought at first it was about his brother, but somewhere along the line it became about him. Later, Crais tells the crew that Scorpius will attack as soon as he detects the transport pod, destroying it once they detect explosives before it hits. D'Argo mentions there's one thing he values more than anything -- the Gammak Base. They can ignite the moon's oil surface and destroy it as a distraction allowing their escape, but someone will have to fly the pod. Crais says it won't work because there's one thing Scorpius values more than anything -- Crichton. D'Argo volunteers, then Chiana sees John saying she knows he will go too. He says that he is what Scorpy wants, and she thanks John for saving her life, giving him a goodbye kiss. He says one day she can return the favour. Lt. Braca tells Scorpius that Crais has been deemed irreversibly contaminated; Scorpius is now in full control. Scorpius' orders are to cripple the Leviathan, if the offspring responds to their signal bring it in, or else destroy it. He says everyone but Crichton is dispensable. Crais and Aeryn are on the offspring, and he says it's amazing. All other attempts have failed, and it must be because they were in captivity. The offspring can have a Pilot, but doesn't require one as it responds to direct voice commands. Aeryn and Crais agree that it should be left out of their conflicts. John says he allows Rygel to have is possessions if he doesn't make it; Rygel says he can be selfish but please don't hold it against him. Chiana has cooked everyone's favourite meals as appreciation for all they've done for her. In the mean time John leaves the message to his father, saying he thinks his time has come, but he's not afraid, his Dad did good. Zhaan blesses John and D'Argo, and they all say their goodbyes. D'Argo gives the holo-image of his wife and son to Zhaan, so she can give it to him. Aeryn tells them if they get it right, the Peacekeepers won't notice them, and she'll be there. The Peacekeepers detect the transport pod, but Scorpius won't change course until they know more information. D'Argo and John are on the pod, and Pilot wishes them luck. Initial Peacekeeper scans reveal a Luxan and Human on board, so Scorpius changes course, and says he wants the prisoners alive. John arms the explosives, whilst Pilot tells Aeryn, who's in her prowler, that the offspring is not responding to Moya. She tells him to call it by its name -- Talyn, which was her father's name. Braca reveals there are explosives on the pod, and Scorpius says if they ignite the oil surface of the moon, the Base will have to be evacuated. D'Argo says it's time to go, and John says he loves hanging with him, giving him his Dad's good luck charm. They exit the pod, leaving them drifting in space! Aeryn has to get them, as D'Argo can only survive for one quarter of an arn. The transport hits the moon, and the surface ignites behind them! Crais has boarded Talyn, and Aeryn can't get to John and D'Argo, as there are too many prowlers around. Aeryn orders Crais to leave, telling him its wrong to remove a child from his mother. Crais reminds her however that's exactly what happened to both of them, and tells Aeryn that he'll be interested to see how their relationship develops away from the Peacekeepers, on the off-chance she manages to survive her current situation and they ever meet again. With that, Talyn flies off with Crais back into the asteroid field. The command carrier is moving in on Moya, but no one including Rygel wants to leave the others. Moya refuses to go without Talyn, so John speaks to her, saying her only chance to rescue her son is to save herself first, and thanks Moya for everything. Watched by D'Argo, John and Aeryn, Moya Starbursts away, as D'Argo falls unconscious. With Aeryn unable to rescue them, John and D'Argo remain floating in space. + +John Crichton tries to recreate a wormhole, but it goes wrong and the crew find themselves with a bounty on their heads, and Ka D'Argo's rather mad. Crichton and Aeryn Sun are testing out some newly installed Moya components on Farscape-1. The planet below is projecting solar flares, so Crichton is investigating the conditions under which the wormhole that brought him here was created. One of the flares reaches Moya, and Zhaan seems somewhat aroused by the light. Crichton manages to create the conditions for a wormhole, and he and Aeryn find themselves being pulled in by one, but it's unstable. Aeryn tells him to reverse thrusters, but he is mesmerised by it. He pulls them out just in time, but Moya loses them from sensors. Zhaan wants to find them, but D'Argo and Rygel want to leave. Another flare reaches Moya and Zhaan's turned on again. Crichton contacts them, saying they just started a wormhole, but they have a plasma leak. They can't be brought on Moya in case it compromises her child's safety, so Pilot tells them to eject. Crichton won't leave his module, and decides to land and have it fixed by a mechanic named Furlow that Rygel had spoke to, even though D'Argo forbids it. Aeryn is angry that Crichton would have flown in to the wormhole had it been stable, regardless that she was there too. Down on the planet, Furlow says she should be able to fix the module by nightfall, and offers to buy it, but Crichton won’t sell. She says the flares stop, and only return every five cycles. Whilst she begins her work, Aeryn and Crichton go for a walk outside, when a Peacekeeper wanted beacon appears offering a reward for the capture of the three escaped prisoners -- Zhaan, D'Argo and Rygel. Aeryn thinks she knows why she is not on it, and goes to take it when two aliens object. Aeryn tries to explain but the female attacks her since she said she was not Crichton's female. He does some quick thinking and tells them to back off, saying she is in fact one of his females. He asks who they are and what they want from the fugitives. They say they are Vorcarian blood trackers, he is Rorf and the female his mate, Rorg. Crichton says he is Butch and his female is Sundance, and the reward belongs to him. Zhaan is soaking up the flares on Moya's terrace, naked too. D'Argo says he will go down to the planet and drag Crichton and Aeryn back himself. The four of them are eating some sort of meat, and Rorf says the wanted beacons are on many planets, and he and Rorg believe this planet will be the fugitives' next stop. Crichton says that they won't be taken without a lot of bloodshed, and asks how good they are -- he may be willing to cut them in. If they bring them in, he'll split the bounty seventy-thirty, but Rorf insists seventy-forty. So Crichton retorts eighty-forty. Aeryn asks Crichton how long he thinks his rouse will work, and he says it only needs to until the module is repaired. He got his Aeryn patches in to a personal encoded message in the wanted beacon. Crais says she will be captured and face trial unless she accepts his conditional amnesty. If she abandons Crichton, returns Moya and surrenders D'Argo, Zhaan and Rygel then she will be honourably retired with her commission fully restored, on his oath. Meanwhile D'Argo lands on the planet, but Rorg picks up his Luxan scent. She and Rorf ambush him and stun him. Furlow again offers to buy Farscape-1, because it shows signs of being close to a wormhole. Crichton won't sell, so she says she could trade -- she's just come by a second-hand prowler. Crichton thinks something's up and goes outside to see Rorf and Rorg bringing D'Argo in, all tied up. He accompanies them while they torture D'Argo to find out where the other two fugitives are. Rorf cuts him, so Crichton steps in saying that they must make the blood run clear or else D'Argo will die, but Crais wants him alive. Rorf asks why Crichton is protecting him, so he says he doesn't care but D'Argo's worthless to them dead, and they're wasting time. Crichton squeezes his cut tentacle, and punches him, causing the blood to run clear, but looking painful. Aeryn finds one of Furlow's men trying to access Farscape-1's flight recorder. He has glowing eyes, and the rest of Furlow's men run, and he knocks Furlow down. He and Aeryn fight, but she gets caught by a solar flare, and when she gets up she can't see! Furlow strikes the man with an instrument, killing him. Furlow says Aeryn has a 60 to 80% chance of regaining her sight. Zhaan meanwhile goes down to the planet, and Rorg picks up her scent. She notices the Trackers, and protects her scent so throwing them off. She gets caught in a flare, and once again gets excited. D'Argo has broken free and attacks Crichton, so he says he saved D'Argo's ass today, and he's no idea what goes on in his head. D'Argo says every time he lets his guard down Crichton disappoints him. Crichton calls him childish; to which he says Crichton is selfish. Crichton says he can be and asks what about him? D'Argo says he can be. Crichton asks if he ever goes up to him with a weapon, and says it won't work -- they'll never be friends. D'Argo says friendship is a lot to ask, so Crichton says how about respect -- they can be allies, and they shake hands. Aeryn tells Furlow she knows she's not going to fix the module any time soon, and Furlow says there's not usually a load of bounty hunters. Aeryn says they can make a deal. Rorf and Rorg attack D'Argo and Crichton as they leave. Gunfire ensues, and Aeryn walks out with the beacon in the midst of it. Crichton grabs her but she turns on the beacon, where Crais says the command carrier in the area has been re-assigned, so the reward was withdrawn. Rorf and Rorg leave Aeryn and D'Argo to Crichton. Aeryn is pleased with her idea, and Zhaan arrives saying the flares have stopped, which upsets Crichton. Back at Furlow's, Aeryn's sight is returning, and she listened to Crais' idea because it was nice for one moment to believe she could go back to her old life. She says she has a debt with Furlow that she can't repay, and asks Crichton to settle it. He tells Furlow that they can't pay her, so she says the ability to create a wormhole could be valuable. He says he'll give her a copy of his data, but she wants exclusive rights. He reluctantly agrees and says that five years from now he'll be waiting for her at the other end of the wormhole. + +Zhaan and Chiana are arguing about something that Chiana took from her quarters, whilst John Crichton is leaving a message to his dad, Pilot contacts him and tells him to go to Command immediately. Moya has found a wormhole that just appeared right in front of them. Through the wormhole they see a planet, and it's Earth! He's preparing to launch, and Aeryn Sun says that she can't go with him because she's not certain that she'll belong there, but Crichton must leave immediately. Zhaan says it could kill him, because it's unstable, but he says he has to do it, because it might be Earth. Crichton tells Ka D'Argo he hopes he'll get to see his son one day, and everyone's a little choked up. Crichton tells Rygel that he's going to leave all his stuff and give it to Aeryn, but Rygel realises it as a joke. Aeryn peeks round the corner, and he says his goodbyes. He's at the mouth of the wormhole, but he hesitates. D'Argo persuades him to go in, despite his fears. Pilot loses him from sensors, and the crew's faces say it all. Crichton crash lands on the Australian coast, where he sees a woman before the military come for him, and knock him out with a tranquilizer. Inside a military base, a man called Wilson is questioning him in a cell. They bring in different foreigners, thinking that the translator microbes in Crichton's brain are in fact an alien virus, so he has to translate what they are saying. Crichton sarcastically translates a Ghanaian man speaking the Fante language. He says he won't play any more games, so Wilson leaves. He later asks the guard, Cobb, when he'll get out. Cobb says he doesn't know, so Crichton asks to read the paper, to find out what's happened in the seven months he's been gone. He asks Cobb who won the Super Bowl but Cobb doesn't know. Crichton's dad comes in and says he wants to see his son. John asks him to get him out of here, and his dad asks what happened on his tenth birthday, checking if he's who he says he is. John says his dad was late, again, because they held him at Houston for tests. He woke him up at four in the morning to go fishing. Jack hugs his son, and John asks what's going on, since this is far from normal recovery procedure. Jack says that nothing's been the same since he left, and the wormhole stayed open. John asks his dad to get him out of here, and he says he will. The two of them walk along the beach, and John says that Wilson would not have just let him go. His dad shows him a van and two women who are watching them. He says that Wilson wants him to find out if it is his son, and everything about the wormhole and what's on the other side. They return to the base, where John tells one of the workmen that he's doing something wrong, when he recognises him as someone he's met before. The base goes on alert, as a transport pod has come through the wormhole and John tells them not to fire, since it has no weapons. Inside were Aeryn, D'Argo and Rygel. Aeryn says that Earth disappeared when he went through the wormhole. Rygel says that it was her idea to go after him. She says she wanted to get a closer look, but the wormhole sucked her in. Wilson wants to know what they're saying, and John says they're scared. Rygel asks why they're treating him like this, to which John replies that they're freaking out, but he says he'll take care of them. John asks his father what's going on, and notices that because all the magazines are seven months old they don't want him to know anything. He says that he trusts the others a lot more than Wilson -- they're his friends. A man calls him to the medical bay, where they find Rygel cut open, and dead! John has a go at Wilson, and tells Aeryn and D'Argo that the official word is that Rygel died from an allergic reaction to the tranquilizer. He says that he thinks they killed Rygel, and D'Argo says they cut him open to study him. D'Argo says that when they come for him he'll fight. Aeryn says that even Peacekeepers wouldn't kill a prisoner to study them, and tells John to just go. Jack says that John was naive to think he could protect them, and John says that he's going to make Wilson understand. Jack asks if he's willing to die for those creatures, and John say he gave his word. He goes to the medical room, where he finds a man on the ground. Aeryn appears and asks if she killed the man, and John says no. He says he's on her side, and she must trust him. She says they took D'Argo, but she was ready when they came for her. John and Aeryn find Cobb, and they ask him where D'Argo was taken. Cobb says he was flown to another base, and John takes his gun, and knocks him out, for Rygel. They leave, and Aeryn is fascinated by the rain, and says she likes it. They're at a place where Jack and John spent some time last year, but Aeryn doesn't trust that his dad told him where it was. They go in and drink some beer, which Aeryn says tastes like Fellip nectar. John apologizes for getting her here, and stuck on Moya. He looks out the window, and Aeryn says he was right; Earth is actually very beautiful. She says they'll have to kill her to capture her. He says he knows, and rests his head on her shoulder. Then they kiss. We cut to the next morning, where Aeryn tells John to get out of bed. Aeryn's found an uninhabited place to hide. She puts on a dress and the door knocks. It's Jack, and Aeryn holds her gun to him. She wants John to search him, but he refuses. Jack says that he talked to everyone he knows, but no one will help them. D'Argo is on the way to a military warehouse, and the official word is that they never existed. He tells them that they have to get out of town; he'll cover for them. He says goodbye, and Aeryn says something apparently heartfelt that he understands that he understands the emotion of if not the content, as he says "thank you, Aeryn Sun". Aeryn and John walk down the street when John sees the girl who was on the beach. He asks the man at the newsstand why all the magazines are seven months old, but recognises him from being on the beach the other day, and says he used to ride his bike past the man's house in the fifth grade. He knows everyone around him, and pulls a gun on Aeryn. Every place that he's been so far he has been to in his past. He goes into a pool hall that is just the way he remembers it, and he knows all the people there too. He's been in the men's room before, but never the ladies' so he kicks open the door to reveal an energy barrier. He goes to talk to his dad at the military base, who says he did well. Everything here is a physical creation from his memory. He's not his father, but the others are real. They were investigating the wormhole so they were used too. D'Argo and Rygel are locked up, and Rygel says he was treated like royalty. Jack the Ancient says that they needed a human reaction. He apologizes, but says that John had to believe everything. Jack's race only have enough power to transport their race one last time, so they had to know how they'd be received if they went to Earth. John goes through a door, where there is a hive of aliens. Jack says that they only want to co-habit while they replenish their hive. The Ancients have stories of a world that will welcome them. They had to know if humans would welcome them or fight them. He apologises for taking John's dad's form, and John asks to see what he really looks like. Surrounded by light he transforms into his creature form, and says the highest form of life on the planet is often the most destructive, and humans would kill them. He says that they will continue searching for a home, and John says so will he. The Ancient returns Jack's good luck charm, and says that maybe they'll meet again one day. + +The crew are visiting a commerce planet looking for supplies, including a cure for Rygel's flu. A merchant named Liko tells Zhaan he has what he needs, so she goes to speak to him. A jester looking man approaches Crichton saying he knows a lot of things about John Crichton -- including that he's looking for a way back to Earth and he's being hunted by Peacekeepers. He says if he wants to meet Haloth, he should follow him. Crichton is intrigued, and is transported to a room by Haloth, who says he simply wished him here. Liko tells Zhaan that he's honoured by the presence of a Delvian Pa'u. Crichton asks Haloth what else he can do, but he says he can't send him home or even point him in the right direction, but he talks of Crais -- the man who wants revenge. Haloth says he can let Crichton talk to Crais, and if he tells Crais face-to-face that his brother's death was an accident then Crais will be discerned. Crais receives a communiqué from Peacekeeper High Command, containing orders for him to cease pursuit of the escaped Leviathan, leave the Uncharted Territories and return to Peacekeeper First Command for new orders. Lieutenant Teeg confirms that she was ordered to observe the message in case Crais attempts to disobey, upon which she should remove him from command but states that until that time her loyalty is to her captain. Crais states he may be able to bide time from High Command, however it is clear when she leaves he is too growing tired of the chase. Haloth appears and brings Crais to his chamber, where he shows him Crichton, and says Crais can have him at a price. Ka D'Argo and Aeryn Sun find Crichton unconscious, and she tells him to get Zhaan. Haloth tells Crichton that he has bad news, transforms into Maldis, and brings Crais to him. D'Argo has found a girl who saw Crichton with someone, and Liko knows that it was Maldis. Crais tells Crichton he's here to kill him, and gets a skewer to fight him with. Crais manages to graze his hand, and in reality Zhaan finds Crichton with a new graze on his hand. Liko says Maldis is an evil sorcerer that feeds off pain and death; he taps in to others' life energy. He invaded this planet and killed half its population, subjugating the rest. He says Maldis is invincible, and before Maldis came he was a High Priest, but his powers weren't strong enough to defeat him. Even from afar he can rip your soul out. Zhaan asks him to guide her to use abilities to hurt Maldis. He says to do so she must have the intent to hurt him, maybe even kill him. She says it is possible. Maldis tells Crichton that Crais offered him bigger stakes than Crichton could, now Crais is here so he must deal with him. Crais attacks him, but he says he didn't murder his brother. He turns the attack round on him, and has Crais where he could kill him, but insists it was an accident. Zhaan forces herself to hurt a beast, but she can't finish it off. She says she's evolved past the hatred to hurt others. Liko says she merely suppressed the feelings, and she's just scared of them. She says the thought that she can destroy Maldis terrifies her. Crichton explains to Crais what really happened, and he says Crais knows his pod is inferior to a prowler. Crais says he charged it, but he says that's not the truth. Maldis appears and shows Crais his father, who calls Bialar and Tauvo to him, because the recruiter is here to pick them up. He tells Bialar to stay close to Tauvo and protect him. Bialar promises to, before the Peacekeepers take him away. Crichton realises that Crais and his brother didn't choose to be Peacekeepers, but were forcibly conscripted as children and taken from their home and family. Crais insists that being chosen for Peacekeeper duty was a great honor but is clearly hurt by the memory. Another vision shows Tauvo saying that it's an honour for him to serve with his brother. Crichton wants Maldis to stop this, but he shows Tauvo dead and blames Crichton for it. This fuels Crais' desire to kill him, and the chase is back on. Zhaan tells Aeryn and D'Argo that she can stop Maldis, but she desires another option even though she knows there isn't one. She is distraught that she will have to use her evil to destroy another evil, but she knows she has no other choice, so she leaves to start. Crichton meanwhile tells Crais that Maldis is feeding off them, that he thrives of Crais desire for his death. Crichton asks him to listen, and says he understands that Crais is torturing himself because he should have protected Tauvo, but it was an accident. Crais says it doesn't matter, that Tauvo must be avenged, and swears Crichton will die in his hands. Maldis admits he feeds off the life force of others, and death is like the main course. Zhaan apologises to Liko, and when Rygel complains over the comm. about his remedy, they join and cause Rygel pain together. Zhaan says that part of her enjoyed it. Crichton is still trying to reason with Crais, saying he won't be satisfied if Maldis kills him, and suggests a truce, and that they work together. Crais pretends to agree, but then attack him again. Rygel performs the Hynerian Ceremony of Passage on Crichton's body, and declares him dead, claiming his possessions. Maldis is getting low on energy, and tries to get Crichton to kill Crais, saying if he does he'll let Crichton go. He says he agrees, he's done talking to Crais and will kill him. Maldis leads Crais to Crichton, and they begin to fight. Zhaan and Liko start their ritual, but as Crichton holds Crais ready for the kill, Maldis sends him back to his command carrier. He says he finally got Crichton to do what he wanted; the carrier will bring carnage on a massive scale. He wanted Crais to continue his pursuit until the Carrier is within reach, because he was considering turning back but now he won't. Maldis goes to kill Crichton, but Zhaan appears to stop the magic, saying she made him tangible, and Crichton punches him to dust. Crichton wakes up on Moya, with Rygel, who says he saved his life. Crichton kisses him out of happiness to be back. Liko is dying from helping Zhaan, but before he passes he thanks her for helping the greater good. Crais tells his doctor that he wants no more scans, and to omit this incident from his logs. He asks Teeg if they had any other communication with High Command, and when she confirms that no-one else knows he has been recalled he kills her, breaking her neck with ease, and orders them to go deeper in to the Uncharted Territories. Zhaan tells the crew that she merely dispersed Maldis, and he will be back together someday. Aeryn apologises for mocking her courage and she says Zhaan's more of a warrior than she ever thought. This disturbs Zhaan, and she hastily leaves. Aeryn asks D'Argo what's wrong with her, and he says she called her a warrior -- she could not have cut her more deeply. Crichton makes a recording for DK, saying he though he could convince Crais of the truth if they spoke face-to-face, but now he doesn't think Crais will stop until one of them dies. Zhaan tells Crichton that before she became a priest she was a savage, and he's never seen that part of her before, she thought she'd never have to resurrect it again. He says that she did so once to defeat Maldis, but she can once again suppress it. She says she doesn't think she can, and in a disturbing tone tells him none of them can help her. + +D'Argo, Zhaan and Rygel witness a ship slowly disintegrating. Rygel demands they leave the area immediately and surprisingly D'Argo agrees. Zhaan wonders if anything can be done to help but as a curious John enters Command they receive a transmission from a shuttle escaping the wreckage. Moya's viewscreen shows a female alien, similar to D'Argo in looks and D'Argo abruptly changes his mind, telling Pilot to bring the shuttle aboard. John and D'Argo rescue a male and female alien from the shuttle. But when John rechecks the shuttle for others, he gets a shock from an open hatch, confusing him into hallucinating that he is hearing D'Argo repeatedly saying there is no one else on board. Zhaan logs the rendezvous co-ordinates. Rygel wants to talk fees but D'Argo won't hear of it. The guests are Ilanics, he says, genetic cousins and blood allies to the Luxans. Pilot announces that Moya will reach the co-ordinates in 12 arns. Matala is pleased. D'Argo apologizes to Matala for Rygel's manners and asks if she and her colleague need anything to eat or drink. She says nothing for her but wants her colleague, Verell to eat something and asks D'Argo to go with her. Verell is curious about Moya's crew, but as D'Argo wasn't imprisoned for treason then he's not interested in D'Argo's crime. He says he and Matala owe D'Argo their lives and D'Argo's exile from his own people is atonement enough. Verell learns that as D'Argo has been imprisoned for 8 'cycles' then he doesn't know the Ilanic Sector is at war. "The Scorvians", D'Argo correctly guesses. Verell says the Luxans have been more than generous with arms and aid and if D'Argo can get Verell to the rendezvous point then it will help the war effort more than he will know. Meanwhile in the shuttle, Aeryn Sun scans for broken power conduits when Matala appears and takes exception to Aeryn being there. They have a slight disagreement and both suddenly adopt defensive postures, ready to fight, but D'Argo arrives. He sides with Matala and orders Aeryn to leave. A little later and Aeryn is voicing her suspicions to Zhaan and John that two people were alone in deep space, doing 'research' when John gets another erotic vision involving Matala, which makes him flinch and groan. Aeryn thinks Matala is effecting D'Argo and John but John tries to shrug it off just as he gets yet another erotic vision. It is over quickly and John apologizes to Zhaan and Aeryn, excusing himself from the room by saying he needs air. Verell is in a maintenance bay, studying his data as D'Argo arrives. They discuss Matala briefly and Verell infers D'Argo's attraction to Matala, adding that Matala is obviously attracted to D'Argo. Matala enters and compliments D'Argo on a musical instrument he is making. D'Argo seems lost for words. Crichton arrives and asks D'Argo if he can have a word with him. Outside, Crichton asks D'Argo if Ilanic women have special powers for attracting males but when he confesses to the erotic 'flashes', D'Argo takes exception and orders John to remove Matala from his thoughts then leaves. John is annoyed. D'Argo isn't listening but right then gets another vision, only this time its Aeryn, asking where D'Argo is and is he still acting like Verell and Matala's personal servant? When John doesn't answer she waves a hand in front of his face and with a flash, John is back where he was. Confused. Aeryn appears, asking John where D'Argo is and is he still acting like Verell and Matala's personal servant? John looks blankly at Aeryn who asks if he heard her. "Twice", John says uneasily. Aeryn says he is odd and leaves John thinking he is seeing the future. Matala wanders past sensuously, making John feel even more unnerved. He retreats to his quarters and has another vision. He is looking at a dead Verell in the maintenance bay as D'Argo enters. But as D'Argo investigates, Matala appears, attacking and killing them both. Suddenly John is back in his quarters hearing an unearthly voice laughing at him. John finds D'Argo outside the maintenance bay and warns him that Matala is dangerous but D'Argo won't listen. He thinks this is a ruse by John to get Matala for himself. John feels frustrated but just then the maintenance bay door swings open and Verell appears. John asks him where Matala is and he says she just left with Aeryn. D'Argo says to Verell that he was bringing him some tea and the two of them enter the bay with D'Argo throwing a disgusted look at Crichton. John wanders off even more confused and uneasy. Aeryn and Matala are going for some physical combat training when they meet Crichton in a corridor. Matala takes John's hand, asking how he feels, and strokes it suggestively before Aeryn leads her off to the cargo bay. Zhaan enters the central chamber where Rygel is gorging himself and asks if he senses anything unusual with Moya's rhythms. Rygel doesn't. Zhaan is still unsure. Aeryn and Matala spar, trading a few insults, and after Aeryn has knocked Matala down a couple of times. Matala rallies with an unusual strike that leaves Aeryn unconscious. She thanks Aeryn then leaves, only to meet Zhaan who quizzes Matala about why her ship destabilized. Matala is evasive and steers the topic round to Crichton but Zhaan states Crichton is too complex to explain in the short time that Matala will be on board. Verell suggests to Zhaan that Moya's 'phase imbalance' is probably a sensor synapse out of calibration. Meanwhile John tells Rygel he needs to stop people seeing each other. Rygel says he is gibbering. John gets another vision. The maintenance bay again. D'Argo enters as before but this time John blocks Matala's deadly strike. She knees him in the groin and John flashes back to the Central Chamber, collapsing across Rygel as Zhaan enters. She asks John what the matter is and the bewildered human says, "this is going to take a lot of explaining" then hurriedly exits. Meanwhile Verell confides in D'Argo that he and Matala were testing a new weapon and he needs to perfect its containment system. D'Argo is persuaded to help keep it a secret from the others. In Zhaan's quarters she listens to John's theory about what is happening and suggests that he try to alter the outcome. John thought of staying in his quarters but that wouldn't stop Matala from killing Verell and D'Argo. Frustrated, John drops a glasslike mask he was holding and it breaks. He apologizes to Zhaan but she takes no offence. Crichton supports Zhaan's belief that Verell is being evasive and he wants to know the truth. He goes to confront Verell, but finds Matala instead and grabs a wooden block to keep her away from him. As D'Argo arrives, Matala falls as if attacked by John, lying to D'Argo that Crichton threatened to tell the others about the weapon if she didn't pleasure him. D'Argo fumes, draws his Qualta Blade and skewers John, but Matala is suddenly on her feet again and strikes at Verell as he arrives then D'Argo, killing them both. Crichton is suddenly back in Zhaan's quarters. The glass mask reassembles in his hand and Zhaan is suggesting he try to alter the future. John says he did but made things worse. Agitated, John accidentally drops the mask again and explains what happened. Zhaan looks perplexed. Aeryn appears, revealing that Matala fights like a Scorvian, so must have been surgically altered to look Ilanic but Crichton already knows about the neural stroke firsthand. Aeryn asks how and John explains about seeing the future and being certain that D'Argo knows what Verell is hiding. Aeryn wants to question D'Argo but John says no, that D'Argo thinks too highly of Verell. Zhaan says to separate them but Pilot interrupts with news that Moya's phase imbalance is worsening. Zhaan comms D'Argo, asking him to meet her in Command. John bets he won't be alone and guesses Verell will stay behind to guard his research. John heads to the maintenance bay, hiding as he hears D'Argo and Matala talking in a corridor. Matala is trying to seduce D'Argo into joining the Ilanic war. D'Argo says his crime will prevent him from joining, although no one on Moya knows his real crime but Matala says that it doesn't matter. War doesn't recognize multiple loyalties. John grabs his chance to see Verell, demanding to know what his 'research' is and exposing Matala as a Scorvian spy. He tells Verell that since getting zapped on the shuttle, he has been experiencing 'future flashes'. Verell scans John then says it is temporal dislocation, admitting that Crichton must have been exposed to a quantum singularity. John is horrified to learn there is a particle of a black hole on the Ilanic shuttle and that they plan to use it as a weapon! But Matala overhears their conversation as she enters with D'Argo and, using the moment to confuse Verell, she strikes D'Argo dead and seizes his Qualta Blade. John dives for cover as she fires then Matala turns on Verell and shoots him, grabs his research and heads for the Ilanic shuttle. Aeryn arrives and takes out the shuttle with one shot. The shuttle implodes, taking Moya with it. But John is suddenly back in Zhaan's quarters, listening to Zhaan suggest he try and alter the future. John deliberately places the mask on the floor and crushes it under foot. Zhaan looks shocked. Aeryn marches in but Crichton knows what she's going to say. He flies through the various incarnations he has experienced as the others stare at him in disbelief. Crichton now knows D'Argo is the key. They have to separate him from Matala and try something new. Zhaan approaches D'Argo in the maintenance bay, asking him to speak to Rygel, who has drawn up a bill for the Ilanic's rescue. D'Argo growls and accompanies Zhaan to Command but only John and Aeryn are there. He demands to know where Rygel is. Meanwhile Verell solves a problem with the weapon's containment field and asks Matala how long until their rendezvous. She says sooner than he thinks. D'Argo doesn't believe Crichton's premonitions and they argue, so Crichton asks the others to leave them alone. He tells D'Argo of the overheard future conversation with Matala, adding that D'Argo will tell Matala that his real crime, not the one he told Moya's crew, will prevent him from joining her. Matala is the real enemy. Poor D'Argo is truly shocked. Just then Zhaan and Aeryn return with Aeryn saying there is a vessel approaching. John instinctively knows it's the Ilanic cruiser and Pilot confirms it. Aeryn thinks it might be a disguised Scorvian ship. John wants to starburst but they can't outrun the ship. Aeryn offers to pilot Moya to avoid a weapons lock and D'Argo adds that Scorvians look nothing like Ilanics so if they refuse to make visual contact then "you have your answer". He storms off to confront Matala with John in hot pursuit just as an audio signal is received from the other vessel, apologising for a communications problem. Aeryn takes control of Moya and swerves out of range. D'Argo and Crichton confront Matala, demanding to know who she really is. She pulls a knife and threatens Verell's life if D'Argo doesn't drop his weapon. Begrudgingly D'Argo obeys but kicks the Qualta Blade out of Matala's reach. Matala stabs Verell and as John dives for D'Argo's weapon, Matala attacks him, kicks D'Argo in the chest and makes a dash for the shuttle. D'Argo grabs his Qualta Blade and charges after Matala but John holds him back, saying D'Argo has to trust him. Verell rallies enough to collapse the shuttle's containment field by remote control, then dies, and the shuttle begins destabilizing. Crichton calls for immediate Starburst and as Moya escapes, Matala and the disguised Scorvian vessel implode. Later, as Crichton gets something to eat, D'Argo enters. Crichton starts a conversation but D'Argo thinks John is mocking him. John says he mocks them all. He tries to ask about D'Argo's true crime but D'Argo refuses to discuss it. D'Argo leaves but stops at the door and quietly tells John that females don't usually distract him in a crisis, but that it has been so long. John understands. Man! Does he understand! + +Moya is being scanned by Crais' command carrier whilst hiding in an asteroid field, following the escape from the Gammak Base. The temperature has been reduced so as to avoid the scan. The scan passes leaving Moya and her offspring undetected, but Pilot picks up a distress call from a nearby asteroid, revealing an alien female is under attack from an unseen creature. Meanwhile Crais is unhappy that Moya has still not been found, and wants to enter the asteroid field to find her. Scorpius disturbs Crais to suggest that he bombard the area with signals to try and make the offspring reveal itself in panic, figuring that the mother would not abandon her child. Crais's lieutenant, Braca, asks Crais what they should do and Crais says his orders stand and they will change position. Zhaan, Ka D'Argo and John Crichton go down to the asteroid, in hope they'll also find charts to help get them out of the asteroid field, since without charts they'll be stuck there. On the asteroid, they hear screams and encounter the beast attacking the female, and scare the beast off. The female reveals she is called M'Lee, and she does not want to be left alone. They return to the transport pod where the beast is lying in wait, and attacks, injuring D'Argo with internal injuries, before leaving. Pilot tells Aeryn Sun on Moya that she is the only one he feels he can trust, and tells her that Moya is having problems communicating with her offspring; there is tension between them. He asks Aeryn to tell Moya why the Peacekeepers did this to her son, and since she should have more of an idea than anyone, could she go aboard the offspring to make him understand. Aeryn goes aboard and mentions what an astounding amalgamation of Peacekeeper and Leviathan technology the baby is. When Pilot suggests turning off the comm array since the Peacekeepers may use it to find them, Aeryn finds it quickly since panels keep lighting up, and she begins talking to the offspring. Scorpius is in Crais' quarters, playing more mind games with him. Crais says he wants him off his ship, but Scorpius reminds him of all his failures, and threatens to take over. On the asteroid, Zhaan is trying to heal D'Argo, but she requires more substances so John is about to go off to get some, as M'Lee begins to sniff Zhaan, saying her scent is different and she smells like outside. Zhaan reveals that M'Lee is right - she is also flora! John can't believe that Zhaan's a plant, even though D'Argo says that everyone knows Delvians are flora-evolved. Apparently flora species are quite common. M'Lee detects that the creature is coming, and she runs off after it. Crichton runs after her and when the creature comes, Zhaan disappears, camouflaging herself from the creatures view. D'Argo is upset with John for allowing Zhaan to get captured, but M'Lee reveals she won't be eaten but taken to the beast's hunting ground and killed. John and M'Lee set off to rescue her, but M'Lee is getting hungry and attacks John in the foliage. The creature appears and knocks down John, while M'Lee runs away. The beast tells John he is not the enemy. Crais meanwhile, is angry that Scorpius is undermining him with his bridge officers, saying if his command were under question then he would have been recalled. Scorpius reminds him he was recalled and he is guilty of disobeying this orders as well as the murder of Lt. Teeg. Scorpius leaves, as Crais is forced to realize that he is no longer the one in control. The creature, named Br'Nee, finds the atmosphere thin so was too out of breath to say anything to John, saying that was why he attacked him. Earlier in the transport pod, he was trying to warn them. M'Lee is a calcivore - she feeds on bone, and would have eaten John. Br'Nee is a botanist, who led a team on the asteroid, but M'Lee killed his team. In the mean time, the Peacekeepers again scan, so Aeryn has to reduce the offspring's energy signature, but he won't let her. She makes him understand that though the Peacekeepers in a way made him, he must trust his mother, and trust her. The offspring reduces power. Br'Nee makes some of the plant Zhaan needs to heal D'Argo, using a machine that creates a huge plant from a small sample. Br'Nee and Zhaan go off to heal D'Argo, leaving John to protect the lab. When they've gone, M'Lee returns. She wants to talk with John, and tells him Br'Nee brought her ancestors to this asteroid to rid it of herbivorous life, leaving only the plants. She says she knows she will starve eventually if she remains on the asteroid, so she'll control the hunger if John provides her with a more regular food supply. Aeryn manages to charge the offspring's cannon, in case of an attack, and tells Pilot that they seem to have an understanding. Pilot says communication between Moya and her offspring is improving. Rygel thinks Aeryn should stay on it in case of an attack, but Aeryn says she will not drag it into a conflict not of its making. Br'Nee has healed D'Argo, but John returns and reveals Br'Nee's secret. D'Argo and Crichton are upset that sentient beings were being murdered for stupid plants, which upsets Zhaan, since she is a stupid plant. D'Argo is about to throw him out and leave, but he reveals he has charts of the asteroid field. Zhaan, having a cool head, goes with him. Scorpius interrupts Crais during a meal to reveal what is contained in his communication to Peacekeeper Command. He has told them everything Crais has done, and says he will see him personally stripped of rank and office. Scorpius reveals he's taken command of the carrier, and a physical fight ensues. Scorpius displays his physical superiority, and overcomes Crais. John goes to the lab and finds Br'Nee injured, who says M'Lee took Zhaan. John goes after her, and then remembers Zhaan does not have bones, so Br'Nee was lying and returns to the lab. John confronts Br'Nee about Zhaan, and finds her miniaturised by Br'Nee's machine. After a fight with Br'Nee, John restores her but Br'Nee is caught by the laser and sliced in half. M'Lee appears as John and Zhaan are about to leave, saying she'll die of starvation, so she feeds on Br'Nee until the Peacekeepers come. Back on Moya, the charts will allow them to exit the field. Aeryn tells John the baby is amazing, and Pilot thanks her since Moya and the offspring are now getting along. She says she did it for the good of the ship, and Pilot reveals that Moya would like Aeryn to name her child. The Peacekeepers have searched the asteroid, and found M'Lee. Scorpius hugs her, showing compassion, and tells the others "sometimes we must know when to give of ourselves". M'Lee's head turns red again, she is hungry. + +Zhaan is locking Ka D'Argo up in chains, because a Peacekeeper Marauder is headed toward them, although it is not from Crais' command carrier. It's John Crichton's idea to lock them up, and Pilot closes the cells as the Peacekeepers board. Aeryn Sun greets them with a huge gun, and asks for their regiment and assignment. One Peacekeeper asks her to identify herself, which she does. He says he is Captain Larraq and his assignment is none of her business. Their Marauder has a cesium fuel leak. Crichton enters the room, in full Peacekeeper Captain's uniform. He orders Aeryn to ease her weapon, and asks Larraq what he is doing on his ship. Larraq says he's on a Priority Red One mission, and so he is assuming command of Moya. Crichton says he thinks not, and the DRDs start shooting. He says if Larraq needs his help, he suggests he asks nicely. Crichton and Aeryn show Larraq the prisoners, and Crichton says they're experimenting with Leviathan mastery without the use of a control collar, and they just happened to recapture the prisoners. He says that they're using a neural control on Pilot. Larraq says that every test he's heard of so far resulted in the loss of the Leviathan and its crew. He says that he's got one crate that he needs to get back to Peacekeeper territory without delay. He says that it's urgent, he'll give the coordinates to the base and they'll be there in twenty arns. It's a new Gammak Base, top secret, inside the Uncharted Territories. The other Peacekeepers are unloading the cargo, when Chiana comes in and says that the captain ordered her to tend to them, so she's brought them food. One of the male Peacekeepers, Thonn, and Chiana flirt with each other, and she gets an imprint of the key he used to open the cargo container. The Peacekeepers are eating, whilst Larraq and Aeryn talk. He asks if she's ever had any dealings with special ops before, to which she replies she's heard of them. She then goes off on one about them, and he says just think, she's now going to sit and eat with one. Crichton is talking with Zhaan and D'Argo, and they're getting anxious, still wanting to take the Peacekeepers by surprise. Crichton says that they should learn all they can -- ignorance is also dangerous. D'Argo says that he won't be chained up again, and Zhaan says that they should let Rygel know, but when Zhaan goes to tell him he's used his hidden escape route to leave. Thonn comes along, as Crichton is with D'Argo. D'Argo grabs him and Thonn strikes him, before quickly getting out and locking the cell. They leave and Zhaan tells D'Argo that he did well. Aeryn and Larraq are still talking, and she talks a little about her history. He says that the sooner he gets the cargo away the happier he will be. She recognises his stasis gun, which is for capturing and not killing. She asks if it's wise to take his cargo to a science base, and he says that it's perfect. Chiana moulds the key, whilst Rygel goes to check out the cargo. Chiana enters, key in hand, as Thonn says he'll check out the cargo bay. Chiana says they're both here for the same thing -- to snurch any valuables. He says he's not a snurcher, he procures. She says she'll half it, no less since she has the key. She unlocks the container but neither want to open it. Chiana eventually goes ahead, and inside is some kind of life form. Thonn enters and finds the container open. He goes to check it out, when it appears to grab hold of him. The other Peacekeeper male enters, and Thonn shoots him, locks the door and kills the life form. He hears Chiana, and grabs her and kisses her. Larraq, Aeryn and the female Peacekeeper, Hassan, enter. They find the dead Peacekeeper on the floor, and he dead life form. Larraq says it's escaped, and then they find Thonn. Crichton enters, and Larraq tells them they're on fugitive recovery; it's an intellant virus. They isolated that life form when it was being used as a host. It can only affect one person at a time, unless it lays its spores, which it does if it's in the same host for about an arn. Larraq asks Thonn what happened; he says he doesn't know. Larraq notices Chiana, who says that Rygel opened the crate, then the Peacekeeper came in and started firing. Thonn says it could've happened. Rygel is in an access shaft and so could be anywhere. Aeryn privately tells Crichton that their chance for surprise is gone and the plan is a disaster. They're all searching for Rygel, when D'Argo and Zhaan attack the Peacekeepers. Crichton tells Larraq that they need the prisoners, and goes and convinces them to join them in finding the Hynerian. D'Argo lowers his weapon. Larraq explains the search plan: they search in pairs, and no one goes alone from now on. The host body will show signs of high acidity, but only after the virus has left them. They should have no contact with the Hynerian. Pilot has not located Rygel, so he must still be in the access shafts. Hassan tells Zhaan that the host remembers nothing once the virus leaves. Crichton and Chiana enter a shaft, and Chiana continues to move in an eerie manner. Aeryn asks Larraq why they didn't kill the virus. He says his orders were to capture it alive, to study it for use in battle. She says it's a costly price to lose much of his crew. Aeryn and Larraq find Rygel hiding. Everyone convenes there, and Rygel says that he can explain, when Larraq hits him with the stasis gun. Zhaan and Crichton both get good looks at Chiana, who is looking a tad nervous. She backs into Crichton, seemingly doing something to him. Zhaan says that she must formulate something to get out without killing Rygel, but Crichton wants to lock them back up. They don't want to, but he says he'll get an antibody from Hassan, and they should use the time to learn more about the base. Thonn comes along again, so Crichton punches Zhaan back into her cell. Larraq and Hassan tell Aeryn that Rygel will die before they get the virus out of him. He tells Aeryn that numerically speaking the virus is beating him. He asks Aeryn to join him, as he's seen her in action, and likes the idea of having her close. He says maybe they can discuss it at the Gammak Base. Meanwhile, Crichton goes to Hassan, and batters her to death with a pole to her head! He then smashes the stasis gun, before leaving. Zhaan and D'Argo have called Chiana, and Zhaan asks how she is feeling, if she is feeling dizzy. Chiana says yes, but how does she know. She gets Chiana to lick her bedcover, which contains litmus fibers. It turns red signifying acid: she had the virus! She says she doesn’t remember, and D'Argo says she wouldn't -- the host suffers memory loss. Aeryn goes to command, where Crichton has increased speed. He says he's doing exactly what he would really do in his situation, and has words with Larraq. Thonn enters and says Hassan is dead, and the stasis gun destroyed. Crichton grabs a gun when Chiana, Zhaan and D'Argo run in, Zhaan saying the virus is still loose and she thinks it's in Crichton. He punches Aeryn, then Larraq, but they all manage to restrain him. Zhaan looks at her hands and says "oh no!" Crichton gets up and asks what is going on -- the virus has jumped! Everyone aims guns at each other. Zhaan explains what happened, and Larraq asks what's with all this John dren. D'Argo says that the topic is off for now. The virus can't re-enter Crichton, so it's in one of them. D'Argo says Zhaan said she could make an antibody, and she says she will try. They all go and she creates it, when Crichton notices Hassan's body. Chiana sees him look, and tells him it wasn't his fault -- it was the virus. Zhaan tests herself, saying an acid life form would react to such a high level of alkaline even if it doesn't kill it, so it's not in her. Crichton tests Aeryn - she's clean. He tests Thonn, who says it's in Larraq, and everyone starts screaming. D'Argo and Larraq both say it's in the other. Crichton tests D'Argo when Larraq runs -- it's in him! Pilot blocks off the tier, and Larraq grabs Aeryn and shoots Thonn. Larraq says that they will let him use the Marauder to escape, and he'll leave them be. D'Argo says if it spawns it could contaminate thousands. Larraq asks if that's a problem, and stabs Aeryn! Crichton goes after him, as D'Argo calls for Zhaan. Larraq gets to the Marauder, but Crichton lets him go. He asks Pilot for the first stage of starburst, which ignites the fuel leak, blowing up the ship. Zhaan is seeing to Rygel, and D'Argo says anything that happens to him he brought upon himself. Zhaan says she's sure he learned his lesson. D'Argo's removed the chains from his cell, and says he'll never be locked up again. She says it must have been difficult for him, and he prays there will never be a next time. Crichton is with Aeryn, and says the virus and Larraq are dead. He says she's lucky that he missed her heart. She says it was closer than he thinks. She asks about the Gammak Base, and he says they're getting as away from it, but still don't know why it's here. She asks him why he's here, and he replies that he wanted to be there if and she says thanks. He says don't mention it, and she asks why she ever would. + +An alien scientist called NamTar is taking DNA from the crew with needle to the eye. He will enter their genetic data into his database so he can give them data on the location of their home worlds - a genetic map that can also show the boundaries of Peacekeeper territory so they can avoid it. As well as their DNA though, he wants a genetic sample from Pilot as payment. But a DNA sample won't do, he requires one of Pilot's arms. Aeryn Sun and John Crichton are drinking in a bar a little later, as he is consoling himself on the fact that NamTar doesn't have Earth in his database of over eleven million species. Aeryn reminds him that whilst they are all trying to get home, she can never go home. Crichton says that if Pilot doesn’t volunteer an arm, they'll all be blasting out of here within an arn. She says he saw the look on the other's faces, and who says they'll wait for him to volunteer. Sure enough, whilst Zhaan and Rygel restrain him, Ka D'Argo brutally slices off one of Pilot's arms with his Qualta Blade. They give it to NamTar, who says he'll give them their navigation crystal soon, so they leave. He then mentions that an experiment is not working, and we see some Pilot-like concoction hanging off the wall. Crichton cannot believe that they cut off Pilot's arm without his agreement, even if it will regenerate soon. Pilot says when joined his first duty is to the Leviathan, then to its crew. Aeryn asks them how they could attack one of their own who is so defenceless. D'Argo says he would have done the same to any of them, and says he'll make sure Pilot will cooperate. Zhaan asks Aeryn not to deny them their chances to return home just because she can never do so. Crichton asks Aeryn to drink with him, since when the others go soon it will be just the two of them. She's troubled because not only are they going, but one day he will too. She's always been a Peacekeeper, one of many, never alone. Ever. He says if he does find his way home, he'll take her too. Meanwhile Zhaan says she is surprised by Crichton's reaction, although she expected the sort from Aeryn. D'Argo says if it had been Crichton he'd have given his mivonks to go home. He asks what she would have given, and she replies she'd have given her neema. D'Argo says he's surprised no one's ever tried to use NamTar's data as a weapon, and if he had the chance he most certainly would. He is still feeling a little pain from the needle, but Zhaan says it'll soon be forgotten once they're on their way home. They quarrel over which course to take first, so Zhaan suggests a compromise. NamTar is angry that his experiment is not going well, when Aeryn comes in to see him. She says she's changed her mind and now wants NamTar to take a sample from her so he can find a Sebacean colony outside normal territories. He goes to take a sample from her eye, but instead injects some kind of fluid. Rygel says he will go home first, but Zhaan says she and D'Argo decided earlier that whoever's home is closest would be visited first. D'Argo says that Moya is receiving the data from the crystal, but Pilot says she's not -- there's too much data on the crystal for her to process -- it's useless. Zhaan suggests that one map could be used, but the other two must be destroyed. Rygel says they could go and get two other individual ones from NamTar, but D'Argo asks what he will demand then. Rygel grabs the crystal and makes a quick escape, so D'Argo goes after him. He's already hidden the crystal in his cell though, so D'Argo asks him to side with him. Aeryn returns to Moya, but is clearly not well, so she returns to NamTar and notices something growing on her chest. She grabs him and asks what he did to her, and he says she's in the latter stages of phase one, but he'd rather not ruin the surprise. Aeryn soon returns to Moya and goes to see Pilot, saying she senses all the DRDs and ships functions, just like he does. He says that's impossible, so she shows him what's growing on her. Crichton enters and she shows him that she has a Pilot's arm growing from her chest -- NamTar has injected her with some of Pilot's DNA! She says she only returned to him because she was so scared. Zhaan goes and tries to convince Rygel to side with her by basically offering herself to him, but he doesn't buy it. Meanwhile Crichton takes Aeryn back to the planet, but on seeing Kornata, NamTar's assistant, she screams, prompting NamTar to enter the room. He says Aeryn should be near the end of phase two, and calls Aeryn over to him, saying she's progressing nicely. Aeryn shoots him but he simply regenerates. He knocks Crichton down and takes Aeryn away. D'Argo and Zhaan go to Rygel and say that they give him their oaths that they will take him home first, but they get no answer. They enter his cell and he appears behind them, locking them in the cell. He says he has some trip planning to do, and leaves. Kornata tells Crichton that NamTar will do anything to keep Aeryn, because he wants to add Pilot's multi-tasking capabilities to himself. She reveals that she was the one who set up the lab, with the others here as her employees, and they researched quantum genetics -- trying to take out various abilities from life forms to use in others. NamTar was a test subject but after various tests he started improving himself and took over. Crichton takes her to Pilot, and they work together on a cure for Aeryn. Pilot mentions that Rygel has nearly finished with the crystal, when Kornata reveals that if it is imported into Moya's data store, all her memory will be erased. Crichton goes after him, as Zhaan and D'Argo escape. Crichton manages to knock the crystal out of Rygel's hands and it hits the floor, shattering. He tells them all that it was never meant to work. Kornata goes with Crichton to Nam Tar, but he says he doesn't have the time to fight Crichton again -- he'd just kill him this time. He says Aeryn is not here, and shows him what she has become -- a hybrid Pilot/Sebacean-like creature! Crichton argues with NamTar about his reasoning for subjecting people to this, and NamTar says that he has realised that all species strive for perfection - that is what evolution is! Crichton explains there were madmen on his planet like him too, and Kornata blindsides NamTar, injecting him with something that causes him to revert to his true form. Crichton injects the antidote into Aeryn's eye, and Kornata said he's saved Aeryn's life. Back on Moya, Aeryn has virtually recovered, and Crichton asks what the worst part was. She says what Nam Tar did to her was like her inside, the real her, and Crichton says she'll fit in great back on Earth. Meanwhile, D'Argo has gone to Pilot and says if the same situation arose, he'd do the same again. Pilot says Luxans aren't readily given to apologise so he understands, and D'Argo shows him something he had been working on. Pilot asks what the new weapon is, but D'Argo answers with a surprise - it's not a weapon but a Shilquen, a musical instrument that he then plays to soothe Pilot's suffering. + +Moya's pregnancy has weakened her ability to starburst, so it's a bit of a turbulent ride. When they exit, a ship is headed towards them and they collide, because Moya's sensors are dimmed also. Pilot brings the ship aboard, and the crew go to greet them. A man steps out, and Zhaan runs in saying that they detected a massive energy weapon on board, The man says it's powered right down, evidence of their peaceful intentions. There are two others on the ship, also unarmed. Rygel hovers in and when he hears the man's voice he looks horrified, and says he saw his corpse, and spits on him! He says it's him: his former torturer, Durka! Aeryn Sun says that it can't be, since Durka died over one hundred cycles ago. The man says no, Rygel's right, he is Durka. Rygel goes to attack again, but John Crichton restrains him. Aeryn asks why he's not dead of old age, when another passenger steps out and says they saved him. He is Salis, of the Nebari. He says Durka poses no danger -- he's now incapable of harm. Salis says they're due to rendezvous soon in this quadrant, and in the mean time they'll need food and quarters. Durka asks if the ship has any containment cells, because they're transporting a very dangerous criminal. It's a female Nebari, named Chiana. They put her in a cell, but refuse to say what crime she committed. Ka D'Argo shows Durka and Salis to their quarters, and mentions the DRDs are repairing their ship. Chiana begs for Crichton's help, saying he wouldn't consider what she did a crime, and asks for amnesty, when Salis suddenly pushes a control that makes the collar she's wearing cause her pain. Salis says to Zhaan that they eliminated the evil parts of Durka's mind with a process that they use called mental cleansing, but it's so intricate that they have to place the subject in cryostasis. He says that Durka appreciates what was done to him, and they would have saved everyone on the Zelbinion but the crew refused to surrender. D'Argo asks Salis how many warships it took to defeat a Peacekeeper command carrier, and Salis says the Nebari have no warships; one of their standard host vessels engaged it, like the one coming for them now. Aeryn sees Rygel and tells him to leave the visitors alone. Aeryn says she was taught a lot about Durka, and Rygel says he knows everything he needs to: he faked his own death to save himself and left his crew for dead. Aeryn tells him to ensure that Durka stays alive. She goes to see Durka, who tells her that he achieved nothing as a Peacekeeper. He says the Nebari showed him a better way. He survived the attack by faking his own death and left in an escape pod. Crichton brings Chiana some food cubes to eat. He says that they’re worried about her, and asks why. She says she doesn’t respect authority. She stole food when she was hungry, stowed away and defended herself when necessary. She says she never killed anyone. Among her people you conform, don't do what she did, hence the collar. She will undergo mental cleansing. "They think they're doing you a favor when they do that," and says that she'd rather be dead than that. She starts banging into the door, so Crichton goes and restrains her, and she begs him not to let them take her. Crichton talks to Durka about the cleansing, when a bomb rolls in and explodes. D'Argo and Aeryn go to investigate, as Rygel hovers in and Durka grabs him by the throat, and then falls back down. Crichton grabs Rygel, and asks what just happened. Rygel says the evil was there, he saw it in Durka's face just now. Durka says he'll confine himself, but D'Argo says no, they'll confine Rygel and he locks him in his quarters. Salis thought that Chiana may have had something to do with the explosion, but she didn't. She tries to seduce him, but he sets off her collar again. D'Argo finds explosives in Rygel's quarters, and tells Crichton he's lucky that Rygel made the bomb incorrectly. Salis meanwhile tells Zhaan that he wants Rygel turned over to him when the ship arrives because he has flaws in his character. She says that even Rygel doesn't deserve that, and Salis says she could do with it herself. Chiana manages to escape from the cell, and goes to Rygel's quarters. She says that he wants to be free kill to Durka, and she wants to get off Moya. He says he can create a diversion. She unties him and he announces over his comm. that Chiana has escaped. Crichton and Aeryn find Rygel in his quarters covered up, and he says she's headed for the transport hangar. Everyone searches for her, when Durka goes to Aeryn and tells her that Chiana is capable of anything. Meanwhile, Crichton finds Salis dead, lying on the ground with a pool of his blue blood beside him. Aeryn and Rygel go to command, and Pilot says Chiana is very good at staying hidden. Durka walks in, and asks if Salis is dead. Aeryn approaches him, when he attacks her and Rygel! Crichton tries to contact D'Argo, but Durka's taken control of the comm. system. He's tied up Rygel, and says that Rygel undid the mental cleansing. Aeryn wakes up, and he says that he genuinely did feel guilty about his past, but now he can't think why. Aeryn says that he murdered Salis, and he says that it's the simple things that you miss. He tells the crew that he is in complete control of Moya, and if they don't leave her they will die. Aeryn again says he murdered Salis, but he again strikes her. Crichton is running along the corridor, but doors keep closing in front of him. Zhaan is in Pilot's den, and he says that Durka anticipates all his counter measures. D'Argo meets up with Crichton, and he goes up a shaft to get to command. Durka traps him there, and attempts to starburst, but it fails. He says that he'll kill the hostages if they don't reactivate it. Crichton finds Chiana in the cargo bay. Durka says that he will leave the comm. channel open, to show that he means business. He heats up a tool and goes to burn her, when Rygel says he's pathetic. Durka says that he was going to save Rygel for bargaining, but he'll burn off Rygel's face. Rygel says he doesn’t care because Durka's a failure, and tells him that Moya is pregnant, so he can say hello to the Nebari. Chiana goes to attack Crichton, but he manages to floor her. She apologises, and says she's not used to trusting anyone. He suggests that she starts trusting him. She wonders how Durka broke the cleansing, and says maybe she'd be better on his side. Crichton convinces her that she's with them, or on her own, so she asks what his plan is. He says she won't like it, because he doesn't, but it involves bait. Chiana jumps out in front of Durka, who's walking down a corridor, and tries to convince him to side with her. She asks where he got his directions to the baby, because they reconfigured the ships data to send him in the wrong direction. She leads him to a room, but he's suspicious and pushes her in first. He shoots at her and grazes her arm, and Crichton jumps out and locks him out of the room. He goes to tend to her, but she says to go get him. Durka shoots at Crichton, but he makes it to the Nebari ship, planning to use its cannon as a weapon to kill the baby. He powers it up, but Crichton throws a bomb, which explodes stopping the cannon. Pilot regains control of the doors, and opens the outer bay doors. But Crichton's about to get sucked out too, so Pilot shuts the inner doors, and he just manages to stay in. Durka says he'll hunt Crichton down and kill him. Crichton says he should get in line, and leaves him to the Nebari. Rygel asks Aeryn if Moya's still mad at him, and she says she's still in pain from protecting her child. Aeryn says that he handled himself well. Rygel says he beat Durka at his own game, and Aeryn reminds him he just compared himself to a Peacekeeper. There is now the question of what to do with Chiana. As Zhaan tries to heal her wound, Crichton asks her how she is. Zhaan says him "she's a brat", and leaves. Chiana asks if she gets to stay, and thanks him for what he did. Crichton confirms that Moya is preparing to starburst to get away from the Nebari but warns her that they have rules, but she says when she sees them follow them then so will she. Crichton warns her that he owes her, the others won't be so easy to get on her side and she's free to leave if she doesn't want to live by their rules. He asks her where she was when Salis died, to which she just grins. + +Rygel paints a self-portrait without much success. Meanwhile all John Crichton wants is to brush his teeth. Ka D'Argo's answer is to cram something called a dentic into John's mouth. The little Witchetty grub-like creature eats food debris and, to John's surprise, leaves a 'kind of minty' aftertaste. John is just coming to terms with this latest surprise when Moya lurches to an abrupt halt near what looks like asteroid debris. On the far side of the debris, a Peacekeeper scout ship called a 'Marauder' scans the debris but Moya is hidden from view. Crichton learns that Moya can outrun a Marauder but cannot outrun a command carrier. If Moya is spotted then Crais will inevitably come after them. Momentarily the Marauder ceases scanning and moves off but whilst the crew's attention has been focused on this threat, something else entirely has found its way onto the Leviathan. A little later. Aeryn is working in a maintenance bay. She tells Crichton they were lucky to avoid the Marauder, demonstrating the search pattern Peacekeepers use by drawing a diagram on the floor. John says no one wants to be in this situation and suggests that since they are all stuck together then they might as well try to get along. Aeryn replies dryly that what could she ever need from him? John makes a few unhelpful suggestions under his breath. Aeryn is proving to be hard to get along with because she thinks that she is superior to the others aboard Moya. Rygel's quarters are in a mess after Moya's sudden stop but Zhaan helps him clean up. She sees Rygel's self-portrait and to cheer him up, she uses Rygel's paints to produce a 'spirit painting' of the Dominar. Rygel is pleased. The painting is reminiscent of his ancestor, Rygel I, whom he admired. But unknown to Moya's crew there are eyes watching them as they go about their business. Aeryn gets irritated. She doesn't like the heat. John checks a control panel and confirms that the temperature is rising but Pilot is having trouble locating the source of the problem. As she bends down to pick up a tool, Aeryn gets pricked in the hand and, assuming it is just a metal splinter, pulls it out and tosses it away. But as she and Crichton leave the maintenance bay, a long, thin alien limb reaches out to collect the discarded splinter. In Command, Aeryn and D'Argo attempt to locate the problem with Moya's thermal fluctuations and discover that there is a blockage in the vents preventing heat discharge into space. Aeryn suggests the congelation coils, but the temperature continues to rise. Frustrated, Aeryn says she'll do it herself. Meanwhile, on another tier, Crichton is trying in vain to close a valve. As Zhaan arrives to help, John confides in her that no matter what he does D'Argo and Aeryn still think he is useless. Zhaan says they are soldiers. John should try to win their respect with action. That's what they understand. John takes her advice to heart and returns to his quarters, just as another alien limb is removing strands of hair from his comb. Alerted by something behind him, John spins around to see a strange creature, which looks like a demonic version of Moya's DRDs. After a short struggle, John manages to capture the creature in a sheet, kills it, and takes it to Zhaan who discovers the creature has Crichton's DNA, much to John's disbelief. The crew then discovers an internal door on Moya is sealed with a blue-coloured compound that defies D'Argo's attempts to break through. Aeryn is becoming agitated and losing concentration. She confesses to John that she has Sebacean heat delirium. Crichton tries to console her by saying that they'll fix things. Aeryn doesn't seem that sure. Crichton comes across Zhaan, down a corridor, interfering with a regulator valve and when he tries to stop her, she attacks him then vomits a stream of the blue-coloured sealant over the valve. Worse still as John reaches Command he finds Aeryn initiating a thermal increase and she too attacks John when he tries to stop her. They struggle and as Aeryn pulls away, Crichton unintentionally rips her arm off and Aeryn lets out a strange wailing cry just as the real Aeryn enters Command. Realising the Zhaan who attacked him was also a duplicate, Crichton gets the crew together in Command and suggests they find a way to differentiate themselves from their doubles. D'Argo's idea is to each cut off a little finger but Crichton suggests something less permanent. He marks the back of his hand with a dab of paint. However, Aeryn can't concentrate and is beginning to lose her memory. She says she will go help Pilot, who tries his best to help her but his efforts only manage a small decrease in temperature. Aeryn is nonetheless grateful. As the rest of the crew search for their copies, Rygel discovers a nest, hidden deep within Moya and witnesses one of the creatures emerge from a cocoon. Zhaan makes a discovery too - a substance that will dissolve the sealant but is quickly attacked by one of the creatures that fires a dart into her neck. Aeryn is slowly succumbing to the heat delirium and no one can raise Rygel on the comms. John comes across his duplicate, which mimics the dab of paint on Crichton's hand and attacks him. John beats his replica and in doing so learns that the duplicates can't speak. He warns D'Argo that they also know about the paint dabs. Aeryn's condition worsens. Rygel comms the others, telling them of more duplicates being created. Shortly afterwards Zhaan arrives in Command and addresses the others in a strange tone. She identifies herself as the Monarch of the Drak and threatens to kill Moya's crew for interfering with the Drak's 'Genesis' or birthing cycle. D'Argo's reaction is to ready his weapon but Crichton persuades him to hold off as he tries to communicate with the Monarch. He learns that the Drak live in cold space but need heat to birth their young, before returning to space. The Monarch says that only half the young have been born so far but now she needs to raise the temperature even higher. Concerned for Aeryn's safety, Crichton comes to an arrangement with the Monarch. Moya's crew will remain in one room and allow Genesis to be completed sooner. If all goes well then Aeryn should not suffer any long-term problems. But things never go smoothly for Moya's crew. As they remain locked in a chamber, the Marauder returns and boards Moya, alerting the Draks. Peacekeeper Commandos search the ship and kill a duplicate D'Argo, alerting Pilot who quickly warns the crew. The Commandos kill another D'Argo and a duplicate Zhaan. John persuades the Monarch the crew is not to blame but D'Argo wants to fight the Commandos. Aeryn is sinking fast; she can feel the 'Living Death' approach and tells John he must promise to kill her before the end comes. Elsewhere on the ship, the PK Commandos are also feeling the heat and tempers are getting frayed! Rygel is stuck. He daren't move for fear of being spotted by the Draks but Zhaan needs him to speak to the Monarch in person. At first he refuses but when Zhaan asks him what his ancestor, Rygel I, would have done in his place, Rygel feels shamed into helping. He bravely speaks up and is granted an audience inside the vast Drak nest. For a while Moya's crew hears nothing from him and fear he has been killed but when Zhaan's residual link with the Monarch is suddenly reactivated they learn that the Monarch and Rygel have struck a deal. As the Commandos find and kill a Crichton replica then a Drak, Zhaan feels the Monarch's pain. Crichton has an idea how to defeat the Commandos. He asks Aeryn to hold on a while longer than persuades the Monarch to raise the temperature even higher and allow Moya's crew to go free. D'Argo plays dead and ambushes a straggling Commando. Whilst Zhaan tries to cool Aeryn with a shower, the rest of the heat-weary Commandos barely make it to Command. Crichton appears, in duplicate, further disorientating the Peacekeepers, one of whom attacks the real Crichton and holds a knife to his throat, prompting D'Argo to put a rifle to the Commando's head but John tells D'Argo to back off, this is his turn. John can see the confusion in the Commando's eyes and uses it to his advantage, convincing the soldier that if he kills him then another Crichton will take his place, then another and so on. He tells the Commando to tell Crais what he witnessed and to let Crais know that he picked the wrong species to mess with. The bluff works. The Commandos know they are beaten and begrudgingly leave Moya. As Moya's DRDs busily clean up, D'Argo acknowledges Crichton's actions but says that risking Aeryn's life was a gamble. John adds that although there is little chance of it, he hopes Crais will leave them alone. Pilot reports the temperature is back to optimum and after the Draks have left Moya, the Monarch makes a final connection with Zhaan to thank the crew, and Rygel in particular, for helping 'Genesis' to be completed. A little later as Crichton helps Zhaan to her quarters, she says he did well and compliments John on his actions. She counsels patience and assures John that he will get the hang of things in time. John leaves Zhaan to rest then wanders up to Moya's viewing deck, where Aeryn is alone. He asks how she is and she shows him a steady hand as proof that she is better than makes a cryptic comment to John about how she used to think lesser life forms should be squashed but now she knows better. Crichton realises she is referring to him. Aeryn wonders if John could have kept his promise to kill her before the living death had taken hold but his only comment is that things could have been a lot worse. The two of them then stand quietly, watching the migration of the Drak - a beautiful swirl of oranges and browns that spirals away across deep space. + +Aeryn Sun is teaching John Crichton how to fly a transport pod, so he can be familiar with Leviathan technology, but it's taking him a while to get the hang of it. Meanwhile on Moya, Rygel is bored, and Ka D'Argo is angry that parts of Moya are starting to smell because of her pregnancy. Aeryn says she's teaching Crichton in the hope that some day he'll end up being of some use to her in battle. Aeryn gets some food but the pod gets pulled in towards something, and hits some sort of net. They can't go forward, and the pod is damaged. Sensors say there's nothing out there, but something is clearly blocking their view. Zhaan, Rygel and D'Argo are bickering, so Pilot accidentally hits the wrong button to make a noise and get their attention. A ship is approaching with weapon pieces on board, but nothing usable. On board was a Zenetan garbologist named Staanz, who says they need him, but if D'Argo kills him Zhaan will be angry that he killed the man they needed. He knows that they are heading for the Flax, a magnadrift mesh seventy-five million zacrons long. It is invisible to sensors, and was put there by Zenetan Pirates. Zhaan says she'll warn Crichton and Aeryn, whilst Staanz tells Rygel he plays tadek, a game, and Rygel says maybe Staanz can give him some pointers. Aeryn tells Crichton that they're not moving at all, no drift or anything. There's no comm signal even though it's working, and the power is drained. Zhaan says they're not responding, and wonders what Staanz will want in return for his help. D'Argo says he wants anything he can get. D'Argo accesses the Peacekeeper criminal records and finds that Staanz has quite a record, so he wants him off the ship. Rygel says he's got him right where he wants him when D'Argo interrupts, grabbing Staanz and asking why he has a criminal record. Staanz says he used to be a pirate, but he's not anymore. He drops his trousers to show murals on his legs from being in a prison. Rygel asks where his genitals are, and Staanz says that his species are not cut from the standard mould. Zhaan tells him two of their crew are out there. Aeryn manages to send a message buoy out, whilst Crichton manages to restore some power. D'Argo meanwhile notices Staanz is wearing Luxan boots, and locks him up saying that a Luxan wouldn't leave his boots unless he was dead. Staanz says he was already dead, killed by the pirates. D'Argo asks him to take him to the Luxan ship, since he needs some map fibers. If he gets them, Staanz can have everything else on board the Luxan ship. Aeryn and Crichton are trying to burst through the flax, but they end up getting swung back and doing more damage to the pod. Crichton puts out the fires whilst Aeryn tries to get her foot loose. Zhaan has received the message from the buoy, when D'Argo says he and Staanz are leaving on Staanz's vessel. D'Argo says they'll spend no longer than an arn on the Luxan ship, then get Aeryn and Crichton. They have to avoid the pirate leader, Kcrackic's scanner. They manage to but Kcrackic's ship heads towards Moya. Zhaan greets them, and Kcrackic says they're lucky that the Leviathan is pregnant or he would commandeer it. When asked, Zhaan tells them she doesn't know Staanz, and introduces them to Rygel. Crichton says environmentals are damaged, and they can't use the torch because of a gas build up -- it'd set the pod on fire. Aeryn says they can depressurise the bay and get in their spacesuits to have enough air. Something falls and Crichton pushes her out of the way, and falls on top of her in the process. She says, "Are you comfortable? Can I get you a pillow?" Meanwhile Staanz's ship has stopped, and when they manage to get it going they get caught in the flax. Rygel is playing Kcrackic, and when he starts losing he says he knows what he's doing. On the pod, there's only one helmet since one is damaged, which means only one of them has air. Aeryn gives John chemicals called the kill shot and nerve shot, which will allow her to survive without air and then revive her. Crichton says it was his helmet that was broke, and he won't fit in Aeryn's. He tells her what to do, because they don't have time to wait for the others. Rygel uses Staanz's move during the game, and Kcrackic questions asks him where he learnt it because he knows someone else who uses that move. Crichton tells Aeryn he doesn't trust the kill shot, so teaches her CPR. Staanz manages to dissolve a small particle of the flax, and they break through. Crichton tells Aeryn she's got four minutes before he dies. He asks if Sebaceans believe in an afterlife, and tells her what humans believe. She tells him Sebaceans don't believe in anything after death. She says she won't let him down, and gives him the kill shot, which starts to take effect. On Moya, Rygel loses again, but says he wants one more game. He says he'll wager Moya, but Kcrackic doesn't want it, so he agrees to wager the location of Staanz. Aeryn runs out of time during her work, and instead of finishing decides to resuscitate Crichton with the nerve shot, but on her way to him, she gets knocked out. Meanwhile Rygel thinks he's won the game, but in fact Kcrackic wins and wants information on Staanz's whereabouts. Rygel says they can find him by following their comm. frequency, which is in Moya's data store. Aeryn wakes up to find that the vial containing the nerve shot was smashed, so she starts CPR. D'Argo and Staanz find the Luxan ship -- an assault piercer -- which D'Argo says he dreamt of serving on as a boy. Crichton meanwhile starts breathing, and said Aeryn lied -- it hurt like hell. They've got half an arn of air left. Kcrackic and the other pirate leaves Moya, and Zhaan is angry with Rygel, but he says that he told Pilot the moment Kcrackic arrived to change the frequency, so they're headed to some place far away. He lost on purpose knowing that Kcrackic wouldn't leave with nothing. Staanz says that D'Argo will soon have his own Piercer, and tells him to think of all the maps, he'll be able to find his son. D'Argo says that when he does he wants to be able to look him in the eye. Crichton tells Aeryn that she should have saved herself, but she says she chose not to be alone. She says she doesn't want to die alone. She asks what he saw after the kill shot, and he says all he saw was black. Then they turn and kiss! But they don't stop there, ripping each other's spacesuits off rolling on the floor. when D'Argo walks in, with a priceless look on his face. Awkwardly Crichton asks what took him so long, so D'Argo says he needed someone to help him. He's tied up Staanz, because he's merely annoying. Staanz asks if D'Argo will go with him, to which D'Argo laughs. Staanz says he's lonely, and everybody needs a mate. After odd looks, he says he is the female of his species, in fact, she's considered quite the Zenetan beauty! D'Argo's speechless, as Staanz proclaims her love! On Moya, Zhaan asks D'Argo what happened, and he says his indecision nearly cost Crichton and Aeryn their lives. He says he barely saved them, and may have given up his only chance to ever see his son. Crichton and Aeryn try and make excuses for what happened, and he says it'll never happen again, to which she replies never. Crichton asks, just to be certain, if she is the female of the species. She grabs his crotch, which he takes as a yes, and they both smile. + +Moya is still orbiting the planet which homes the Gammak Base where Crichton is being held prisoner, and she can not Starburst or even move since she has just entered full labour. However, Moya is very frightened and Pilot reports that it is because she has discovered that her baby is not a normal Leviathan. Meanwhile Aeryn is awake and slowly recovering from her injury, and wants to see Crichton, but the crew reveal he's being tortured on the Gammak Base in the Aurora Chair. Aeryn says that she wants to go down and rescue him, against the rest of the crew's advice. D'Argo and Zhaan refuse to let her go alone and so accompany her in the prowler using the blind path still in place from Chiana's return. On the Base, Crais and Scorpius continue to rip memories from Crichton's mind using the Chair. They know he is holding something back and Crais is determined to find out what it is. Although they think he us withholding information regarding wormholes, he is actually trying to keep Gilina safe since it would mean her death if the Peacekeepers found out she'd been helping him Later, Crichton is once again allowed to rest, and in the cell he seems to think Stark was sent by Scorpius to spy on him. Stark denies the accusation and reveals he is not really crazy - he acts that way so they don't bother him so much. He has made a magnetic crypt encoder from metals he's collected during the two cycles he's been held, which will unlock the cell door once it finds the right code. Gilina gets in touch with Crichton, who asks her to find some way to get Scorpius and Crais off his back for a while. Niem is getting the Techs to increase the power of the Chair, as per Scorpius' orders. Gilina assists in the repair and makes extra modifications while unseen for the distraction she promised Crichton. She contacts John in his cell and tells him he must remember their kiss on the Zelbinion, when suddenly Scorpius and Crais return for John. Scorpius says he wants to know what John is hiding, but he continues to say he is hiding nothing. Scorpius puts him back in the Chair. Crichton remembers the kiss during the torture, when suddenly Crais appears in the memory while Gilina is replaced with an unfamiliar blonde woman. Upon continued viewing of the memory, Crais reveals he wishes to thank John for giving him the wormhole technology, since with it he has the power to rise to where he should be in the Peacekeeper ranks. Scorpius then demands an explanation from Crais, who is speechless and obviously denies that memory is false. Scorpius retorts that he knows you can't make things up for the chair. John asks Crais if the game is up and plays along with the memory, 'revealing' to Scorpius that Crais found out about wormholes when he arrived, and exchanged the information for John's life so Crais could rise through the ranks. Crais persists in saying it is a lie, but Scorpius says there is only one way to find out the truth, and that is to put Crais in the Chair. Crais doesn't believe he'll do it, but Scorpius uses his unconditional authority on the base to persuade Crais' guards to seize him. Whilst Aeryn finds a way into the base, leaving D'Argo and Zhaan in waiting on the surface, Stark helps ease Crichton's great pain in their cell. Stark gives him just a few thoughts, which bring John back from impending madness. Stark reveals he's a member of the Banik slave race, who have been virtually wiped out by the Peacekeepers. He was kept alive as he was found interesting, but the energy under his mask allows him to hide his feelings and cloud his thoughts. Aeryn has infiltrated the base and finds Gilina, thanking her for saving her life. Gilina tells her that Scorpius thinks John is blocking a memory about the wormhole technology, but she reveals it's actually to do with her, as John is trying to protect her. A short while later, Aeryn tells Lt. Heskon that she detected a signal coming from Crichton's cell whilst on Crais' command carrier. He believes there is no signal, but when he scans he picks up the signal from Stark's magnetic encoder, so he opens the cell. Aeryn knocks him out, and she takes Stark and John away. Although Crais' memories prove that his alliance with Crichton was a fabrication, they also show everyone that he killed Lt. Teeg, and Niem reveals this is the memory he was trying to hide. A security breech is announced, and Scorpius orders the base sealed so Crichton can't reach the surface. Stark manages to get away, but John, Gilina and Aeryn are forced to hide in the floor. Gilina finds out that they require a senior officer's ident chip to escape, so Aeryn goes in search of one. Back on Moya, Pilot reveals that a vacuum must be created inside Moya for her to give birth. Without enough time to reach Pilot's den, Chiana and Rygel have to hide together in a pressure tank as Pilot reveals he can see the child, and Moya gives birth. In her search, Aeryn finds Crais in the Chair, and she asks now him if now he is irreversibly contaminated. He says that he is still her superior officer, and she will release him. She tells him she is no longer a Peacekeeper, and she lost everything because of him. Everything she has learned since she left on Moya has made her realize being a Peacekeeper means nothing to her anymore, and she will never go back. She takes his ident chip, as Crais says he will track her down and kill her. She replies that she will show him his life, and she cranks up the Chair, leaving Crais screaming, and leaves without looking back. Gilina asks John if he wants to be with Aeryn, she needs to know before she gives up everything but Aeryn arrives before he can answer. As they escape, Gilina asks Aeryn if she wants to be with John, and she avoids the question saying if she doesn't go with them she will be killed. Gilina says she'll take care of herself and runs off. Moya meanwhile is re-pressurised, but a portion of the offspring is unable to get past a vent. Pilot gets a visual of the offspring and we see it is covered in weapons. When D'Argo broke the contraceptive shield half a cycle ago, the catalyst released must have contained the DNA to produce weapons. Pilot cannot say who will control the male offspring, as it panics and charges its weapons to try and break free. Chiana goes down to try and help, but tells Pilot the only way to cut free is to allow the offspring to fire a low level blast. As Chiana escapes the duct, the offspring breaks free and everyone is unharmed. On the surface, a shoot-out ensues. John reveals his secret memory to Stark, and Stark reveals he was hiding the memory of the place he lived as a boy. As everyone is escaping, following much crossfire, Scorpius grabs John saying he cannot leave with them. Gilina appears, but she hesitates and Scorpius shoots her. The distraction allows John to break free. Scorpius runs for cover and John picks her up and carries her away. The crew return to Moya, where Pilot says Gilina scrambled channels before she left, so no-one will be able to detect Moya for a while, however they cannot move very far and are unable to Starburst with the offspring. Pilot confirms that Moya's child is a boy, and he is in good health. However it is clear he is far from normal, as his appearance is a cross between a regular Leviathan and a Peacekeeper ship. John asks Gilina why she came back for them. She says she realised that, as Aeryn said, they would have found her out and killed her. She tells him she loves him, as Stark enters and shows her the place he once saw, and she eases up saying it's a beautiful place. Zhaan and Stark leave them alone, when Gilina asks if John would have loved her if things had been different. He says yes, and she asks for one last kiss, before passing away. + +Ka D'Argo and John Crichton are attempting to unblock a vent on Moya that got clogged up when Crichton started his pod's engines. They start to bicker and Crichton is fed up, having used the last of his module's fuel leaving him entirely dependant on the others. He leaves D'Argo in the middle of the work, and when Zhaan tries to talk to him he snaps at her to leave him alone. He tells Aeryn Sun he's going for a drive, and that he's sick of everyone on Moya including her. He leaves on Farscape-1, and Moya senses that her foetus is at risk, and she tries to compensate, which means immediate starburst. Pilot says that there's no time to get Crichton back on board, and they starburst away, leaving him stranded. Three months later, Crichton is lying on top of Farscape-1 down on a planet. He catches a crab-like creature, a shakloom. A woman, Lishala, comes to speak with him, and he asks if she wants some food. She says that offering food to a female on Acquara signals his affection for her. She has made him a map of the stars to help him get home. A man called Rokon comes and says her father demands she returns to the village. Alone, Rokon tells him he'll probably never leave Acquara, and Crichton says it's the first place that's made him feel like he can live with that. Moya is still searching, and it's been a quarter of a cycle, and everyone's getting tired, but D'Argo feels guilty about them driving Crichton away, and Aeryn agrees that they should keep looking for him despite Zhaan wanting them to move on. Crichton goes to see the Grondeer, Kato-Re, who wants to talk privately with him. He wants to discuss his daughter's heart. Crichton says that he chose to build his home away from the village so that he wouldn't interfere with their ways. Rokon is jealous that Crichton sits beside the Grondeer, and his mother, the high prieston Neera, says that he seems to have worked his way into Lishala's heart. She wants her son to marry her so he will become Grondeer. Rygel and D'Argo land on the planet, but the pod lost all energy when it landed. They spotted Crichton's pod on their last pass. Rygel's sled loses power, and he falls to the ground. Zhaan wants either her or Aeryn to go down to the planet and find Rygel and D'Argo, but Aeryn says they can't go without more data. Aeryn says that Zhaan was more agreeable as a priest, but Zhaan tells her not to go there, there are some lines we should never cross. Crichton is on his way home, when Rokon and some guards ambush him, but D'Argo appears and rescues him. Crichton tells him to get the hell away from him, and tells D'Argo to go back wherever he came from. Rokon returns to the village, but is injured, with Lishala healing him. Kato-Re says that they need to find out more about this other beasts, but Neera says Crichton just brings more evil to Acquara. Rygel is shocked by Crichton's reaction, and says he's the one who practically sabotaged Moya. Crichton says that they abandoned him, but D'Argo says that he forced Moya to compensate and she starburst on her own. He asks Crichton if he really thinks they abandoned him when they've spent the last quarter of a cycle trying to find him. Crichton is surprised that they searched for him, and says Rygel and D'Argo are stuck here with no power. Back on Moya, Pilot has produced a topographic bio print to try and locate the others on the planet. Crichton tells D'Argo that this is the first place where he's found peace. Lishala comes and asks why Crichton brought D'Argo here. She says that Crichton must go to her father and convince him that D'Argo is not a threat. On their way, Rokon and the guards ambush them again. They capture them and take Crichton's possessions, including Rygel who was hiding. Crichton and D'Argo are charged with assaulting The Grondeer's personal guards, and the crime carries the sentence of death, but since he believes that Crichton is not entirely to blame he will only banish them. Neera reminds him that the law is explicit, when suddenly Rygel comes out of the bag, and all the Acquarans start bowing and worshipping him, since he is similar in appearance to the statue of their god. D'Argo tells Rygel that the are planning a celebration for him, where he will fulfil his part in the prophecy, only D'Argo and Rygel don't know what that is. Rygel says to Neera that he needs the sacred text to fulfil his part in the prophecy, but she says only priestans can read it. D'Argo asks Rygel if he can read it, and he says yes because it's written in ancient Hynerian. Crichton finds Lishala, who is upset because he didn't tell her about Rygel being the Masata. She says he protected them through the priestons, and will take them off the planet whether they want to go or not. Crichton tells her that Rygel is not a spiritual being, and their Timbala is wrong. She says if he's the true Masata, he'll rise up and lead them to the light. If not, he will be tortured to death. The Acquarans have started the celebration, and Rygel tells D'Argo and Crichton that the ancestors of the Acquarans were colonists, sent out during the reign of Rygel X to expand the influence of his people's monarchy. They were abandoned, and the power drain is intentional. They are kept here by it, to devotedly worship the family of Rygel. The priestons have made a lot of it up, elevated them to gods to elevate themselves. He says he will explain that to them, but D'Argo says they won't listen. Crichton leaves, but Rygel says it's a metaphor, and he can't lead them to the light, but Neera overhears. Zhaan and Aeryn send down a projectile to try and let the others know the location of the power drain, but they lose contact with it, so all they can do is wait. Meanwhile Rygel tries to explain that they have a lot to accomplish, but Neera confronts him. Rygel says that it's a metaphor that he'll rise up, but Neera says the Timbala does not require them to wait, and Rygel says he can't. Neera leads them to calling him a false god, and the seize him. D'Argo and Crichton get out of the way in time, and the projectile lands in a nearby lake. Crichton goes to get it, and finds the bio-map inside. The Acquarans are planning Rygel's death, when Crichton interrupts. He says that they have been betrayed, and there's a power-draining device to keep their machinery from working. Rokon goes to attack Crichton, but D'Argo stops him. Crichton says that the machines functioned when their ancestors arrived, but they've been lied to, first by those who left them, and then by the priestons. Neera says attacking the priestons is the highest sacrilege. Rygel says no, that would be purposely keeping your own people ignorant and subjugated for your own glorification. Rygel says that he has proof -- in the Timbala, which Koto-Re says only the priestons can read. Neera tells Rokon to kill Crichton, but Crichton notices some little handprints in the statue of their god. He grabs Rygel and places his hands in it, and it falls apart revealing a great light. His sled works and he rises up on it. They bow to him, but he stops them, saying he's only their sovereign; a worthy being like them. Kato-Re wishes that Rygel could stay, and will tell the Peacekeepers nothing if they come asking after him. He gives Rygel some food as a gift, and says that they've given the Acquarans the greatest gift of all -- their freedom. So Rygel won't forget them, they prepared him shakloom jerky. Crichton thanks Rokon and Lishala, and she says they'll miss him. Crichton tells D'Argo he's got some apologies to make, but D'Argo tells him to forget it, and they leave. + +Moya comes across a Peacekeeper ship lying dead in space. John Crichton and Zhaan wish to leave while they have the chance, but Ka D'Argo wants to check their data for possible charts back to their home worlds, and Aeryn Sun says she needs to know who she is. Rygel says it's the Zelbinion -- the most feared ship in the Peacekeeper armada. They dock with it and Aeryn, Crichton and D'Argo go over to investigate. They search around the ship, but at the same time Rygel is bothered about having it docked, because it was the first ship he was tortured on. Crichton comes across a console with the lights on, and Aeryn says someone must have turned it on recently. He spots a young woman who tries to run, but Aeryn and D'Argo attack until Crichton stops them. The PK (Peacekeeper), Gilina Renaez, recognizes them as Officer Aeryn Sun and the other escaped prisoners. Crichton asks how she knows, and Aeryn replies that she's a tech, from Crais' ship, the ship she used to be on. Aeryn questions her in usual brute Peacekeeper fashion, but Crichton says to give her a break. Aeryn says she's a tech, she's from Crais' ship -- he is nearby and she will only lie to them. Crichton agrees, but says that if she drops her she won't get her answers. Aeryn says it's her world, and he should not interfere. Meanwhile Rygel still refuses to go over to the Zelbinion, so Zhaan tells him it would do him good to confront his demons. Gilina tells the others that Crais sent her unit over, and two days later another ship appeared and incinerated their Marauder. D'Argo says it's the Sheyangs, but they couldn't have done it all. There are no records though because the ship's data stores were scavenged. Gilina then thanks Crichton for stopping Aeryn from killing her. Rygel then appears on the Zelbinion, and spits in Gilina's face, showing his hatred of Peacekeepers. He goes off looking around and sees an ominous figure that says hello, and welcomes him home. The others come across a dead body -- a Sheyang victim, who was part of Gilina's unit. Aeryn recognises him and asks what he was doing guarding the likes of her. She says that Aeryn's whole unit was demoted after her defection and can only be reinstated upon her death. Pilot meanwhile has spotted a ship, which Zhaan confirms as a Sheyang vessel hiding just outside sensor range. Aeryn asks Gilina why the Sheyangs are back, and calls her a traitor because she knew they would return. Gilina says she is no traitor, and Crichton breaks it up, telling Gilina that Aeryn is no traitor either -- but Crais gave her no chance like the one they are giving her. She tells them that she hid while the Sheyangs scavenged everything. D'Argo returns to Command where Zhaan is anxious to leave since Moya has no offence. D'Argo says that the Sheyangs are cowards, where they see strength they flee, where they see weakness they destroy. Crichton, Aeryn and Gilina are trying to get the Zelbinion's defense screen operational, and Crichton seems to understand what Gilina is trying to do. The Sheyangs begin their weapons countdown, and Pilot says he and Moya are afraid of fire. D'Argo is enraged though, and Zhaan gets Pilot to transmit the image of him screaming to the Sheyangs. When they see the Luxan, they terminate the countdown. Crichton informs everyone that they can get the defence screen working in four arns since he can do half the work. D'Argo tells Zhaan he doesn't want to continue lying to an enemy in battle. Zhaan says he is just misleading them and it can only be him who continues the charade. Gilina mentions that Crichton killed Crais' brother, but he tells her it was really an accident. The Sheyangs do not believe that D'Argo has soldiers with him who are aboard the Zelbinion. Zhaan helps by prompting him, but the Sheyang says he's trying his patience and D'Argo believes their next conversation will spawn an attack. Crichton and Gilina are getting close, whilst Rygel is still hiding on Moya having visions of his torturer: Captain Selto Durka. Zhaan tells him Durka is dead, but Rygel says he is not dead to him; Zhaan says he must find Durka's corpse because it will set him free. One of the Sheyangs overthrows the leader, Teurac, and orders them to fire on Moya. Crichton, Gilina and Aeryn manage to get the defence screen active just in time so repel the weapon's penetration, so it has no effect. However, Pilot informs them that the screen is not fully operational, it has weak spots, because it's really two systems overlaid and they only managed to get one operational. At first reluctant as she's been sworn never to share Peacekeeper technology, Gilina agrees to help them as they helped her, and will help install the other part of the screen on Moya. Later she and Crichton are talking, when they end up kissing just as Aeryn walks in! She is clearly jealous and angered but tries not to show it. Crichton, seeing her reaction, goes after her and asks her if she's never just clicked with someone. She replies that yes, at first she found him quite interesting, but only for a moment! An admission that clearly surprises Crichton but a revelation that seems to please him no end. The Sheyangs launch a load of pods, trying to breach the holes in the defense screen. They managed to get it active just in time but one Sheyang pod managed to breach it. Aeryn finds him, but he shoots a fireball from his mouth! Aeryn manages to avoid it, but it also means she's cut off from reaching Crichton and needs to go around the long way, which means she might be too late to help. Meanwhile, the Sheyang attempts to burn down the door to the room where Crichton and Gilina are working, and manages to get in. He shoots a fireball which Crichton manages to evade, then just as he's about to shoot a second Aeryn manages to get there in time to shoot him, which makes him explode and rain down in flaming body parts. Back on Moya, Crichton wants the others to let Gilina stay and get picked up by Crais, but the others don't want to give Crais another reason to come after them. Crichton says he's going to come one day anyway, and promises D'Argo and Zhaan that Gilina will keep their presence a secret, and Aeryn surprisingly agrees. She says that Gilina could also be deemed irreversibly contaminated, the penalty for which is death, or worse -- exile, like she was. Aeryn says she's smarter than letting Crais know. The Sheyangs detect that Crais' command carrier is on its way at maximum speed, and D'Argo tells them he is sorry they are leaving -- his officers were preparing revenge. Sheyang says he knows he has nothing, but he used it well. Aeryn tells Gilina that Crais will ask her many questions, and she says she will lie to him. Aeryn mutters under her breath she wishes she'd been that smart. Gilina shakes her hand, and Aeryn is clearly upset at thinking about the life she once had. Gilina says to Crichton that she will never see him again, but he insists; yes, they will see each other again someday, and they have a nice big kiss. Crichton goes to see Aeryn, who says she hates to be ambushed. He says she got him in the end, but she says she didn't mean the Sheyang. On her world, showing pain is a sign of weakness, and he should not presume to understand her. He says that though she always bashes him for being weak all the time, this time it's an advantage -- he knows how she feels. After she insists that it's impossible for him to know how she feels, Crichton asks what it would be like for him if one day he finally gets to return home to Earth, and upon walking into his home, found his dad, friends, and all his family lying there dead. Aeryn says she stands corrected and walks out of the room, leaving John alone with his thoughts. + +John Crichton takes one giant leap too far. IASA astronaut and scientist, Commander John Crichton and his best friend, Douglas DK Knox propose a theory that a manned spacecraft can overcome atmospheric friction to increase its velocity to previously unrecorded speeds by using a planet's natural gravity. Farscape One is a module designed by Commander Crichton to test this theory, and Crichton is nervous as the time for the launch of the Space Shuttle approaches. His father, Jack Crichton is a legendary astronaut and a tough act to follow. But as Jack gives his son a puzzle ring originally given to Jack for good luck by Soviet Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, he tells John that he will get the chance to be his own kind of hero. The launch goes well. However, at the moment of critical apogee Commander Crichton is ordered to abort; an electromagnetic wave is fast approaching Crichton's position. With no time to react as the wave hits, Farscape One is swallowed by a wormhole and sent spiraling across the Universe to points unknown. Expelled from the wormhole, Farscape One is suddenly shaken as three small, sleek spaceships streak past, in pursuit of something. Crichton barely has time to adjust before the module is clipped by a fourth ship, which spins out of control and explodes against a small asteroid. But now the module is pulled by an unknown force towards a huge, organic looking spaceship, under attack by the smaller ships. Farscape One is drawn into the vast, tiered interior then released and Crichton glides to a safe landing in an alien hanger. A small, rounded, yellow drone with eyes on stalks appears, startling John as it peers down at him through his module's canopy just as an internal warning siren alerts Crichton to a more immediate danger. Fire! John hits the canopy release button, catapulting the drone across the hanger as he fights to save the module. He succeeds then turns to retrieve the module's canopy as the drone, now with one broken eyestalk, struggles to escape from under the canopy. It makes an odd, electronic chittering sound, as if hurt. Two similar drones quickly appear and forcibly guide John through the alien ship to a large, open command center. Now things turn really weird for John. Two aliens wrestle with control terminals, as the ship shakes under the continuing attack. A squeak from a drone alerts the attention of the aliens and one, a tall, hirsute warrior-like alien in red with tattoos, tentacles and a mean expression, strides across the deck, grabbing Crichton by the throat and lifting him off his feet. John is choking. The alien demands something of him in strange guttural tones. The other alien, an elegant, bald blue female humanoid looks on indifferently. John tries to explain that he can't understand but is injected through his boot with something by one of the drones. The aliens' languages begin to make sense as they interrogate Crichton about his ship and its technology. John's confusion and apparent lack of help frustrates the Warrior who throws Crichton across the deck where he lands in an undignified heap by a wall. The Warrior then demands manoeuvrability from a third alien he calls Pilot, whose image appears on a clamshell-shaped communications device, but the obviously stressed pilot says he can do nothing while the control collar remains in place. The infuriated Warrior yanks at tubes beneath a control panel as a fourth, smaller, toad-like alien on a hovering throne barges past Crichton. He announces that he's discovered they were all being transferred to a lifer's prison. The Warrior vows never to be taken prisoner again and continues to yank at the tubing, spilling fluid in the process. Toad floats across to Crichton and quietly tells John that he will look after him now if John will look after him later. Suddenly the elegant blue alien announces the "codewall is dimming." The Warrior's random vandalism has made a difference and the control collar is disengaging. The Warrior calls for everyone to prepare for Starburst but Pilot states that Moya has been restrained too long. The Warrior brusquely reminds Pilot that Starburst is their only option. A build-up of electric-blue energy ripples along the ship's hull, creating a vortex ahead and the ship surges forward with Moya's Starburst dragging one of the small, sleek fighters behind it. The remainder of the fighters, now identified as Prowlers, is ordered to return to a gargantuan Carrier-like space vessel. On the bridge of the Carrier, a humanoid officer, Captain Crais enters to receive news that the Leviathan ship, Moya has escaped. Crais learns that two Prowlers are missing, one of which is his brother's and a replay from a reconn satellite clearly shows his brother's Prowler clipping Crichton's module. Crais angrily demands to see who the pilot of the module is. Someone will pay for his brother's death. Back onboard Moya, the Warrior is demanding to know where they are. Pilot is unsure. Toad takes a dislike to Crichton and spits in his face and a shocked John leaps to his feet. "What is the matter with you people?" he demands. For an answer, the Warrior shoots out a very long tongue and knocks Crichton unconscious. Following their escape, the aliens introduce themselves to each other. The blue alien tells the Warrior she is Pa'u Zotoh Zhaan, a Delvian priest, imprisoned for anarchy on her home world. The Warrior says his name is Ka D'Argo, a Luxan, imprisoned for killing his Commanding Officer. He has seen two battle campaigns but seriously doubts this escape will last long enough for the Peacekeepers to note in their logs. Crichton wakes up naked in a cell. Outside, the toad-like alien prods at buttons on a small panel. Crichton finds his clothing in an alcove and quickly dresses, asking the toad-like alien why he was stripped? The alien haughtily states that he is Rygel XVI, Dominar to over 600 billion of his Hynerian subjects but his throne was usurped by his cousin. He explains Crichton was stripped to examine him and that the yellow drone had injected him with "translator microbes" so he could understand them. John tries to explain that he is no threat but Rygel counters by saying that they can no more trust him than they can trust "that" and points to another occupant in the cell. That is the Prowler pilot Moya's Starburst ensnared. That removes its helmet to reveal a very Human looking, female face. John introduces himself to the female, who responds by kicking his butt around the cell then pinning him to the floor and demanding to know his rank and regiment and why he is out of uniform? But she gets no coherent answer from Crichton so turns on Rygel, demanding to be let out. He counters by calling her a Peacekeeper and Crichton realizes that she was part of the attack on Moya. The female is Officer Aeryn Sun, Crichton learns shortly, a special Peacekeeper Commando. Again she demands of the Human his rank and regiment so Crichton explains that his rank is Commander and he is not military but a scientist. Rygel's prodding at the panel yields a result and a shelf with the prisoners' possessions lowers. D'Argo and Zhaan arrive. D'Argo is eager to regain his weaponry whilst Zhaan calmly deflects the Human's questions, adding that they now know he is not a Peacekeeper. She says it is time to eat. Crichton wonders just what or who they intend to eat? Back on board Crais's command carrier the techs have finished extrapolating Crichton's image from the recon data and, with a shock, Crais's X.O., Lt. Teeg, exclaims "He's Sebacean." Crais promptly orders pursuit of the escaped Leviathan, Moya. On Moya, the handcuffed Crichton and Aeryn Sun are being fed. Crichton tries to make sense of things. Zhaan pre-empts his questions by explaining that Moya is a bio-mechanoid, a living ship, but a ship that cannot travel fast because of D'Argo's earlier vandalism. Moya is approaching a commerce planet. Zhaan asks Aeryn if there is Peacekeeper presence ahead. Aeryn says nothing. John doesn't know either. Rygel farts helium, causing everyone's voices to become squeaky, confusing John still further. Aeryn steals a fork but is caught by D'Argo. Later, with John and Aeryn secure in a cell, the escapees take one of Moya's transport pods, visit the commerce planet for vital supplies and Rygel enters a bartering session with a huge, disagreeable alien. Aeryn tests the cell door as John ponders about wormholes and how he got here. The Peacekeeper suggests that if the Human wants to make one of these wormholes then how does he expect to do so from inside a cell? John watches her struggle for a moment longer than reveals that he too had stolen a fork and slips it from his sleeve. With their escape underway Aeryn plans to sabotage Moya, which shocks John. The crew has done nothing to harm them but compassion is an alien concept to Aeryn. They argue briefly and John decides to stay on Moya. Aeryn says fine, he'll die here with the others then, so John reluctantly goes with her down to the commerce planet and Aeryn transmits their location to Crais' command carrier. John marvels at the alien planet but nearby D'Argo is telling Zhaan that their prisoners have escaped and worse -- a command carrier is approaching. They have to leave now. Aeryn sees the Transport Pod lift off and is determined to recapture the prisoners when D'Argo suddenly appears to recapture her and Crichton! John tries to warn D'Argo about the command carrier but Crais appears with soldiers and quickly recaptures D'Argo, demanding of Crichton who he is and where he came from? Crais accuses Crichton of murdering his brother in the "white death pod" and as Aeryn unexpectedly offers an explanation, Crais rounds on her, accusing Aeryn of being "irreversibly contaminated" from spending time with the Human. All three are handcuffed and led away. A soldier searches John and discovers the ring. Crichton explains it is a puzzle then uses the distraction to seize the soldier's gun and demands the keys to the handcuffs. D'Argo and Aeryn want to be released immediately but John gets D'Argo to release him first, saying that they are all criminals now. Crichton asks if D'Argo can get them all away but he will only take John. He insists that if Aeryn has to stay then they all stay. D'Argo begrudgingly gives in but Aeryn resists. She is a Peacekeeper, bred for service. "You can be more," Crichton says. Escaping back to Moya, D'Argo orders the Leviathan to enter the Uncharted Territories but Crais' command carrier is closing fast with its frag cannons charging. Pilot needs to know the range of the cannons. 45 Metras, Aeryn reveals reluctantly. John asks why they don't just Starburst again but Zhaan explains that Moya's energy reserves are low. John asks for paper. The others look at him oddly so he writes on the floor, explaining to a curious Zhaan his theory for overcoming atmospheric friction. They have to head back towards the planet. Rygel says Crichton is insane but with a little brusque persuasion from D'Argo, Aeryn takes manual control of Moya. The frag cannons fire and Aeryn banks to avoid a further weapons lock. Moya accelerates towards the commerce planet. Following Crichton's instructions, she pilots the Leviathan into the atmosphere, increasing velocity until John tells her to pull up and Moya streaks away at incredible speed into open space. Crais can do nothing to stop the escaping Leviathan. With some distance between Moya and the Peacekeepers at last, Crichton thanks Aeryn and, in turn, Zhaan thanks him with an odd embrace that leaves John pleasantly stunned. Later, after Crichton retrieves some equipment from his module D'Argo grabs him and holds a sword to his throat, threatening John's life if he endangers his freedom. Aeryn witnesses the encounter and after D'Argo leaves she tells John that Luxans are a brutal race. John counters by saying that her people were no better. Aeryn blames John for all that's happened, adding that Crais will continue to hunt for Crichton, even into the Uncharted Territories. Alone for a while, Crichton repairs the yellow drone he had earlier damaged as he records a message for his father, saying "There's life out here, Dad. Weird, amazing, psychotic life". But John Crichton vows he will never give up hope of finding a way home. + +John Crichton is in bed with his girlfriend, Alex. She says that she's taken a job at Stanford in the medical research program. Crichton's upset and slides the engagement ring under the bed, clearly a bit upset. Suddenly he falls out of bed -- it was all a dream -- because Moya's just entered Starburst. Pilot says she thought she picked up a distress call from another pregnant Leviathan, and was attempting to answer. Rygel tells everyone that he was dreaming about the last mating session he had with one of his wives, and Ka D'Argo says that he dreamt of his wife on the last night before she was murdered. Pilot informs them that there is no other Leviathan, but they've received a signal from a Delvian, who apologises saying she just wants to meet Zotoh Zhaan. Zhaan, Aeryn Sun and Crichton go and meet the Delvian, Tahleen, down on the planetoid. Zhaan says that her use of deception continues to trouble her. They go inside the Delvian temple-like ship, where Tahleen shows them the food store, offering Crichton and Aeryn as much as they like. Zhaan asks why she was brought here, and says Tahleen invaded her soul last night leaving her bitter. Crichton has just caught a plant/animal thing for food, and is amazed by it. He lectures Aeryn for not giving any sort of response to the new and amazing things she sees every day. Tahleen asks Zhaan to give them the powers to help themselves; they need her secret before they all go insane from the madness. Zhaan doesn't know how she survived the early cycles of hatred, but Tahleen says she did, so if she shows her she will show Zhaan abilities beyond her comprehension. She makes Crichton remember falling into the sea as a child, and Zhaan tells her to put his memory back as it was. Back on Moya, D'Argo says he's disturbed because he senses Delvian trickery since they all had the same dreams. Meanwhile a man called Tuzak approaches Crichton, saying he is here because of him, calling him a Peacekeeper. Crichton says he is not, and the man says he is himself insane. He says it's because of Crichton, and says the one he travels with, Zhaan, is in danger. A Delvian kicks Aeryn out of the temple since he was driven from his world by the Peacekeepers, and she's carrying a weapon. Zhaan asks Crichton to help her come to a decision. She says last night she did dream -- of the last person she ever loved. She asks him to keep an open mind, and Tahleen warns that his capacity is less than even a level one, but Zhaan says he'll understand. Tahleen shows him Zhaan joining in unity with her lover, Bitaal, when she decided to avenge the lives he ruined and the world he put at risk by murdering him. Crichton is angry with Zhaan, but she says she needs him to understand, because the others want her to do it again. Zhaan says that Bitaal was a spiritual counsellor, and at the time she was studying with him. His tenure was up, but he and the other conservative Pa'us hired the Peacekeepers for external security instead of yielding control, changing Delvia forever. The Peacekeepers sent many Delvians to Asteroid camps, including her father. Tahleen and the others want Zhaan to give them control again. As Delvians train for purity they become vulnerable to the dark impulses, which if they surface they succumb to like an infection. It happened to Tuzak, and madness threatens his followers. She can help them through unity -- the sacred surrender of two minds together, two spirits, two souls. Tahleen does not want Aeryn and D'Argo to come down to the planer to distract Zhaan from her task, and tells Hasko and Lorana to attack their minds, including Crichton's. Meanwhile he sees Alex again, who says she joined the space program with him as his co-pilot, which he oddly remembers. Zhaan goes to see Tuzak and asks if she gives Tahleen what she wants, will she us it to hurt people. He says she most certainly will, but she may also use it to free a planet from tyranny. D'Argo and Aeryn are about to go down to the planetoid, but she drops her pulse rifle and it smashes, and D'Argo sees Jothee and Peacekeepers on board, whilst Rygel seems to shrink! Zhaan agrees to unity with Tahleen, who says she only wants a small seed to learn to control herself. They join, but Tahleen causes her pain, saying what Zhaan achieved will take her too long to master on her own, and rips out of Zhaan's mind all of what she needs. They break and Zhaan's eyes are red with the madness. Crichton goes to her, and she says her dark impulses are released. Tahleen ripped her ability to control them. She gets violent with him, and says she doesn't have the strength to start again. Crichton looks for Tahleen, but again finds Alex who says he should forget about Zhaan -- she made her own choice. Pilot calls him on the comm., and says everyone on Moya is acting strangely. Crichton goes to Tahleen, who says she will save over a billion Delvians living in fear on her home world. Crichton tells her to put right what she did to Zhaan, but she tells Lorana when he's gone to destroy his mind. Lorana wants to let them go, but Tahleen says she didn’t get everything she needed from Zhaan. Alex corners Crichton again, who asks when she will become more important to him than Zhaan. She's wearing the engagement ring, and he has a flash of his proposal to her, and then their marriage. She tells him to honour his vows or choose Zhaan over her. Meanwhile Tahleen goes to Tuzak, her father, where it's revealed that he brought the Delvians here to accelerate the learning to create a new class of Pa'u. Tuzak says she should learn from his error, she's going too fast. He says what she does is worse than the insanity she's trying to stave off. She incapacitates him. Crichton asks Zhaan to go back to Moya, but she says she'll join with Tahleen one more time. He says she's planning to kill her, and Zhaan says he was always the clever one on Moya. Crichton says that Alex said she'd do this, but Zhaan asks who Alex is, and says they're both lost. Alex asks Crichton why Zhaan is so important to him, and says Zhaan doesn't like herm or know her. Alex says she's a forced memory created to distract him, and she morphs into Lorana. She says she shares his feelings for Zhaan and all of them now that she's been in his mind, and says her people have fallen off the path. In his mind he showed her she was wrong, and he can show Zhaan. Hasko speaks to D'Argo, Aeryn and Rygel, telling them to stay focused but they must not invade the planet to allow the Delvians to do it their way. D'Argo gives them two arns. Meanwhile Lorana tells Tahleen that she's wrong, but Tahleen says she's simple, easy and pleasurable. Lorana says that Crichton and Zhaan are attempting to leave, so Tahleen says she'll stop them. Crichton says he wants to join in unity with Zhaan, he was told she can protect him from injury. Her curiosity if his mind makes her agree. They join, and Crichton says that it's like ten years of great sex all at once. Zhaan tells him not to absorb any of her rage, and Crichton shows her his view of Zhaan, telling her to see what he sees, the gentle Pa'u, to try to be her again. They break suddenly, and Crichton tells her to fight the madness. After a few moments she manages to, and as he holds her she thanks him. Crichton is chopping the spirit tree, angry because he can't remember. Zhaan tells him that details of another's mind fade after unity but the essence of the bonding remains. Tahleen runs in and she says she'll destroy Crichton's mind, but Zhaan blocks her. She was also gifted as part of their unity -- she's now a Pa'u of the tenth level able to protect. She tells Tahleen it's over and with her father gone she is needed to tend his orchard. Zhaan and Crichton go, but she leaves the vestments of a Pa'u behind, saying she is no longer worthy of them. She says she'll be a Pa'u again someday, but not today. Crichton says it's a shame to waste all those years of training, but she says they were hardly wasted -- they were the best cycles of her life. + +D'Argo is yelling in a fit of Luxan hyper-rage. Directing his anger at the nearest male, D'Argo goes after Crichton, but John has hidden himself safely just out of D'Argo's sight, so D'Argo vents his anger on the DRDs instead. A few days later, John finally comes out of hiding and is briefed by Zhaan, Aeryn, and Rygel about what he has missed. D'Argo has been gone for three days but the crew could not find John to tell him because of his hiding ability, which Aeryn attributes to much practice. They mention that D'Argo has taken Aeryn's Prowler to surface of the nearby planet. Hoping that the hyper-rage has finally dissipated, the rest of the crew--Zhaan, John, Aeryn, and Rygel--take a transport pod to find D'Argo. They look for D'Argo in a club-like venue. Although the locals look Sebacean to John, Aeryn informs him that they are common laborers and a distant cousin species at best. As John waits at the bar, he looks up and spots D'Argo who immediately proceeds to approach John. John tries to get away but D'Argo catches John and ends up hugging the confused human. D'Argo seems extremely happy and free of the Hyper-rage. In fact, he almost seems giddy, a stark contrast from his normally gruff demeanor. He informs the crew that he has been a laborer during his time on the planet and is very content and filled with a new purpose. Before John and the others can figure out what purpose that may be, D'Argo wanders off with a beautiful local woman. A woman dressed in white then approaches the baffled crew. She introduces herself as Volmae, the leader of the people on the planet Sykar. She encourages the crew to stay as long as they desire. After the albino leader leaves, Aeryn is a bit unsettled and announces that Volmae gives her a woody -- she means the willies. Aeryn hasn't gotten a hang of those pesky human expressions, quite yet. A voice over a loud speaker announces that the day is over and it is time to rest. Everyone obeys and begin to head home. Rygel has been eating all day and wanders off to relieve himself. D'Argo leaves with his girlfriend from the bar and tells the others he will show them around tomorrow because it is a rest day. John is stopped alone and told by a woman to that he must stay, but before John can ask any questions, she abruptly leaves. Aeryn wants to leave D'Argo behind but John thinks something is clouding D'Argo's thinking. Their argument is interrupted by explosions and Rygel's cry for help. The crew runs to Rygel and find him cursing unseen assassins. As he was relieving himself, something exploded very close to the royal Hynerian, close enough to scorch several royal parts. Because the extreme heat of day approaches, Aeryn decides to return to Moya. Although she is unconvinced that there was an assassination attempt, Aeryn takes Rygel back with her to the ship. Zhaan and John stay on the planet and find D'Argo's apartment. Zhaan and John are invited to stay the night and they voice their concern about D'Argo's strange behavior but he dismisses their concerns. John and Zhaan are left to share a mattress in the living room as D'Argo heads back to the bedroom where his very limber girlfriend is waiting. Back on Moya, several explosions bring Aeryn running to Rygel's quarters. Aeryn finds Rygel wimpering with flames and small explosions coming from his body. Aeryn calls John on the planet and informs him that the "assassination attempt" was caused by Rygel's own bodily fluids becoming explosive. John tells Aeryn to run some tests on Rygel. Aeryn balks and claims that she is no scientist, but John insists and tells Aeryn to ask Pilot for help with the tests. The next day D'Argo heads out to the fields for work with the Sykarans. But John remembers D'Argo claiming that today would be a rest day. While the constant drone from the loudspeaker urges them to work, the workers take some root to eat in the fields. In the fields, John spots Tanga who stopped him the other night and follows her. He asks her to talk but is grabbed from behind before he can get any answers. As John is held down, Hybin forces a worm to burrow into John's stomach. The old man tells John not to mention the worm and that he must eat and the pain will go away. The people quickly leave before they are discovered and John passes out. Zhaan and D'Argo return from the fields to find John sick as a dog in the apartment. He has spent the whole day eating and throwing up. After spending a day in the fields with D'Argo, Zhaan has also found "supreme contentment" working in the fields. With Zhaan behaving strangely, John has no one to turn to for help with the implanted worm in him, but his suspicions about something affecting D'Argo are now reinforced.. Zhaan and D'Argo bring John to another after work celebration. John wanders by himself and is met by Hybin and his daughter Tanga. They explain to him that the worm is protecting John from the mind control by filtering out the toxins in the Tannot root that everyone is eating. It is the root that causes the strange blissful behavior and extreme susceptibility to commands. Some of the locals like Hybin and Tanga have a natural immunity to the roots effects but their numbers are few. They gave the worm to John to get his help. They leave John with a piece of advice. He must act like everyone else. If his immunity to the root is discovered, he will be executed. Back on Moya, Aeryn and Pilot are working to cure Rygel. To prevent any sweating or other bodily secretions, Rygel has been frozen in cryostasis. Aeryn is running tests on Rygel but she is quickly becoming frustrated with the tedious scientific procedures and analysis. Pilot confides with Aeryn that he too has troubles with complex sciences but he studies constantly to improve his knowledge and proficiency. With Pilot's encouragement, Aeryn eventually finds the cause and a cure, much to her surprise. The tannot root Rygel ate reacted with his Hynerian body chemistry to make his fluids explosive. Once the compounds from the tannot root are removed from his system, he returns to normal. Back on the planet, John learns from Tanga that the tannot root has been brought to Sykar by another race and they forced the native population to grow it. Volmae was chosen to be the ruler and was given the worm. She obeys the orders of the Others. The narcotic root is destroying the native culture and turning the once lush planet into a wasteland. Hybin and Tanga hope John can bring help and weapons to her people so they can reclaim Sykar. Volmae takes John aside to a warehouse of tannot root and asks him to bring the rest of the crew of Moya back down to the planet. She wishes to take control of the ship and use it to transport the stored tannot root before the Others arrive. Volmae realizes that if tannot root has value to the Others then it must have value elsewhere. As John stares at the crates full of tannot root, he discovers that the warehouse is covered with Peacekeeper banners. John calls Aeryn and Rygel down to the planet to confront Volmae, Zhaan, and D'Argo. Rygel demonstrates the secret of the tannot root by threatening the assembled crowd with a stream of explosive urine. Aeryn informs Volmae that the tannot root is processed, in a chemical reaction similar to what happens in Rygel's body, by the Peacekeepers to produce Chakan oil, the fuel for Peacekeeper Pulse weapons. Volmae cannot take the tannot root and run without incurring the wrath of the Peacekeepers. John and Aeryn offer the knowledge to produce Chakan oil and weapons to use against the Peacekeepers to free the Sykarans. With D'Argo and Hybin's persuasion, Volmae is finally convinced that it is possible to free her people and reclaim the planet. On the ship, Aeryn removes the worm from John while D'Argo and Zhaan converse in another room. D'Argo worries that he may not be destined for genuine happiness. He reveals to Zhaan his two very different dreams for life. One was to be a magnificent warrior, fearless and immortalized in Shintock sonnets. The other was the simple life, a family, children and his own frotash garden. He thought he had that simple life on Sykar. Zhaan reassures D'Argo that he still can build such a dream for himself. + +A band of Tavleks approaches Moya. Aeryn Sun is distrustful and won't meet them unarmed. In Moya's main hanger the others set the scene, making it appear that Rygel is their Monarch. The Tavleks arrive, armed with powerful gauntlet weapons, make a grab for Rygel and a firefight ensues. Zhaan is knocked out, as is a Tavlek whose gauntlet falls off. In the chaos that follows Ka D'Argo grabs the gauntlet, puts it on but can't make it work and the Tavleks escape with Rygel in a bag. D'Argo fumes! Pilot can't stop the escaping shuttle. It is already out of range. D'Argo rages, saying to forget Rygel, it's his own fault he was taken, and orders Pilot to leave orbit. He throws a large barrel across the bay, shocking the others. Zhaan notices the gauntlet is injecting something into D'Argo, who continues to fume and states that the ship needs a leader. Him! The others try to grab D'Argo but he easily throws them all across the bay then storms out. John Crichton and Aeryn follow D'Argo into a corridor as Zhaan tries to revive the unconscious Tavlek, but D'Argo fires an energy blast at them. The gauntlet is active! Aeryn's return shot is absorbed by the gauntlet and D'Argo fires again, making John and Aeryn dive for cover. Zhaan discovers the Tavlek is a young adult. When John and Aeryn return, demanding to know what the gauntlet does, he sneers at them and says it injects a stimulant, increasing strength but that they are too weak to handle it. He admits the only way it can be removed is when the wearer is unconscious. John wonders what they have on board to knock out a Luxan Warrior? Zhaan suggests a "sleep-mist." In Command, D'Argo demands navigation but Pilot says they can't leave orbit. D'Argo rages, saying he's had enough of voting so he is now in command. A message is received from Bekhesh, the Tavlek leader, who sets a ransom fee for Rygel and gives the crew one day or Rygel dies. Crichton tries to mediate with no luck. Pilot asks for help with D'Argo. Zhaan makes a sleep mist 'water balloon' and John and Aeryn try it out on D'Argo who rallies as the gauntlet increases the stimulant. They wisely egress and John has an idea. Pilot closes Moya's coolant vents, raising pressure within the ship and as D'Argo tracks John and Aeryn to the central chamber, Pilot releases the pressure, shaking Moya and causing D'Argo to fall and knock himself out. The gauntlet comes off. The young Tavlek tries to escape but Zhaan quickly overpowers him and locks him in a cell. In another cell, on the planet below, Rygel, in dried mud up to his waist, makes empty threats to his captors. He wakes another captive in the adjacent cell, Jotheb, next in line of succession in the Consortium of Trao and the two trade boasts but Rygel isn't impressed. Moya's orbit is decaying because a control crystal is missing. A shiny, red crystal just like the one Rygel had on his scepter. Aeryn says she'll kill him. Zhaan can't wake D'Argo. Aeryn asks Pilot to prepare her Prowler and when John refuses to go with her, she punches him, knocking him out, and takes him with her anyway. John wakes up annoyed but Aeryn shrugs off his complaints. Zhaan offers the young Tavlek food and clothing, since Aeryn needed his armored outfit but the boy thinks Zhaan wants to see him naked. He tries to shock her with his nudity. Zhaan calmly shows him her elegant, naked blue body and the boy falls silent. She asks again if he wants food but he declines. Rygel, meanwhile, rants at his captors and is disgusted when a Tavlek brings him food in a skull! Aeryn cajoles John to follow her to a nearby Tavlek camp. Back on Moya, D'Argo is helped into command by Zhaan. Despite being exhausted he wants to help, if only to cover the shame he feels, though he won't admit as much to Zhaan. John and Aeryn locate a Tavlek hunting party and Aeryn needs the gauntlet to overpower them. John says she's 'nuts' after what the gauntlet did to D'Argo but she goes after the hunting party, blasting two and grabbing a third to demand where Bekhesh is. John tries to cover Aeryn with her pulse rifle, accidentally overloading the weapon, which explodes, panicking the Tavleks who flee. Moya's sensors detect the explosion and weapons fire on the planet, prompting D'Argo to go and help John and Aeryn. Aeryn is annoyed at John for destroying the pulse rifle but wants to fight the Tavleks anyway. Meanwhile Rygel complains about his treatment and is taunted by a Tavlek. Zhaan's patient develops withdrawal symptoms. He attacks her, drawing blood, when she enters the cell but is easily overpowered. Zhaan mixes a few drops of her blood into a potion, anoints her lips and kisses the boy gently, temporarily relieving his symptoms. He seems surprised. Aeryn wants blood and Bekhesh dead but John says the gauntlet is messing with her head. She won't remove it and when John tries to stop her, Aeryn throws him aside easily. Rygel meanwhile is trying to loosen the soil around him. D'Argo finds Aeryn just as she is about to blast John with the gauntlet. He distracts her. She goes for him and D'Argo knocks her unconscious with his tongue. With Jotheb's help, Rygel wriggles free but is caught and choked to death by Bekhesh. Jotheb revives Rygel, telling Bekhesh that his people will pay Rygel's ransom. Aeryn comes round in a bad mood and snipes at D'Argo until John points out their behavior under the gauntlet's influence. He suggests they 'play nice' whilst he checks things out. Zhaan's patient is calmer now but hungry without the gauntlet. Back on the planet, Jotheb welcomes Rygel into the Consortium of Trao, adding that all Rygel's subjects are now part of the Consortium but Rygel laughs at Jotheb. He tells Jotheb that although he is a Dominar, he was deposed and imprisoned and is now worth nothing. Jotheb is angry at the deceit. Crichton locates the Tavlek camp with several sleeping guards. He tells Aeryn and D'Argo, who chose to attack but Aeryn is still weak. She wants to cover them but 'someone blew up their only weapon' so D'Argo demonstrates how his 'Qualta Blade' converts to a powerful pulse rifle and Aeryn prepares. Onboard Moya Zhaan feeds the young Tavlek and tries to help him but the boy boasts that the gauntlet supplies everything he needs. She wonders what he himself is capable of? John and D'Argo locate Rygel's cell but it is empty except for his scepter and the crystal is missing. Jotheb tells them Rygel is to be moved, via shuttle, to a secure location and as they leave, John and D'Argo are confronted by Tavleks. Aeryn opens fire making the Tavleks run for cover but as John and D'Argo make their escape. D'Argo is wounded in the back by Tavlek pulse fire. They make it to where Aeryn is waiting and D'Argo collapses, leaving John to carry him to safety. When they stop again, D'Argo asks what color the blood from his wound is? Dark red, John says and is shocked when Aeryn suddenly starts pounding D'Argo's back with her fists. But Aeryn quickly explains that D'Argo's blood must run clear if he is to recover. Onboard Moya, Pilot tells Zhaan that Crichton needs her to scan for the Tavlek shuttle. She mistakenly allows the Tavlek boy to find his own way back to his cell but the boy goes to a maintenance bay instead and attacks a DRD, removing one of its tools. Zhaan locates the shuttle and warns John that it is priming to take off just as Pilot alerts her to the Tavlek boy's actions. She goes in search of him. Aeryn draws a diagram in the dirt, demonstrating dimensional vectors to John so he knows where to find the shuttle, but he doesn't have enough time to get there, unless he uses the gauntlet. Reluctantly, John puts it on and at first doesn't feel any different. But then he feels quite good; in fact he feels great and tears off into the jungle to rescue Rygel. Zhaan, meanwhile, finds the Tavlek boy preparing a stimulant injection and stops him. He attacks her and Zhaan angers, pinning the boy against a workbench and threatening his life. The boy looks terrified. John reaches the shuttle and quickly dispatches three Tavleks. He and Bekhesh exchange fire before John starts to feel weak. The stimulant has run out, the gauntlet is useless but John bluffs Bekhesh into listening to him. Rygel isn't a Dominar, he says but Bekhesh doesn't believe him. Rygel is an escaped mental patient. Bekhesh doesn't believe that either. Rygel has a contagious disease. Bekhesh is not convinced. Finally a wearying Crichton gambles all and lets the empty gauntlet fall from his arm. He says that Rygel is an obnoxious gasbag and admits that no one will pay anything for him. Moya's crew has nothing to offer. Crichton swears the truth. Bekhesh says that it's been so long since anyone told him the truth that he doesn't recognize it anymore. He contacts Moya and demands to speak to the Tavlek boy who confirms that Moya's crew has nothing of value and he has been treated well. Bekhesh begrudgingly releases Rygel to Crichton who grills Rygel about the crystal. Rygel admits that he swallowed it because he knew they would never come back just for him. An exhausted Crichton makes it back to a recovering D'Argo and Aeryn and collapses. At least he rescued Rygel. Back onboard Moya at last, Aeryn and D'Argo wait patiently for Rygel to expel the crystal. He gives the crystal to Aeryn, promising that he washed it but as she walks away he adds, "at least I think I did" just to wind her up. Zhaan receives a transmission from the Tavlek boy, now back with his kind and is disappointed to see he is wearing a gauntlet again. 'My choice' he says. Zhaan promises no sermons. + +John Crichton, in Farscape-1, once again tests his and DK's theory in orbit of Earth. A wave appears and his dad and "DK" call for him to abort, but the module hits the wave and it all vanishes. Crichton suddenly opens his eyes. He is on the operating table and his dad is there talking on his phone. He is happy that John is awake and says how good it is to have him back, when John grabs him, pulls him to the floor, and says "I'm not your son." Men in white suits come and restrain him, and a doctor, Aeryn Sun, tells them he'll need full restraints. John calls for her to help him, and tells himself this is not real. John is restrained in a chair, and "Aeryn" says she is Doctor Bettina Fairchild. The last thing John remembers is being on a commerce planet, as Bettina tells him that he has no brain damage and continues to assess his health. John whispers to her, asking if "they" are listening and that's why they can't talk. She calls him violent and now paranoid, and he asks what day it is. She says it's Monday - a week since he crashed. He doesn't remember that, saying he had a nightmare of a ship full of aliens. He tries to convince her that he's OK, but she remains skeptical. He asks to see his dad, and she lets him go. He walks out and as he says he won't get fooled again, he bursts into the ladies' room, hoping to find something else as he did in the Ancients' simulation, but instead he finds a woman coming from a cubicle. He asks a man for a paper and sees that unlike in the last simulation it is up-to-date. John then goes to apologise to his dad. DK comes along and tells John that people are calling the crash "pilot error," to which Jack objects. DK argues with him because the Farscape Project is circling the drain so John asks what he wants him to do. First, John must get a clean bill of health by going to see a shrink. John is in the psychiatrist's office and dials up to order a pizza when she enters and it's Zhaan in a suit! She introduces herself as Dr. Jean Kaminski, and John says that on Earth psychiatrists don't come in blue to which she asks if he has a problem with colour. He says that he has a contextual problem -- she's an alien. She says that's true, but she does have a green card. She keeps asking questions in answer to his and he tries to get her to share Unity with him, but nothing happens. John runs through the list of people that could be behind this, prompting her to cancel her appointments for the rest of the day. John leaves and sees DK in the car park, and tells him that despite everything he said Kaminsky still gave him a clean bill of health. Just then a car speeds round the corner and out steps D'Argo, immediately eyeing up the ladies. DK tells John that he's the hottest new astronaut to come out of IASA training and he's ambitious. John questions his tentacles, which DK calls a "lifestyle choice," but says he's also a jerk. He introduces himself to John as Gary Regal, and says that he knows of John and offers to get him a beer. In the bar, Gary and John are talking, and John says he thinks someone is messing with his head -- he's part of an experiment and they're looking to see which way he will go. John tells him they want a reaction, but he is not going to react. Gary shouts "Yeah!", which is echoed by a familiar voice. Swinging his chair around, John sees Scorpius playing drums and Pilot on keyboard and bongos! Bettina comes up to John, all dressed up, coming on to him. He introduces her to Gary, who starts making out with her. John goes to get drinks, only to find another Scorpius at the bar except this one is not dressed up and is acting normally. Scorpius tells him that the one on drums is not real, and they don't have much time. Since he is not playing a role, John thinks he is behind it and pins him up against the wall. Scorpius suddenly vanishes, and John convulses, falling onto a table as everyone watches without concern. John is back in Dr. Kaminsky's office, trying to figure out who is behind this. He thinks that it must be Scorpius since he's been having flashes of him ever since he was in the Aurora Chair but admits there is no reason why he would create a facsimile of Earth. He comments that the simulation started out as believable, even Aeryn's presence could have been explained away and whoever did this didn't make the same mistakes the Ancients did. But then Zhaan appeared, something that makes no logical sense, therefore if someone is trying to fool him they're not doing a good job. He says he could still be on Moya and this could be a dream and she says that it is one possibility. He admits that he misses Moya, noting how a ship full of aliens somehow became normal to him. Jack and DK tell John outside that a new project administrator, Douglas Logan, has been brought in, and he's a tough bastard. Jack says that he's a nasty piece of work so John goes to talk to him. In his office, he finds Rygel! John treats him like a friend, takes his cigar, sits down, and puts his feet up. Logan tells him that he's authorised a second attempt, but John has to get this one right. It's good PR if John flies it again and comes from behind. John thinks that the "second attempt" is a plot by Scorpius to find out how he created the wormhole, so he refuses and walks out. Jack and DK start to argue with him outside when Logan returns. John kisses him, picks him up, twirls how around, and throws him off the stairwell! He then turns to his dad and DK and tells them that the way they're acting is annoying. John returns to the bar to find Gary with Bettina, who introduces Jessica, who says that she's an astronaut groupie. Scorpius appears in the seat behind telling John they need to talk, but no one else can see him so they go for a drive. John is speeding along and they're all having fun when Scorpius appears on the car bonnet, telling him to focus and implores him to listen. John refuses and crashes the car into a truck. John wakes up back in the operating room. Bettina comes in with her hair in massive curlers and says that the truck won, but Gary and Jessica are fine. John tells her that really, a crash like that should have killed them, but she says that they were "very, very lucky". She says that John has a visitor, someone new. John begins to expect an alien, maybe a Sheyang but instead it's someone he doesn't expect at all: his mother. John is reluctant to let her touch him because she is dead, but she says that she had to come. She sees that he's sweating and hugs him, saying she'll make everything all right. She says that he has changed -- he's become callous and has killed. John points out that she can't know that, but she says that is why he can't sleep at nights because it bothers him. John leaves her, saying that she is something that is not his mother. Having decided he's had enough of this, he finds Scorpius back in the bar, only it's not the Scorpius he was speaking to previously but the laid-back drummer. He gets John a drink when his mother returns in a nightgown with a drip and looking much worse. He tries to get away but falls over and she tells him she is scared and asks him to be with her when she goes this time. John begs them not to do this, saying that it's cruel. In tears, he runs out. He finds Bialar Crais, dressed as a police officer, who recognises him as John Crichton the astronaut. He wants to get John off the streets so John beats him up and takes his gun. He returns to Logan's office and finds Logan, Bettina, Jack, Kaminsky, and DK. They all say that he's in no shape for this, but he says that Scorpius can either let him go or watch him go berserk. Kaminsky asks him why he's so obsessed with this Scorpius fellow, and John says it doesn't matter and shoots Jack! The bullet goes straight through him and all the others as John continues to fire while they discuss what to have for lunch. John screams to stop and wakes back in the operating room, strapped down where Crais, puppy in hand, hands out his charges. Assault and five accounts of attempted murder which comes to $29.40, payable by cash, cheque, or credit card. He hands over the bill and leaves when Scorpius returns. Suddenly Scorpius arrives, and finally explains what exactly is happening -- a Scarran captured him on the commerce planet. He says that the Scarrans are aware the real Scorpius is chasing John and want to know why. What John is experiencing is the standard Scarran method of interrogation -- induce delusions to break down mental defences. They're not trying to fool him, but rather to they're trying to drive him insane. He says that John's mind is about to crack, but he can't allow that -- he was here first. He says that when the Aurora Chair failed to unlock the wormhole information, he implemented a second strategy. He put a neurochip in John's head, and it contains a mental clone of Scorpius' personality, which in turn explains John's visions. It's also why John couldn't kill him on the Royal Planet -- it's a failsafe. His job is to access wormhole knowledge no matter how long it takes. John calls him Harvey, but "Harvey" says that the Scarran is not aware of him. He tells John to ignore the false Scorpius and not to confide in anyone else, as he can only manifest when the Scarran's attention is diverted. John asks how he knows he's telling the truth and Scorpius says that he's sweating because he's exposed to the heat a Scarran produces. He says that he cools slightly when the Scarran is elsewhere preparing another onslaught. He tells John to concentrate on the real to stop the Scarran. He says he's not been disarmed because pistol fire alone will not affect the Scarran. Before he cans say what will, he leaves because the Scarran is returning. At this point, things truly begin to go crazy. All the ladies are in fetish clothes with John strapped to a chair and they're all talking dirty to him. Rygel sends his 'bitches' away and appears in gimp gear, and tells John that he's his and starts whipping him in return for all his various nicknames. John breaks off and walks out, as DK, in a wheelchair, starts shouting at John and blood squirts from his wrists. Some doctors pick up John and wheel him away as he hears his parents argue. He is thrown off the building and lands on Crais' police car. Crais steps out in red high heels, and reads some rather comic rights. John is then suddenly in a car with Gary, who comes on to him and asks him to take part in a Luxan bonding ritual. John wakes in Kaminsky's office where his mum is too and she gets sexual with him. He suddenly returns to the bar where he refuses an offer from Gary to "boogie" and everything starts to slow down. He hears echoes of Aeryn calling for him and she shoots the disco ball above his head causing everything to vanish. Aeryn tells him that they searched half the world for him -- they're on the commerce planet, but underground in a holographic chamber. She says that it was Scorpius, but she killed him. He says that's interesting and she asks him why. He says he wants to go, but she keeps pressing him and wants to know now. He realises the truth and refuses, so she says frell him -- he can stay. He is suddenly back in the bar and looks up at the disco ball when he begins to convulse while having flashes. The Scarran is in a room and says that John is weakening and increases the stimuli. John's brainwave pattern disappears. The Scarran turns to verify and says that neural activity has ceased. John opens his eyes and sets his pulse pistol to overload. The Scarran turns to see what is making the noise and John quickly shoves it in its mouth and runs. It explodes, taking the Scarran's head with it. The nightmare over, John sees Scorpius who says that he stopped John's brain functions for a few microts to divert the Scarran and says he will now return to John's subconscious. John swears he'll get the chip out, however Scorpius makes John forget all about it, saying he won't trouble John again until he needs to. He tells John where the exit is, and says he'll be with John always, keeping him safe. + +The crew are suffering from starvation, and have visited the remains of a Budong, where Chiana once lived, in hopes of getting some food. However, Chiana stole from some friends before she left, so she may not be welcome. All the while, John Crichton is frying some dentics, only to find out that there's a reason why no one eats them. Aeryn Sun says that she wants to leave, when Zhaan enters. She's budding, and says that she must have food, or she'll die. On the Budong, Chiana says she has a plan to get them food, when an attack occurs. Chiana's friend Temmon is hurt badly, so she finishes him off. B'Sogg enters, saying that he's closed the mines until they find the Keedva -- the animal that attacked. He asks why Chiana is here, and she tells him her ship is dying of starvation. After being forced to hand over their weapons, B'Sogg says that he'll feed her friends but not her; she used up his charity. As the others leave, Chiana is met by an old friend, Altana, who she goes to eat with. Whilst discussing old times, Altana says that she's leaving as she hit it big -- she has found some nogelti crystals, and she wants to give Chiana half. Back on Moya, Aeryn begins to mix a salve under Zhaan's instructions, when Zhaan goes into a catatonic state. Pilot warns Aeryn that Moya is beginning to numb from Zhaan's spores. Meanwhile, Rygel complains about his food, so B'Sogg goes to take it but the others say no; they appreciate it. Ka D'Argo says that they'll work to get the meat they need, as they have no choice. Crichton takes some food to Zhaan, but she grabs his hand and says she needs meat. She says that for Delvians, animal proteins stop the budding cycle, as the buds have evolved for protection, and will poison predators so they can be eaten, since the Delvian is immobilised. Rygel is playing Vija at a game, but Vija cheats and wins, and when he realises that Rygel has no crystals, Rygel is forced to go to the mines. Meanwhile, Chiana attempts to charm B'Sogg, but D'Argo walks in on them. He says that they need meat now, but B'Sogg says they must pay for it. The only the he wants is Chiana, but D'Argo refuses and punches him. B'Sogg says that he hid all the meat, and he wants Chiana for good. D'Argo and Chiana argue over what just happened, and she says that she doesn't need another brother. D'Argo says that he doesn't want to be; he just wants to help. He will go down to the mines with Altana to get the crystals. Aeryn tries to help Zhaan by shining light on her, but it increases the budding, and Zhaan accuses Aeryn of trying to kill her. Meanwhile, Crichton sees Chiana talking with B'Sogg, who says he won't negotiate how long she must stay with him. Chiana then tells Crichton where D'Argo is, so Crichton goes to get him. Moya's sensors are weakening from the spores, and if they aren't gone soon she may be permanently blinded. Aeryn gets Pilot to prepare a transport pod to get Zhaan away from Moya, but Zhaan has vanished. Crichton finds Rygel mining a crystal, and goes to drag him away, when a whistle noise sounds and the Keedva attacks. Rygel floats up on his throne sled, so Crichton grabs on and won't let go. The whistle sounds again, and the Keedva runs off, and Crichton headbutts Rygel for biting his finger. Zhaan is still on Moya, but budding even more. Aeryn still can't find her, and Pilot says that they may have to flush the atmosphere anyway. Meanwhile, as D'Argo and Altana return with the crystals, the Keedva stalks them. They talk about Chiana, and when Altana asks if they're together D'Argo says that's up to Chiana. Aeryn tells Pilot to seal off command and decompress Moya, as it's the only way. As Aeryn feels guilty, Pilot begins to repressurise. Meanwhile, the Keedva attacks and kills Altana, and again runs off on hearing the whistle. Chiana is worried about D'Argo, when the creature alarm goes off. B'Sogg tells Crichton that he found their friends too late, but managed to scare the creature off. A bloodied D'Argo calls out and says that he couldn't protect Altana, and she's now dead. Chiana asks B'Sogg how this could happen, and he says that he closed the mines and they should have stayed out, but Chiana tells Crichton that she believes he killed Altana. On Moya, Zhaan attacks Aeryn, saying she is trying to kill her, that Aeryn has always hated her, that she came to Delvia and imprisoned her, and plotted with Pilot against her. Aeryn says that she's harming Moya with the spores, but Zhaan says that she would never harm Moya, and she can't think. Zhaan asks Aeryn to help her, so Aeryn says she will and headbutts her, and asks Pilot to prime the transport. Crichton is back in the mines, and finds B'Sogg's stash. B'Sogg appears and unleashes the Keedva, which B'Sogg says he has developed a mutually beneficial relationship with. Chiana calls for Crichton, and B'Sogg leaves him and the Keedva alone. Crichton manages to trap it in some bars, killing it. Chiana pulls a gun on B'Sogg, who says she's not a killer. She says that she's evolving, but he's persistent that she won't kill him in cold blood. She says he's right, and shoots the Budong, and the blood pours over his arm, shrivelling it. Back on Moya, the crew are feasting, with Zhaan on her fifth helping of barbecued Keedva. Chiana draws D'Argo away and Zhaan apologises to Aeryn for what she said. Meanwhile D'Argo joins Chiana on command, and says that she doesn't have to act around him. She says that she only lets her guard down when she feels safe. He says that she is, and when she questions it he kisses her, then turns and walks out of the room. Chiana looks down and softly says "Whoa!" + +Ka D'Argo has brought an alien named T'raltixx aboard, who has said that he can adjust Moya's electromagnetics so that they can't be traced, which has become a necessity as Scorpius left wanted beacons all over the commerce planet they've just visited. They went there for food, but all Chiana brought back were dried food rectangles -- crackers. Aeryn brought one of the wanted beacons on board, explaining that they only had time to get crackers since they had to leave the commerce planet before they could be recognized. She is now trying to access the beacon to find where Scorpius is headed so Moya can head in the opposite direction. Zhaan has decided to let T'raltixx test his device on the module. Crichton isn't happy that his ship is being used as the test subject, however Aeryn points that its the best choice since its been upgraded with systems from Moya. When Crichton activates it he thinks nothing's happened, but it worked -- the module partially disappears. Pilot is worried about how the device may affect Moya, but Crichton sharply overrules his concerns and tells him that going to T'raltixx's planet is worth the risk. They fly through a pulsar, which T'raltixx says occasionally affects "lesser" species with impaired judgment and wooziness, but the symptoms are only mild and temporary. No-one feels anything, except for Zhaan who is immensely enjoying the light. As Crichton is walking with T'raltixx, he notices Chiana eating the crackers, and is concerned telling her she better leave some for the rest of them. As he leaves, D'Argo walks in, and Chiana says they need to talk. Crichton continues to try and find T'raltixx a place suitable for him, and walks past Rygel. After exchanging insults, Crichton tells him that Chiana is eating all the food. Aeryn is fiddling around with the beacon, when Zhaan comes along and asks what she's doing. She then asks if Aeryn would tell them if there was a personal message for her from Scorpius offering a full pardon for turning them in, but Aeryn just tells her to go away. Crichton, clearly tense, calls Zhaan to come and "baby sit" T'raltixx. Concerned, she asks if he is feeling OK. D'Argo sneaks up on Rygel, who is stockpiling crackers. He argues with Rygel, and then disturbingly starts ramming the crackers down his throat. Just as it seems that he's going to choke the Hynerian, D'Argo comes to his senses and, realizing exactly what he is doing, leaves in a state of panic and distress. Meanwhile, T'raltixx tells Pilot that he thinks there's something wrong with Zhaan, but Pilot says she's probably just enjoying the pulsar. As she's a plant, the light is intensely enjoyable for her to the point of giving her constant 'photogasms'. T'raltixx casually asks Pilot if he likes the others aboard, and Pilot says that he doesn't think he does. Later Crichton comms Pilot but doesn't get an answer for a while. Although Pilot claims its a problem with the comms, it is clearly he was deliberately ignoring Crichton, who asks Pilot to run a scan as he thinks that the crew are starting to act strange. He then hears Chiana and Aeryn arguing, because Aeryn won't show her the hidden message on the beacon. Crichton tells her to show it to Chiana to shut her up, but then Chiana wonders why he wants her to watch the beacon. D'Argo comes in and asks what's going on, however Crichton is spoiling for a fight and deliberately provokes D'Argo into punching him. When he gets up, Crichton wonders why they're all fighting. Crichton tells T'raltixx that he said the light would only have a minimal effect on them, and he says that he's never know of the effect being so bad, as Zhaan sits in the corner continuing to soak up the light. Meanwhile, Aeryn finds Rygel, and says she has a plan and needs him to watch her back from the others. She says she knows she can trust him because he's too cowardly to betray her. Chiana still thinks Aeryn is hiding something, and maybe she and Crichton are contacting Scorpius to turn them in. Zhaan comes along, and D'Argo asks if she's working with Crichton, and when she tells him to leave her alone, he tongues her. Crichton is in Pilot's den asking about the scan, however Pilot won't answer and instead heaps insults on him and talks about deficient humans are. Crichton is very irritated and eventually tries to run the scan himself, but Pilot doesn't take kindly to Crichton climbing into his console and the two get into a brief physical scuffle before Pilot ejects him by force. This attack clears Crichton's head, and he realizes that Pilot is acting very out-of-character and asks if he can see the light. Pilot eventually confirms that no light is physically reaching the den, leaving the question of how he's been exposed to it. Crichton goes to see Aeryn, when she draws her gun on him. She and Rygel are only taking their fair share, but Crichton says he doesn't care about crackers. He asks where his ice cream is, sings a little rhyme about it and then runs off. In the mean time, T'raltixx is taking all of the DRDs, and says that he needs them to make light, but Pilot doesn't trust him. He says that he can help Pilot, but only if Pilot helps him. Pilot decides to help, since he'd rather do that than anything for the crew right now. Chiana and D'Argo are trying to leave Moya in Crichton's module, but he's taken out a component that it needs to fly, and disabled the hangar doors, so they're not leaving. On command, Aeryn is moving some things around, and is angry that Rygel is not watching her back, when Crichton comes along. He wants them to lock all the guns away, but she says no and shoots at him. He calls Pilot and says that he thinks Aeryn may be trying to take over the ship, but Pilot says he's aware of her plan. Crichton comes across Chiana meddling with the beacon, and he wants to know what she's doing. She knees him where it hurts, and runs off, and then the beacon starts to talk back to him! Scorpius starts reminding him of how he got revenge on a kid at school when he was younger, and says they must be ready as the others are coming for him. Meanwhile, T'raltixx asks Pilot for even more light. Crichton goes and threatens D'Argo with his pistol, when Scorpius again comes to him. Crichton shoots D'Argo, and Scorpius tells him to finish him off. As Crichton talks to him, D'Argo runs off leaving a trail of blood. Crichton then finds Chiana and grabs her from behind. He's ready to kill her, when Scorpius appears and tells him to tie her up so they can have fun with her later. Rygel tells Aeryn that Crichton is coming, and Aeryn knocks him out because she thinks he's going to betray her. Crichton comes up and they exchange insults, and Scorpius tells him to kill her. Crichton has words with him and shoots him, and then he and Aeryn exchange gunfire. They both run out of cartridges, and lunge at each other. Next we see Crichton dragging Aeryn into a room where he has everyone else tied up. He tells D'Argo that he needs everyone to understand that crackers don't matter, while shooting the piles of the stuff that have been left lying around. He says that since T'raltixx came aboard they've all been acting crazy, but they've passed the pulsars so their behavior isn't due to the light. Zhaan says that when she was near T'raltixx she was more affected than when she was in the light. Crichton says that he needs their help, because Moya's starting to glow. He says that T'raltixx wants them out of the way so he can create light. D'Argo wants to pay him a visit, and Aeryn says they should kill him. When Crichton unties her, she tells him never to pull a gun on her again. Crichton says that he will go and kill T'raltixx; all they need to do is find a way to keep the light off him. D'Argo and Aeryn both want to go, but Chiana says that Crichton must since he's the only one not as affected by the light due to his eyesight being far inferior to everyone else's. Although Crichton disputes that his eyesight is worse than the others, its proved when everyone reads a warning on a basin that Crichton can't even see. So Zhaan pastes Crichtons face with some anti-light puke, and they all give him items to keep the light away as well as the device that was previously used on the module to let him approach T'raltixx undetected. They all take a look at the finished product, and he resembles some fake, tacky, failed superhero, and Aeryn says they're going to die. Crichton uses the disappearing device, goes to T'raltixx and starts breaking wires to cut off the light. T'raltixx starts firing bolts at him, and clings to the wall, but Crichton shoots him off and then stabs him. Pilot, feeling terrible for the things he said and did, talks to everyone to apologize for his actions. He finishes with D'Argo and Rygel, who both accept without reservation since they're feeling just as bad. D'Argo then says he's ashamed of what he did to Rygel, and Rygel says that he thought D'Argo was going to kill him, so he can't forgive him, yet. Chiana tells Crichton that she was impressed with some of the things Crichton said and how he took charge. Zhaan asks if she did anything bad, as she has no memories of it. Chiana says no, she was best, and looked like she was having a great time. Crichton and Aeryn awkwardly apologize to each other, then Aeryn leaves. Crichton, filled with guilt over the way he acted, asks Zhaan how they can take it all back. She answers simply and honestly that she doesn't know. + +Zhaan, Chiana and Rygel are on Moya, who is about to be attacked by a Sheyang vessel. Rygel wants to starburst, but Moya can't, and Zhaan has gone a bit mad from losing the others, when suddenly the Sheyangs fire. Crichton is with D'Argo, who is lying unconscious. He suddenly awakes on hearing Crichton's voice, and asks him if he's dead! He thought they were, but Crichton tells him that Aeryn managed to pick them up just in time. Meanwhile, Aeryn, in her prowler, communicates with Crais, who is aboard Talyn, and mentions an agreement they have. D'Argo asks Crichton if Moya got away, and he says yes, but Crais made off with Talyn. Aeryn comes in, and D'Argo says he's happy to see her. She says she could not find many supplies, so Crichton and D'Argo suggest they relocate to another asteroid, but she refuses. They say that the prowler will run out of fuel soon, and Scorpius wants Crichton bad, but Aeryn says he won't look forever, and she has a real go at them telling them to stop fighting her, and storms out. On Moya, Rygel tells Chiana that he's not hungry. When Chiana questions why, since he's always hungry, Pilot reveals that Moya is returning to the asteroid field where she last saw Talyn. They have picked a path so they should re-enter he field undetected by Scorpius' command carrier. Scorpius meanwhile has his cooling rod changed, when Lt. Braca enters and says that they still haven't detected anything. Apparently he let Crichton and D'Argo be rescued by Aeryn, knowing Crichton would rather die than go to him, but it's Braca's fault that the prowler eluded capture. Crais is trying to stop Talyn from powering up, telling him that his mother abandoned him. He continues, when Aeryn walks in and gets Talyn to show them what's upsetting him. It's some random transmissions from Scorpius to try and scare Talyn into revealing himself. Crais tells him to be brave, so Talyn powers down. D'Argo and Crichton are playing rock, paper, scissors when Aeryn returns. She says she doesn't want help in bringing the supplies. Crichton thinks that she's holding back, which she can't deny to him. She says that they won't like what she has to say: in order to save their lives she had to make a deal with Crais, because by the time she retrieved them they were about to suffocate. Crais signalled the coordinates for an oxygen-based atmosphere asteroid, which she couldn't have found in time alone. When Moya left, Talyn got upset and stopped obeying Crais' commands, so she agreed to help calm him and teach him to obey Crais' orders. She says that Crais' control is better than none at all, or Scorpius getting hold of him, but Crichton and D'Argo are angry, but she says she couldn't have let them die. D'Argo tongues her unconscious, and they both want to go and get Crais. They decide who will go with rock, paper, scissors, which Crichton wins. On Moya, Chiana visits Zhaan who has rededicated herself to the Delvian seek. She gives Chiana 30 microts to talk. Chiana explains what Moya is doing, but Zhaan refuses to go and talk to Pilot and starts meditating again. Aeryn tells D'Argo that they've killed them all by letting Crichton go to Crais, but D'Argo says that as a fugitive Crais' goals are only for himself, which only makes him more dangerous. Aboard Talyn, Crais communicates with Scorpius, saying that building Aeryn's trust is time consuming, as is building the trust of the gunship, which is not made easier by Scorpius' transmissions. Scorpius says that his report was overdue -- he thought he was incapacitated and tried to retrieve the gunship. He says that Crais can keep the gunship if he delivers Crichton, and Crais tells him to display the patience that he always brags that he possesses. Crais then tells Talyn that he heard what Scorpius said: Talyn is no longer his concern. He says that is how Peacekeepers treat their own, and that he, Talyn and Aeryn are alike now, and tells Talyn to trust him, when suddenly Crichton appears! Crais says that he is unarmed, so Crichton can kill him at any time, but he should be warned that Talyn considers him a friend. Crais says that neither of them wants to see Talyn in Scorpius' hands. Crichton agrees, and asks what Crais wants. He says that he wants escape from Scorpius, and to travel even deeper into the Uncharted Territories to re-evaluate his path. Crichton says he doesn't get to keep Talyn, so Crais calls him an intruder. Talyn trains a gun on Crichton, but Crichton grabs Crais and pulls his gun on him. He drags Crais away. Moya has accelerated, having detected a transmission from a distressed Talyn. Chiana and Rygel talk about leaving Moya, but Chiana then says that Moya didn't abandon them during Zhaan's trial, so they have to stay. Meanwhile, Scorpius has detected a Leviathan distress signal, so knows that she is returning, but he says that if she joins her offspring in concealment then they've gained nothing. Moya returns to the field, but before she gets to Talyn a Prowler approaches. As Chiana and Rygel discuss their coming downfall, Pilot announces that it isn't sending signals to the command carrier, so Chiana says to let it dock. She waits with a gun, when Crichton steps out with Crais. After quizzing him to ensure he's really Crichton, she jumps into his arms in happiness! He goes to see Zhaan, who's not exactly ecstatic. She thinks that it is his spirit, so continues praying. He goes to pick up D'Argo and Aeryn, but Pilot says that Moya is communicating with Talyn, and he's about to leave the asteroid field. Scorpius finds out that Talyn's leaving, and Moya's pursuing, so he tells Braca that on his signal they'll cripple both ships and send commando units to take over. He wants Crichton alive but cares for no one else. Crichton and D'Argo go and say hi to Rygel, who seizes up. Just as he's regaining his breath, Aeryn walks in and he seizes again. Apparently he's having an airway seizure caused by strong emotions. Aeryn asks to speak to Talyn, as he's not listening to Moya, but he won’t listen to her either. She goes to see Zhaan, who is still emotionally disconnected from those around her. Zhaan says she loves all living things, however Aeryn calls Zhaan out on her selfish behaviour. Aeryn tells her to look at what's going on, and says if she truly loves her then she'll snap out of it and help them. This helps Zhaan see sense, and she agrees to help. Crais is talking with D'Argo, who is watching over him in his cell. He says that he can't stay here -- Talyn needs him. He says that he can keep Talyn from the Peacekeepers. Meanwhile Braca tells Scorpius that both Leviathans have increased their speed, so Scorpius orders them to overtake, and engage! Everyone on Moya rushes to command, when Talyn suddenly opens fire on Moya! He demands Crais, as he's confused. He doesn't know what to do about the Carrier. Moya won't evade his fire, so they put up the leftover defence screen from the Zelbinion, but Talyn destroys it in one shot. He says that was a warning shot, and Pilot says that one more shot will damage Moya, so Aeryn says she will take Crais to Talyn, and will stay aboard with him. Crichton says that Crais will object, but she says he won't since he's already offered to take her with him. Crichton says that she can't go, but she says that there's no other solution. Crichton and Aeryn release Crais, who tells her to decide. She says that she wants to go with him, and Crichton warns him that if he harms either her or Talyn that he'll hunt him down. Crichton and Aeryn once again don't say goodbye, in hope they'll see each other again, and they leave. Crais and Aeryn get on Talyn, who extends the "Hand of Friendship", the greatest honour it can bestow. It's for Crais, who accepts it. He now has a direct link to Talyn's systems through a neural interface. Crais says that they no longer need Aeryn, and says that he and Talyn agree that she should leave. She starts a fight to get the interface off, but Crais knocks her down. She tells Talyn that she's not the enemy, and Crais says that they know that but she can't stay aboard. On Moya, they wonder why Talyn hasn't tucked in close for starburst yet, when Aeryn returns. Scorpius prepares to fire, when Crais contacts him. Crais says that he resigns as a Peacekeeper, and says that Crichton is dead by his hands. Scorpius fires but Talyn starbursts! Moya then starbursts too. Scorpius wants Braca's tactical expert, who said that Talyn wouldn't be able to starburst for an arn brought to him so he can "educate" him. He orders a search for Moya, saying Crichton's not dead, and he will find him. D'Argo goes to see Zhaan, who says that she cannot abandon them and so she'll slow down the seek. Meanwhile Crichton and Aeryn are in Pilot's den. She says that she failed, but Pilot says that Talyn told Moya he chose Crais of his own volition, and he said he'll contact Moya from time to time to let her know that he's okay. Aeryn asks Crichton if he'll be all right, and Crichton says he'll make mistakes since he's young, but he'll be okay. She doesn't think Crais will mistreat him, since he could have killed them at any time but didn't. She says maybe he has really changed. Crichton says that he's changed, and she's changed, but Crais? + +John Crichton and Chiana return from a planet where Chiana had used her "talents" to gain information about the slave auctions where Ka D'Argo's son is believed to be. They had to leave Aeryn Sun and Rygel down on the planet to cover them because when Crichton was getting Chiana out of a muddle his pulse pistol--which he's named Winona--jammed, and so they both expect Aeryn to be mad. But when she and Rygel return, she calls Chiana over to apologize for not looking after her better and she says saving Chiana was in the past and now she's looking to the future. Rygel says that they have a surprise for her when she notices that Aeryn is not carrying her pulse pistol and she always carries a pulse pistol. Noticing how strange this is, Crichton tells Chiana to go and talk to D'Argo, but before she can leave, a Nebari woman appears and says it's time to go home! Chiana realizes that Aeryn and Rygel have been mind cleansed and attempts to run. Aeryn stops her and when Crichton's pistol fails, Varla stuns them. A damaged Nebari ship docks on Moya, carrying a Nebari man named Meelak who has also been looking for Chiana. Meanwhile, Aeryn places a restraint collar on Pilot who tries unsuccessfully to resist. Varla gives him the coordinates to the nearest Nebari colony, where she wants them to go. Aeryn tells Pilot that their ship had a run in with Peacekeepers, probably from Scorpius' command carrier so they should stay on full alert. If Moya starbursts, the collar will give Pilot a lethal injection. D'Argo, Chiana, and Crichton are in a cell with Chiana chained up and she explains that the cleansing Varla has used is a temporary, drug-induced version, but it's just as effective. Crichton asks her why Varla would go through hell just to get to her, but before she answers Meelak appears. D'Argo attacks him but Zhaan uses the collar control system to activate the collars on D'Argo and Crichton. She has also been mind-cleansed. Whilst Aeryn fixes some of Varla's wounds, she says she knows Chiana and she's not dangerous. Varla disagrees, saying that Chiana jeopardizes their attempts to eliminate violent and aggressive behaviour in their society. When D'Argo's been taken to be cleansed and Crichton realizes he's next, he asks Chiana to tell him what all this is about. She tells him of her brother, Nerri, who is now dead. She and Nerri wanted to escape Nebari Prime at a young age, but were given exit permits by the government. At the time, they didn't question why it was so easy; they just ran. Two cycles later, Nerri found out why. They flushed a contagion from their systems, after someone high up in The Establishment gave him the antibody. Nerri left Chiana to get away alone because knowing he could identify the traitor would put her at risk. She says that The Establishment is trying to infect as much of the galaxy as it can with the contagion and they want to find out who gave Nerri the antibody. They infected her and hundreds of others, during a routine physical that they gave, knowing that they would go out and transmit the contagion. Crichton asks her why she didn't tell them this before and figures that they're after her because they probably think she's still in contact with Nerri. Suddenly Meelak appears and activates Crichton's collar, telling him that it's his time. As a weeping D'Argo apologizes to Crichton for all the bad things he's done, Crichton is forced to undergo the very painful cleansing complete with having his eyeballs pulled out and having implants placed on the stalks. Meanwhile Varla invites Chiana to eat and asks where Nerri is. Chiana says that he died a quarter of a cycle ago. To her surprise, Varla shows her a hologram of Nerri being identified as the leader of an assault on Nebari freight convoys less than ten solar days ago. Meelak says that The Establishment has sent out many "messengers" infected with the contagion for over twenty cycles. It spreads quickly, shows no outward symptoms, and waits for a specific time ordained by The Establishment. They expect it to have infected enough people in civilizations to throw those worlds into chaos so when the emissaries arrive they'll be met with minimum resistance. Varla threatens to use Chiana to get to Nerri if she doesn't reveal his location. Crichton walks through Moya but as he does he sees images of Scorpius telling him to fight what they've done to him. Crichton happily tells Pilot that the cleansing didn't work -- he can't explain it, as he was cleansed briefly before it suddenly wore off. Pilot says he can't alter the course because Aeryn keeps coming to check on the status. As Varla is talking to Chiana, Crichton enters and in a very hippie way says that Moya's speed and safety has been affected by a flood in her amnexus system. Varla leaves so Crichton tells Chiana that he's not cleansed. He wants to get the others back, and she says that the drugs rely on the rate of the being's metabolism and mentions how fast Rygel's is. Crichton visits Rygel and finds that the drug has already passed through his system, restoring him to normal. Crichton asks for help in defeating Varla however Rygel has other ideas and refuses to make the Nebari any angrier. Meelak appears and asks why Crichton wants Rygel's help, when Rygel says he doesn't think the cleansing is working on Crichton. This prompts Crichton to hit him and Meelak realizes that it's not working on either of them. Meelak takes Crichton to Chiana's cell where he asks if it has any communication devices in it. When they say no, he gives Crichton a weapon and says they don't have much time. He uses Chiana's DNA to activate a message from Nerri, who says he's doing important, dangerous work, and the person delivering the message is one of his people, under orders not to take her to him because it's too dangerous at this time. He just wanted Chiana to know he's alive and well and tells her to keep herself hidden. Meelak says that Chiana is the only thing Nerri cares more about than the resistance and when she asks him to take her to Nerri, he reminds her of his orders. He has some important data to take to the resistance, which he'll do when they reach the outpost. He says that if he helps, he's jeopardizing his position and everyone relying on him. Chiana says that she'll tell Varla, but he knows she won't. Crichton asks Pilot to try and fake a return of the Peacekeepers to convince Varla to allow starburst, but without DRDs he needs someone to reconfigure some wiring. Crichton finds Rygel and after chewing him out he says he and Pilot have a plan and Rygel must help. Aeryn comes in and asks what they're doing and they unconvincingly tell her they're fixing something for D'Argo because he's ill. Crichton then goes and tells Chiana the plan and says that she must do her part at the right time. Aeryn bumps into D'Argo and says it's odd that he's fine as Crichton just told her he was ill. As Crichton and Rygel are doing the job, Pilot says Chiana already has the Nebari on command. Chiana tells Varla that she'll cooperate without the need for cleansing. Crichton is still not ready when D'Argo appears and asks what he's doing. Aeryn also comes along and says that since he lied they're not cleansed. They try to take them away, but Rygel drops his tools on a wire, which causes a burst of electricity, knocking them unconscious. Varla says that Chiana is wasting her time, when Crichton enters command saying that PK Prowlers are shadowing them, that their Command Carrier has just entered Moya's sensor range, and Pilot puts a Carrier image on screen. Chiana says that their only defense is starburst, but Pilot is restrained. The carrier fires, and causes explosions and damage. Bialar Crais erratically appears on screen saying they'll be destroyed, but Varla still refuses to let Pilot starburst. As she believes the Peacekeepers will aid the resistance if they get Chiana, she attempts to kill her. Pilot maneuvers, throwing everyone around and Meelak objects to Varla killing Chiana. Crichton jumps on Varla but she turns him around and Crichton tells her it's all a ruse and Pilot stops the broadcast. Chiana attacks Varla, but she fights back so Meelak kills her, saying that she betrayed the spirit of their people. Rygel has D'Argo, Aeryn, and Zhaan locked up and they're angry, saying that the cleansing has worn off. D'Argo says that they're in the vicinity of the slave auctions for his son, but Rygel says Pilot's plotting a course so all they need to do is stay there and metabolise, obviously enjoying it. Meelak is leaving and Chiana asks to go with him, saying she wants to help, but he and Crichton say she'd be recognized. She tells Crichton she wants to see Nerri, but he says she can't compromise what her brother is doing. He says Nerri is alive -- take that, as it's more than she had yesterday. She wants to go, but Crichton says since when do people like them get what they want as Meelak leaves. + +John Crichton is in his quarters, playing chess and mumbling to himself. Aeryn Sun questions what he's doing, and he sees a vision of Scorpius implanting something to remember him by. Aeryn wonders if he might be suffering the effects of long-term space travel, but he doesn't want to talk. Rygel is in the cargo bay, where the crew are storing food that they recently procured. He asks Zhaan where Chiana and Ka D'Argo are; apparently food in this region is often infested with parasites and they are finding a cure. Suddenly, some containers topple over, making Rygel jump. Chiana and D'Argo return with a Vorc -- apparently it will seek out a species of parasite and eradicate it completely. The parasites killed a ship of over 200 people and so Aeryn suggests jettisoning the food before a problem occurs. The Vorc pees over D'Argo, and then runs off, with Chiana chasing. Crichton is playing golf, when he hears a noise in the ventilation shaft. On inspection he sees a creature, which he fires at but it runs off. Aeryn and D'Argo arrive on the scene but can't find any trace of the creature, and seem to think Crichton was imagining it. Rygel comes along to protect his food, but D'Argo, already aggravated, makes him smell the Vorc piss in his clothes. Crichton guesses that he saw the Vorc, but when Aeryn describes it, he realises that it wasn't. Zhaan is sorting out the food in the cargo bay, when containers start falling over and she is apparently attacked. Chiana comes along with a cage and they try to capture the Vorc. It avoids them, but Aeryn gets a hold of it by the neck. It bites her and runs off. Pilot and the DRDs can't find Crichton's creature and after talking with Aeryn he thinks that Crichton may have been imagining it. Crichton hears something, and after creeping around he ends up pointing his gun at Rygel, who was checking his cargo. Chiana and D'Argo are searching for the Vorc in hopes that it'll lead them to the parasite. Aeryn enters her quarters and steps in some poop. On seeing the Vorc on her bed she hits it in the face and tells D'Argo that the Vorc is there. While she speaks to him, the Vorc starts humping her leg, but then smells something and suddenly runs off as Aeryn follows. In the cargo bay, the creature that Crichton saw is now stalking out Chiana and Rygel. Chiana goes to hit it, but it smacks her to the floor. D'Argo arrives, but it attacks him and runs. Rygel is trying to bring D'Argo around when Crichton comes in and checks on Chiana. When D'Argo comes around and says the parasite is real, he starts convulsing so the others call Zhaan. Zhaan has cleared D'Argo's wound, but apparently he has a secondary infection and Chiana is anxious about his health. Crichton and Aeryn are searching for the parasite, but they find the Vorc instead. As Chiana and D'Argo talk, Zhaan discovers that D'Argo has been poisoned and it's killing him. Zhaan tells Crichton that they need a live sample of his blood so they must keep the parasite alive. Crichton is watching DRD surveillance on a clamshell when Scorpius appears on it and says, "You'll never see it coming, John." Zhaan has set up D'Argo in a part of Moya so that he will get continuous air to help him breathe. Rygel joins them, apparently not wanting to be alone. Aeryn is carrying the Vorc on her back, trying to find the parasite. Moya shakes and Pilot says that the DRDs have found the creature. It's above the chamber where Zhaan is, but it leaves the airlock, and approaches Chiana. She shoots at it, but Crichton grabs her and reminds her that they need it alive. Pilot manages to lock the creature in command, but the three don't find it. Crichton sees Scorpius again and then finds the Vorc. It starts to shake and spews out the parasite! They knock it out and take it to Zhaan. Zhaan finds no toxin in the parasite's blood, so they don't understand what happened. Zhaan says that D'Argo's respiration is failing and he won't last much longer. Chiana is talking to D'Argo and blames herself for D'Argo's condition. Crichton is trying to figure it all out and says that the Vorc can't have poisoned D'Argo and Aeryn realises that something else must have. Crichton suggests asking the Vorc, which Aeryn thinks is deranged. She doesn't have a better idea though, so they go with it. They inject it with translator microbes, but Aeryn doesn't think it understands so she suggests killing it. It gets upset, so Crichton tells her to take it back. Pilot seems to understand it using a form of non-verbal communication. It starts repeating "friend" so Crichton asks what it wants. "Bad danger here" is its reply. It says that it can kill the parasite if they free it. They agree that their only choice is to trust it. They follow it as Rygel tells them that if it comes near him, he'll kill it. It turns into the huge creature and Rygel tells Pilot to fuel a transport pod. In the cargo bay it is after Rygel, and Crichton and Aeryn come in, telling him to say that he's its friend. It finds Rygel and he bites it, but it overpowers him. Rygel is badly injured, and the creature runs off. Rygel is being healed by Zhaan, who found massive traces of toxins in his wound. Both Rygel and D'Argo will die without an antidote. Aeryn and Crichton find its blood, and as Aeryn follows it, Crichton sees Scorpius behind her and shoots at him. She jumps, wondering what he was doing. They spot the creature but miss and realise that it's leading them into a trap. In the cargo bay, they manage to shoot it, but see a huge cocoon. Zhaan continues her analysis, as Chiana watches over D'Argo, when bugs suddenly start emerging from Rygel's body. Aeryn says that Chiana told her the parasites leave cocoons behind and they find Rygel inside! Rygel tells them he was cocooned for his offspring to eat and farts helium, proving that he is the real Rygel. Crichton and Aeryn run off and the parasite Rygel attacks Zhaan. Crichton and Aeryn run in and shoot it, and it explodes into loads of bugs, which Crichton kills with some coolant freezer. Rygel tells D'Argo and Chiana what it was like in the cocoon and wonders how they could be fooled. D'Argo says that it was a perfect copy, but Rygel says he's fortunate the courageous Vorc was here to rescue him. Aeryn is holding the Vorc and Pilot says that it is happy. It knows its time is near. Aeryn says that she is so sorry, and it dies in her arms as she cries. Crichton, pulse pistol in hand, is playing chess with Aeryn sitting across from him. She asks him what he was really firing at when he nearly shot her and he says that he's been having flashes of Scorpius like he's talking to him and only to him. Aeryn asks what he is saying and Crichton says that Scorpius tells him he's going to get him, that he already has but Crichton just doesn't know it yet. Aeryn asks him why he didn't kill Scorpius when he had the chance and Crichton says that he tried, but he couldn't -- something inside stopped him. Aeryn says that if he needs help but Crichton says that he's not going to lose his mind -- it's all he has left. Aeryn leaves and Scorpius appears, telling Crichton that he'll never see it coming. Crichton gets him in checkmate and says "you lose," but Scorpius says that that wasn't the trap he meant. + +Aeryn Sun and John Crichton are sitting in his Farscape-1 module in the maintenance bay, and she is teaching him some maneuvering tricks, when he smells her hair. She says Zhaan gave her something, and he says it's good. She says that it's not for him to like, it's for her to like. They end up kissing, but Aeryn gets out, saying she won't be a slave to his hormones. She tries to leave, but he pulls her up against the bulkhead and asks why she did her hair, and she says to see if he'd notice. He says she got his attention, and she says that she'll tell Zhaan he finds her oils pleasing. He says that it's her he finds pleasing, but she leaves. Chiana, who was sitting in the bay, tells Crichton that there's too much pressure, Aeryn's scared of the future so why not just live in the moment. Pilot calls everyone to command, and tells them that they're locked in a cross-targeted helix of a Peacekeeper automated defense system, and Moya can't starburst because they'll be destroyed. Pilot says that it's not Scorpius as there're no ships around, so it must be the first line of defense for the inhabited system nearby. A representative is signalling them. Rygel says to run, fight, or surrender, and Pilot says Moya chooses surrender, as resistance means death. Rygel wants to speak with the representative, Counsellor Tyno, but Crichton holds him back. Aeryn and Zhaan explain to Tyno that they have no weapons and are no longer affiliated with the Peacekeepers, and Tyno says that he'll allow them to leave. Ka D'Argo asks if they can approach the world to get provisions, but Tyno says that is impossible during coronation time. Rygel breaks free and introduces himself as a Dominar, and asks if Tyno would turn away royalty bearing gifts. Rygel persuades him, and Tyno allows them to approach, but weapons are prohibited. Rygel asks Crichton if he was right, and when Crichton says yes he says don't ever forget it. Crichton wants to talk to Aeryn, but she wants some space. Crichton asks Chiana if she wants to go down to the planet with him and hang, and enters her quarters to find her and D'Argo having sex! D'Argo tells Crichton that with Chiana he's managed to find moments of pleasure, and asks him not to ruin it. The crew, minus Zhaan, go down to the planet. There's lots of kissing going on, and Crichton asks Aeryn if he can buy her a drink for a few words. She bites back, and a woman approaches Crichton with a vial. He says no, but she says it's just for the kiss. She puts a drop on her tongue, and then his, and they kiss. She then says sorry and walks away and Aeryn says it's a whole world made for his instincts. Aeryn refuses a kiss from a stranger, but Crichton takes another. A woman named Jena tells a man named Clavor that there's a Sebacean here who his sister has not kissed. A Scarran, Cargn, tells Clavor that he thought it wouldn't matter. He says that "her" compatibility was irreversibly contaminated; Clavor will be king. Tyno asks Rygel about Crichton, and says that Princess Katralla is next in line for the throne, but unless she can find a compatible mate the kingdom will fall to her brother. After Clavor takes some verbal shots at Cargn, Jena tells him that if he doesn't become king, she won't marry him. Pilot asks Zhaan why she didn't go down to the planet, and she says she values her time alone, but she doesn't get much of it. Pilot says that he and Moya are pleased that she chose to stay again, and he has opened all the doors on the tier. Zhaan sings, and it echoes throughout Moya. Chiana offers D'Argo the vial, saying one drop will say whether their DNA is compatible, and they kiss. It comes out false, but Chiana says that they're only incompatible by DNA; they can still give each other pleasure. Rygel asks Aeryn why the Scarran is watching them, and she says that the Scarran wants the same thing as the Peacekeepers wanted - a covenant with this world. A man wants to take the test with Aeryn, but instead she takes it with Rygel and pretends it was positive to get rid of him. Pilot calls Zhaan, telling her that Scorpius has found them! The command carrier is scanning Moya, so as a decoy from the planet, Zhaan suggests StarBurst once Scorpius has seen them, and they leave. Tyno asks Crichton if he was once a Peacekeeper, and says that his friends have access to the space command to find their ship. He asks Crichton to take the test with a woman standing behind. Crichton says no, but she says please, so he does. Crichton says "sweet" and Tyno calls the guards. Clavor is upset and Cargn tells him not to make a scene. Crichton asks what's going on and Tyno says it's for his protection. Cargn says that if they are compatible, Crichton must die within a day. Crichton asks what Tyno is doing and Tyno tells him that he's the only compatible Sebacean they've found -- the only one capable of giving the Princess children; he wants Crichton to consider marrying her. Crichton says it's mad, but Tyno says he would be Regent. Clavor enters to see Crichton, but Tyno won't leave Crichton alone with him but order of the Empress -- Clavor's mother. Clavor tells Crichton that he'll speak with him later. Tyno tells Crichton that if Katralla doesn't wed within a matter of days, Clavor will take the throne. Aeryn speaks with Chiana and D'Argo, and Chiana tells her that Crichton is in custody. Aeryn is mad, and Chiana blames Aeryn for rejecting him and getting them into this mess. D'Argo says Rygel is with Crichton, and they'll wait for Moya to return. Aeryn takes Chiana to show her where Crichton is. D'Argo stays sitting at the table, when Scorpius approaches to talk. Cargn is surprised by Scorpius' appearance, and says that Crichton must be working for him so that the Peacekeepers gain an advantage with Clavor's dynasty. Crichton tells D'Argo that he won't marry the princess, but Rygel says he should. D'Argo says that Scorpius offered him a deal -- amnesty for the others and he won't destroy Crichton's brain in exchange for access to the wormhole technology. D'Argo told Scorpius that he'd speak to Crichton about it to stall for time. Rygel says that as long as Crichton pretends, he increases their chance of survival, but Crichton says that he will tell Katralla no. Meanwhile Pilot tells Zhaan that the Carrier did not follow, so Zhaan tells him to plot a course back. Crichton tells Clavor that he won't be marrying Katralla, when she and the Empress enter. The Empress asks Crichton if he's proposed yet, but he says he doesn't love her daughter. She tells him that Clavor can't succeed, as he will betray her people to the Scarrans costing millions of lives. Crichton's purpose is to keep their world stable. Crichton says that there's nothing she can say to make him marry her daughter and Scorpius enters, saying that he's been searching for Crichton, and tells him to make the right decision. The Empress says it's either her daughter or Scorpius, so Crichton asks Katralla what she wants. She says she wants to be Empress, to have kids and to keep the peace and she will not make him miserable. She says she's sorry. Crichton is forced to propose and she accepts. Aeryn is disappointed with Crichton and a cousin of the princess named Dregon, congratulates Crichton and introduces himself to Aeryn. Crichton asks her to find a way out, as they still haven't heard from Moya. Outside, Katralla tells Tyno that she can't believe her mother will force her to marry Crichton, because she loves him. Tyno says he loves her too, but she must do as her mother wishes. Aeryn overhears the whole conversation. Aeryn tells Chiana and D'Argo that Katralla doesn't love Crichton and gets angry with Chiana. Chiana says that she's really angry at herself for letting Crichton go, and points out that Dregon keeps coming on to her. Aeryn just says that this marriage is wrong. On Moya, Pilot tells Zhaan that Moya is following a familiar signal, moving further away from the planet. Aeryn is confronted by Cargn, who gives her a message for Scorpius. He tells her that Scorpius' presence will not be tolerated, and they get into a fight because Aeryn is not forthcoming with information, until the Empress interrupts, and gives them both warnings. Rygel tells Aeryn not to dissuade Crichton from the marriage. Tyno asks what species Crichton is, and says that the Empress has ordered his true identity a secret. He tells Crichton that Katralla's DNA was poisoned, by her brother, he believes with help from the Scarran. Katralla calls Crichton, and through a machine shows him what their son would look like, and says that it will be healthy. Crichton is overwhelmed, and Tyno says that he must work on the pose for his statue. Crichton poses like the Queen of England, waving, but Tyno says that it's hardly one he'd like to hold for eighty cycles. Meanwhile, Cargn tells Clavor that they must assassinate Crichton, but when Clavor argues, Cargn probes both his and Jenavian's minds. Moya has arrived at some sort of mist in space, which is alive. Moya is being evasive with Pilot, but he does know what it us -- the Builders, her creators. Crichton walks in on Chiana and D'Argo having sex again, and tells D'Argo about the statue situation. It's to watch over the people and absorb all the facets of their system, as they can see and hear everything as statues. D'Argo says that he must go through with it, but Crichton says everyone he knows will be dead, but the alternative is Scorpius. The hope for him was that he'd see them all again; without his hope he is nothing. D'Argo says that he'll no longer have Scorpius after him, have power, a family and it may be his destiny. D'Argo says that their time together was good, but he must look beyond his fear and see the path ahead. Crichton speaks with the royal servant, ro-NA, when Aeryn enters and has a go at him. He says that the marriage is better than Scorpius, who is in his head at the back of his mind, and he scares him. Aeryn says that there's never been anything they couldn't overcome together, but Crichton says except each other. Aeryn says that she can't come to the wedding, but he says he needs her there. She asks what else they can say but goodbye, and leaves. Suddenly, a group of men enter and attack Crichton, and as a present from Clavor, they fire a weapon at him, and he begins to dissolve. + +Aeryn Sun arrives on Talyn, unarmed as he requested, with the others waiting in the transport pod. Crais removes his neural transponder so he is defenceless as well. On Moya, Pilot tells Rygel and Chiana that Talyn has grown and he is telling Moya that he's happy and Crais is not mistreating him. John Crichton enters with Ka D'Argo, Zhaan, and Stark following. Crais says that he's called a truce. He recalls Stark from their encounter on the Gammak Base and says that Talyn is becoming more aggressive and Moya's crew must help him disarm the ship. Meanwhile, Rygel asks Chiana what they must be talking about since they've been gone ages. Pilot detects another vessel approaching fast, a Plokavian ship which he says is bad news. Chiana and Rygel watch as Talyn fires his main cannon and destroys it! He's stopped talking to Moya and another Plokavian ship is approaching. The others are returning in the pod, as Talyn starbursts away. The second ship gets hold of the pod and draws it in and everyone aboard is knocked unconscious. The crew awake in a dark chamber with only one raised platform in the center, but Aeryn is missing. D'Argo grabs Stark by the throat, saying it's all his fault, but Crichton says to cut it out. Aeryn is being interrogated and telling the Plokavians that no one is responsible. Talyn couldn't have fired alone as the overrides were in place. Crais was nowhere near the console. She says that if she wanted to blame Crais it would be easy to, since he fled. They think that she is lying to protect them and they want her to tell the story, without lies, from when the others entered. Crais is surprised to see Stark, remembering him from the Gammak Base. He asks for help in disarming Talyn, as he plans to trade weapons for a non-lethal dampening net that will simply immobilize ships. He plans to acquire it from the Plokavians who Stark calls a dangerous race that build weapons. D'Argo thinks that it's a lie, but Aeryn says to hear him out. Crichton tells her to leave D'Argo alone, but Zhaan agrees that Crais has a point. Aeryn says that they'll have to oversee the installation and thinks that Talyn will agree if she says it's OK. Crais needs their help and Moya's to convince Talyn, but D'Argo says that he won't be a part of it and Crichton also has a problem with it. Crais says that it's a simple transaction, but Zhaan says she is not so sure and will have to think it over, maybe by meditating. D'Argo says enough thinking; he wants to kill Crais. Crichton agrees, but Aeryn says that it won't help. Crais agrees and says that he can't even convince Talyn to only use weapons as a last resort. Aeryn says that she'll link up with Talyn for a direct conversation. Crichton and D'Argo don't want to trust Crais, but he says that he's only ever used Talyn's power in self-defense. Zhaan says that was the case with the encounter with the Halosians, but Crichton still doesn't believe, D'Argo thinks it's dren, and Zhaan doesn't know who to believe. Crais detects the Plokavian ship and tells them that privacy mode is engaged. Aeryn comments that they're heavily armed and Stark suggests raising the defense screen. Aeryn stops him, saying that it may be interpreted as an act of aggression. A Plokavian asks Crais if there's a problem and he says no, but he wants to discuss the terms of their agreement. Talyn's gun suddenly fires and destroys the Plokavian vessel. Crais asks who did it and Aeryn says nobody. Crais says that Talyn will find out and pulls out another transponder as Talyn aims his gun at the group. Crais screams at them to leave and despite Aeryn's objections they drag her away. Aeryn then tells the Plokavian interrogators that she would have removed Crais transponder herself and forced Talyn to stay, but the others wouldn't let her. On Moya, Chiana finds Rygel looking for food. He's supposed to be negotiating with the Plokavians, but apparently they won't talk. Moya decides that their presence will not change the current situation and leaves to search for Talyn. Aeryn is returned and Crichton asks where she's been. Aeryn says she was questioned, all of them will be eventually and they shouldn't lie as it will get them all executed. Crichton hugs Aeryn, telling her to play along as Zhaan is called. Aeryn tells Crichton that she said no one was responsible -- it's the only story she had, but Zhaan is gone before they can relay it. Crais recognizes Stark from the Gammak Base then talks about the dampening net and acquiring it from the Plokavians. Zhaan tells Stark that they're technologically advanced and strong believers of justice. D'Argo says that Crais must want to exchange the dampening net for Talyn's main cannon which Crais admits since the cannon has been malfunctioning lately. Crichton says he doesn't trust him and Crais says that it pains him that he hasn't forgiven him for his past misdeeds and offers to let him supervise the installation himself. Zhaan says that he'll need their help and Moya's to sedate Talyn for the modifications, but Crichton says that he hadn't thought that Talyn might not want to give up his cannon. Aeryn says that's why Crais should do it and the Plokavians ask Zhaan if anybody had a problem with Crais' plan. Zhaan says that they did, and that's when D'Argo lost his temper and went in to hyper-rage. Back in the flashback, D'Argo doesn't want Crais to make the exchange and Crichton thinks D'Argo makes a good point. Stark says that a dampening net is just what Talyn needs and D'Argo tells Crais that if he's lying he'll break his neck. Crais says that he just wants to help Talyn, and it's been hard to talk him into using weapons only in defense. Aeryn says that she'll teach him to behave, but Crais says to trust him; he's only used Talyn's weapons in self-defence. Zhaan brings up the encounter with the Halosians which Crais says demonstrates his good intentions. The Plokavians arrive and speak to Crais as Zhaan and Stark talk about the beauty of their ship. Talyn raises his cannon and Aeryn says that the weapons console malfunctioned. Crichton goes to disarm it, but Aeryn stops him, saying that he might set it off. The cannon fires, destroying the Plokavian ship. Zhaan says that Talyn and Crais should be here when the authorities arrive, but he pulls out another transponder and forces them to leave. Zhaan tells the Plokavians that they could do nothing, so they boarded the transport and were then captured. Zhaan is returned and says to the others that she told the Plokavians what she saw then D'Argo tells Stark that if he doesn't do the same then they'll all die. Stark is called and says that he didn't believe Crais only wanted the dampening net and that the reformed Crais is just an act -- he's power mad and Crichton didn't believe his story either. Crais says that Talyn is not listening to him and Aeryn says good for Talyn. Zhaan says that his control isn't as absolute as he thought. D'Argo says to just give the word and he'll break Crais' neck. Crais then says that Talyn needs him and chose him, but Aeryn says perhaps they should override that choice. Crais says that he's not misused Talyn's power; he's only fired in self-defense. Zhaan brings up the Halosian encounter and Crais says they attacked and he spared them; he's not a killer. Crichton says that they won't help, but Crais says they'll regret it. The Plokavians arrive, but Crais tells them the deal is off and fires, destroying the ship. Stark tells the Plokavians that they're covering for Crais to protect Talyn; he doesn't care for Talyn as much as the others. On Moya, Chiana and Rygel are concerned since they can't find Talyn and Pilot gets annoyed at them for questioning Moya's decision to pursue him. D'Argo is pacing and Crichton tries to cheer him up as Stark is returned. The Plokavians say that the testimonies do not correspond and unless they hear the truth all of them will be executed. D'Argo attacks Stark, knocking his mask off and revealing the energy it covers which Zhaan just manages to keep from falling. She returns it and Aeryn tells D'Argo that that didn't help matters. D'Argo is called and says he will tell the Plokavians what he saw. D'Argo asks who the Plokavians are and Stark says that they're barbarians, murderers, builders of horrific weapons, and that they're savages. D'Argo then tells the Plokavians that Aeryn stepped in to defend Crais. Aeryn tells D'Argo that Crais only wants the dampening net, but D'Argo says that he thinks Crais wants to equip Talyn with more deadly weapons. Crichton agrees and the others all stand behind D'Argo. Crais denies it and Stark calls for them to leave. Crais says that they can't because he needs their help. D'Argo says that they won't be a party to this and Stark says they must stop the Plokavians -- they're evil and help enslave worlds including his. Crais says that this will help Talyn, but D'Argo says that he'll help by breaking Crais' neck. Crichton agrees, but Zhaan says that violence won't solve the problem. Crais says that Talyn needs his guidance, D'Argo says control, but Aeryn says she can help if they let her. D'Argo says that Crais wants to use the power for himself, but he says he only used it in self-defense. Zhaan mentions that he did stop Talyn in the Halosian encounter when the Plokavians arrive. Stark is adamant they shouldn't deal with them and D'Argo and Zhaan examine the cargo analysis of their ship -- it's novatrin gas which will eat you alive from the inside out. Stark says that they must stop them and hits a button, firing Talyn's cannon. Everyone says that Stark frelled Crais and he won't get the transponder, but D'Argo notices he has another. D'Argo says that Stark did fire the cannon, but he won't mourn the death of someone dealing in novatrin gas. He says that they shouldn't all be punished for Stark's doing. Stark tells Zhaan that D'Argo's testimony will get him executed and says that she has to believe that he didn't fire. Meanwhile on Moya, Chiana apologizes to Pilot, who says that the chances of finding Talyn are miniscule, but Moya feels guilty out of responsibility. Chiana persuades him to ask Moya, who agrees with her concerns, so they set a return course. D'Argo is returned to the platform and Crichton is called. He tells the Plokavians that no one fired; it must have been a malfunction. The Plokavians show D'Argo testifying that Stark fired and Crichton says that D'Argo was confused; Stark wouldn't know how to fire, so they show Aeryn saying that Stark offered to raise the defense screen. Crichton says that D'Argo must've seen Stark at the console and assumed it was Stark. The Plokavians show Zhaan saying that no one ever approached the weapons console, it must've malfunctioned and that Crichton started towards it but Aeryn stopped him. The Plokavians says that he must have done it, but he says that everyone's story will be different because no one sees things the same way. They says that they do, but Crichton says there will be inconsistencies and the Plokavians show Stark saying that Crais fired from the weapons console. The Plokavians say they're all lying -- executions will begin immediately. They say that they will execute him first, but Crichton thinks that they're looking for a scapegoat not the truth. They say they want justice and Crichton says they are lying; he will give it to them straight -- he doesn't know who it was, he can only say what he saw. They tell him to go on. Stark says that the Plakavoids are an evil race who produce weapons like scatter grenades, seismic disruptors, and novatrin gas. Crais says that he only wants the dampening net, but D'Argo thinks he wants to install deadlier weapons. Crais says that they can supervise the installation themselves. He'll need their help as Talyn won't part with the cannon willingly. D'Argo says they can't be a party to this and Stark repeats that the Plakavoids are evil; their weapons have helped enslave many races including his own. Crais says that this weapon will help Talyn, but D'Argo says they can help Talyn by breaking Crais' neck. Crais says that Talyn would be more destructive without guidance which Zhaan calls control. Crais says that he can't convince Talyn that weapons should only be used as a last resort, and Aeryn suggests that she may have more success. Crais says that he has only ever fired in self-defense and Zhaan backs his claim by bringing up the Halosian incident. Crais explains that they attacked and it was all he could do without finishing them off. Crais tells Crichton that he has changed -- Talyn's aggression is his only concern. The Plakavoids arrive, but Stark says they shouldn't deal with them. Crichton asks if they agree are the Plakavoids the right people to deal with. Stark goes over to the weapons console to fire, but Crichton sees and Stark says they have to strike first. The two struggle over the control and the cannon goes off. Crichton says that Crais then ordered them to leave. He adds that Stark only touched the console after he shut it down and with the safety on Stark couldn't have fired. Nobody did. Stark believes he'll be executed and wonders how. Aeryn says that they mentioned dispersion to her and Stark says that there's a remote chance he could survive dispersion. If he's prepared he could transfer enough of himself to another realm to survive. He then adds, after looking at Aeryn that he doesn't believe it would work either. Crichton is returned and the Plokavians say that they have no choice but to put them all to death. Stark confesses and everyone is knocked to the floor. They say that he was the prime suspect and he removes his mask, revealing that the energy is no longer glowing, and hands it to Zhaan. He thanks them for their friendship and is then dispersed. On the transport pod, D'Argo says that he misjudged Stark; he shouldn't have died for his crime -- he was trying to save them. Crichton and Aeryn say that he committed no crime, but D'Argo says he saw Stark fire and Zhaan adds that she did too, revealing that she had lied in her testimony. Crichton tells them that he shut down the weapons console before fire, knowing it would return control to Talyn. D'Argo asks why Talyn would fire and Pilot chimes in to say that when Talyn scanned the Plokavian ship's cargo, he asked Moya what it was. When she said novatrin gas, one of the six forbidden cargoes for Leviathans. t was Talyn who destroyed the ship, thinking he was protecting Moya. Later, on Moya, Chiana goes to D'Argo and sees a picture of his son and tells D'Argo that he'll find him. D'Argo replies that will only be because Stark told him where he was, and wonders why he did that. He says that he has become so distrustful even of people trying to help, what does that say of him? Crichton asks Aeryn why she didn't implicate Crais and she says she was protecting Talyn. She asks if he thinks it's possible that Stark survived. Crichton says that he's seen a lot of impossible things, but Aeryn says Zhaan thinks it could be done. Crichton adds that she says she does, but he doesn't think she believes it. On an image of Zhaan weeping and stroking Stark's mask, we fade out. + +Rygel goes to give Zhaan her spoils from the Shadow Depository when she suddenly lashes out at him because he's thinking about money when they burned Moya. He tells her that they're all taking a few bits and are using the rest to pay any fee to a healer, located by Crais and Talyn, to help Moya. She apologizes for misjudging him. John Crichton sees visions of Scorpius in a mirror, and smashes it repeatedly with his fist. Aeryn Sun comes in to calm him down and reminds him that he must fight it. They're going to see if the surgeon can remove the chip and she tells him he must be strong, that there's no Scorpius here. He agrees, but we see him morph back and forth between himself and himself as Scorpius. The Diagnosan and his assistant Grunchlk are assessing the damage to Moya and Grunchlk says that it looks good -- they should be able to help. Aeryn asks how much it will cost and Grunchlk says 12,000 kretmas, which they say is outrageous. Grunchlk pushes the price up to 15,000. Chiana asks why the Diagnosan wears a mask and Grunchlk explains that he gets diseases through inhalation -- any bacteria that gets into his nose and mouth simultaneously would kill him. Rygel attempts to have a word with Crichton, but he hits Rygel in the face and again we see the image of Scorpius-Crichton. Ka D'Argo is talking to Ka Jothee and Aeryn tells Rygel she'll take care of Crichton. D'Argo wants Jothee to have his tenkas restored, but he mutilated himself because of his hatred for his father. Chiana comes to talk and D'Argo snaps before leaving upset. Grunchlk has again raised the price, now to 20,000, so Zhaan and Stark are forced to agree to it. Crichton is reconfiguring a comm. outside Pilot's control; he says it's to eavesdrop on Crais. He says the Scorpius in his head is under house arrest. Aeryn wants him to stop, but he says that as long as he stays busy the Scorpius clone leaves him alone. Aeryn says the Diagnosan will look at him after Moya's healed and reminds him of the word "hope" which he brought to this ship. He says he'd be lost without her; she's worked her way into his heart. They both say, "I love you", when Scorpius-Crichton whacks her head against the wall, knocking her unconscious. Crais is telling Talyn that Aeryn cannot be blackmailed -- if she is to join them it'll have to be of her own volition. He says that if she joins them freely, they'll tell her the truth. Talyn detects a signal -- a special pulse code known only by Peacekeeper captains and above. Jothee goes to stop Crichton, who is sending the signal and tries to tongue-lash him, but Scorpius-Crichton catches his tongue and throws him against the wall. D'Argo enters and tongue-lashes him from behind. Down on the planet, Stark and Crais come to support Crichton while the Diagnosan sees what he can do. He looks at Crichton's brain which is covered in black tendrils -- the neural clone. Grunchlk says the doctor doesn't know what he can do -- he doesn't think he can remove it without killing him. Meanwhile, D'Argo goes to help Stark numb Moya and again snaps at Chiana. Aeryn and Crichton are looking at bodies stored by Tocot. Crichton asks if he said anything to piss her off, but she asks if he's serious. They're interrupted by Zhaan and Grunchlk who says he thinks he's found a match for Crichton. Zhaan says it's an abomination against nature; the specimens are alive. Grunchlk says that they're frozen a microt before death -- none of them would survive restoration. Crichton asks if it's possible that they're near Earth, to which she replies that she doesn't know. D'Argo and Stark are dopey from the anesthetic they used to numb Moya, while Chiana and Jothee are in Pilot's den. Jothee says that D'Argo wants to use his money to settle down and live on a farm, but he says that he wants to live loudly. Chiana says that she supposes he meant just him and Jothee when a high Pilot shows a DRD recording of D'Argo practicing his proposal to Chiana! Rygel and Grunchlk are eating when Aeryn enters and asks how long it will be before they start Crichton's surgery. Grunchlk says it'll be about eight arns; the doctor wants to supervise the healing of Moya first. Rygel tells her to leave, as he talks to Grunchlk about securing passage off of Moya, since she won't be able to starburst for a while. Crichton asks Zhaan to join with him in Unity so he can show her what he wants to say to his friends and family should he die. She goes to initiate unity, but Scorpius-Crichton grabs her, in a mental link, saying a twelfth level Pa'u could break the bond, but she's only a ten. Meanwhile Crais asks Aeryn what her next move is since Crichton could die here and the others are talking about what to do next. She says that he must have a suggestion. He says Talyn needs guidance and has chosen her, and that he agrees with that decision. Before she can answer, Talyn informs Crais that Crichton has left Moya in his module. Crichton tells Aeryn not to come after him, since he's not in control. Crais says that he's broadcasting their location to Scorpius and that he must be stopped. Aeryn thanks Crais for his offer, then goes after Crichton. Crais gets Talyn to block the transmission as best he can. Aeryn addresses the chip in Crichton's head since he's clearly not in control. He says that she won't kill him because if she fires she'll miss. Zhaan is in pain on Moya, telling Stark that Crichton is gone; his body is filled with horrific evil. Crichton's taken his ship into the atmosphere where he has had more flight experience. D'Argo reminds Aeryn that Crichton has said he'd rather die than go to Scorpius, so she cannot hesitate. She asks why she would and he says because if their positions were reversed, he would. Scorpius-Crichton loses her by flying through some sort of rock and when she comes out he appears flying above her. She tries to plead with Crichton, but Scorpius-Crichton says she doesn't realize the extent of Crichton's misery. She says that he must recognize she is the superior pilot, to which he agrees and she tells him to land. Scorpius-Crichton says he has no alternative and proceeds to attempt to land on top of her Prowler, smashing through it with the landing gears! She announces that she is under attack and is forced to eject. Her Prowler crashes and explodes, but the descent brakes on her ejection seat auto-ignite, so she initially appears to be out of danger. Scorpius-Crichton informs her that she's not over land, but rather a frozen lake which she confirms. Knowing that the jets from the descent brakes will weaken the ice, Crais implores her to get free however she can't as her harness was jammed by the module's tyre, has nothing to break it with, and can't divert her landing either. As Scorpius-Crichton starts to gloat, John takes control saying that she has to get out of the seat however Aeryn confirms she has no way to get free. She says all her options are depleted and she hopes that Crichton meant what he said in the neural cluster because she did. As the others on Moya listen on and Crichton watches in horror at what he has done, she descends into the lake, resurfacing only long enough to call Crichton's name before falling back under water where she drowns. We cut to Aeryn's funeral, performed by Zhaan, as in turn the crew pay their respects. D'Argo gives her his Qualta Blade and Rygel gives her his medallion, saying she is more worthy of it than he is and asks her to be at peace. Zhaan finishes her prayer as Crichton goes to her and asks D'Argo for his knife. Reluctantly, he hands it to him and Crichton leans over her, asking for her forgiveness and saying he loves her. He kisses her and cuts a lock of her hair, then says he's ready. The Diagnosan tells Crichton he's not responsible for Aeryn's death, but Crichton says he is. Grunchlk explains that the doctor is going to cut the tendrils then remove the chip, but since they have no map of what functions are in what part of the human brain, the Diagnosan will probe his brain and Crichton must tell him what memories he wants to keep. On Talyn, an upset Crais says he too would have liked to have shown Aeryn the information on the chip he has, as he thinks it would have made her the happiest soul among them. Zhaan is comforting Pilot when Stark tells her that everyone's moving on and asks what she will do. She says her concern is for Pilot and Moya now and Stark asks to share the future with her. The surgery continues, with Crichton telling Tocot what memories to keep. He says to get rid of American politics, but to keep the memories of his dogs if possible. Meanwhile Grunchlk tells Rygel that his ship will be here shortly. He says that it's too bad about Aeryn and Rygel in a humble tone says yes, but that's life. The doctor asks Crichton about the memories of Aeryn, but we don't hear his answer. Jothee is apparently preparing to leave and saying goodbye to Chiana. As they're about to kiss, D'Argo comes in and says that they should stay close. Meanwhile Tocot finds the wormhole memories as suddenly a horde of Peacekeepers storm the building! The doctor says that Crichton's speech is close to the implant so he'll have to take it out then attempt to restore Crichton's speech. He removes the chip and shows it to Crichton. We see Aeryn in one of the storage containers, when Lt. Braca sees Grunchlk hiding in one. Tocot is about to replace Crichton's brain, when Scorpius walks in to the operating room! He greets the doctor and says his cooling apparatus is as functional as the day Tocot installed it. He then removes the doctor's mask and breathes on him. He tells Crichton that there's so much to say, but so little capacity. He takes the chip and says he hopes all this work was worth it. He condemns Crichton to live, so that his thirst for unfulfilled revenge will consume him. With that, he says goodbye and after a shot of Crichton with brains on an operating table and literally speechless. + +Moya was forced to starburst away from the asteroid field following the destruction of the Gammak Base, leaving Crichton,Aeryn, and D'Argo stranded. This time, events play differently from before as after D'Argo loses consciousness Aeryn finds herself under heavy fire from Peacekeeper forces. Unable to shake them off, she is killed when her Prowler is destroyed. Crichton doesn't get time to mourn as the visor on his EV suit shatters exposing him to the vacuum of space. Zhaan suddenly wakes up from her nightmare, aboard a malfunctioning transport pod with Crichton trying to fix the problem only to find Rygel left food in the engines and the damage is so bad they'll have to wait to be picked up. When Crichton starts singing "Dream a Little Dream", Zhaan says that she was and tells him that she keeps seeing him die and asks him if he knows what happened on Litigara. Crichton tells her than Chiana and Rygel didn't want to talk about it, so she decides to tell him the tale. They searched for 20 solar days on every planet that Aeryn could possibly have reached in her prowler. Everyone was very worried, and Moya was anxious to start looking for Talyn. The final planet they came to was Litigara. In a bar on Litigara, Zhaan asks the barman if he's seen two Sebaceans and a Luxan, but he hasn't. Rygel is drunk and Chiana is playing with the locals. Zhaan grabs them and leaves, calling Pilot who says that Moya is demanding they return so she can continue the search for her offspring. Zhaan goes to cross the road when the light indicates that she can, but she is hit by a vehicle. Police come and arrest her to Chiana and Rygel's objections, saying that she'll pay for her crime. Pilot tells Chiana that Moya is ready to leave and she must tell Zhaan. Chiana goes to see Zhaan. She says that she shouldn't have come, when Zhaan's lawyer appears. He says that she can expect the minimum sentence -- ten solar days. Chiana suggests getting another lawyer and he says they're welcome to try; over 90% of the population are lawyers. Zhaan tells Chiana that she and Rygel must get out of here and then she attacks her lawyer. A man called Ja Rhumann is speaking to a man over the comm. and says that even though it's not safe for the man to be out that night, they've found the perfect subject. Meanwhile, back in her cell, Zhaan sees Crichton, D'Argo, and Aeryn come up to her to get her out of the cell, but before they do they disappear; they're hallucinations. Hallucination-Crichton comes through the bars and sits next to her. She says that she wishes he and the others were there because she's alone and afraid and she needs them; Rygel and Chiana are like children and without the others she can't be responsible for everyone. Crichton's image vanishes when a woman comes up to her cell and opens the door, giving her a map to the transport. She says the guards will return soon, so this is Zhaan's only chance to escape. But as Zhaan runs and sees Rygel and Chiana, she trips over a dead body and the police arrest her again -- only this time the charge is murder. Her lawyer says that the man she killed was a rising advocate for the utilities; the 10% of the population who aren't lawyers. The charge is that she murdered him with her bare hands, although because of his radical ideas about the law nobody's too cut up about it. When Chiana asks what happens next, he says that in three solar days she will be executed! In court, Rygel explains to Chiana that Litigara is run by law firms, and the one currently in power is run by Ja Rhumann. The judge is about to give the verdict, when Zhaan asks if it matters that she is innocent. She says that she is guilty of many evils but this is not one of them. Her counsel says that it was not discussed and he will not represent her in a plea of not guilty. The judge says that she can't change her plea without representation, so Chiana objects. Zhaan tells her to return to Moya, but she and Rygel say they'll represent her, which the judge allows. Later, Chiana tells Rygel that if they fail, they share the same punishment as the client. Chiana and Rygel are in the bar researching, when a lawyer has a go at one of the bar staff. The barman tells Chiana that he's a lawyer, and it's his right. That's why Wesley Kenn, the man who was murdered, was so important as he was fighting for utilities' rights. He says that their law system wasn't always complicated, and gives them the "Axiom" -- the book that all other law books are based on. He says that it's the only book they really need. Aeryn is now in Zhaan's cell, and asks why Zhaan left them. Had she waited a few microts they would have all been back. Back in court, Zhaan confesses and says she's guilty. As the judge is about to sentence her, Rygel steps in and says that her counsel does not concur with the guilty plea and Chiana insists that she be gagged. The judge agrees and the trial proceeds. Rygel and Chiana cross-examine various witnesses, including the officer on patrol, who says he found Zhaan kneeling over the murdered body. Later in the bar, Chiana tells Pilot that they need more time, but he says that Moya will only give them one revolution of the planet. Chiana notices the officer who arrested Zhaan who has a burned face. The bartender says that he has blue eyes and that it was a dual full moon the other night. Litigarans with blue eyes usually stay in because it burns them. Chiana goes to "speak" with him and says they're pleading guilty tomorrow before fishing for information. Rygel asks the bartender about the "Light of Truth" mentioned in The Axiom and he says that it goes back to the very origin of the law -- a burning torch that burns brighter when held up to someone meant that they were lying. Rygel gets an idea and shows the barman a picture of the murdered man. In court, Chiana is suffering from a hangover, so Rygel gives her some pills to help, but she takes them all and they make her hyper, forcing Rygel to take over. He asks the doctor about the burn that blue-eyed Litigarans get from a dual full moon. Chiana then asks the officer why he was burned but not the victim. The officer reveals that he used to work as security for Ja Rhumann's law firm. After the session, Pilot tells Chiana that Moya is not listening and is about to leave. As Chiana walks on, she gets caught in an electrinet and is taken to Rhumann. He threatens her to stop her line of questioning or he says she will be faced with charges, false charges. He says that it's all about utilities' rights, and her comms is destroyed. He says that she won't return to the ship unless he allows it. Zhaan is being strapped up when she sees D'Argo, who encourages her to take up the Delvian Seek again, saying she is the strongest individual he has ever known. Meanwhile Chiana returns to the cell, where Rygel is with Zhaan. Chiana uses his comms to contact Pilot, who says that Moya has chosen to give them more time, as her comm. was open the whole time she was speaking with Rhumann. Rygel says that he thinks they can win, but it will involve lashings of deception and trickery. In court, Chiana calls Rhumann to the stand, and talks about the oath they take with their hand on The Axiom. Rygel asks him, under oath, what he knows about the murder. He says that he knows no more than any ordinary citizen -- namely that Zhaan did it. Chiana breaks a chair and designates one of the legs the light of truth. Rhumann says that it's a parable, but Rygel says it says so in their most sacred book. Chiana says that it's ordinary wood, but near a witness under oath, it reacts with special properties. Chiana lights it and asks if finding an off-worlder to blame the death on would benefit his firm and he agrees, hypothetically speaking. Rygel says that the victim didn't get burned and Chiana adds that the victim must have been killed somewhere else and brought to the alley knowing Zhaan would be there. He says hypothetically, yes. Rygel tells Pilot "now" under his breath and Chiana asks if he's speaking hypothetically. Rhumann says yes, but Moya projects light and with each lie the light gets stronger. Rygel asks if the judge will believe a guilty man or the symbol of her world. She orders Rhumann arrested and drops all charges against Zhaan. Back in the present, Zhaan tells Crichton that they left immediately following the case and found them soon after, but despite this she keeps seeing them die even though they live. She says that the experience showed that her spirituality was lacking, but he says that since she recommitted herself to the Seek it may have been worth it. Moya arrives to pick them up and Crichton asks Zhaan if she's OK. She thanks him for his compassion and he thanks her for hers. + +The crew have been following Nexus coordinates for three solar days in search of Stark, who Zhaan says she saw in a vision. The others are fed up and do not believe she saw him, Ka D'Argo wanting to return to the slave auction to find his son. Zhaan asks John Crichton what he thinks, but before he can finish his sentence Stark's image appears and Pilot detects his shuttle, bringing it aboard. The crew go to meet him and he tells D'Argo he's done it -- he's found a way to save his son! Crichton asks how he got here since he was dispersed. Stark says that when dispersed he immediately travelled to get the maps and blueprints he has, then reconstituted his physical shell and stole a ship. He says that Ka Jothee is being sold in a lot of 10,000 slaves and the blueprints he has are for a Shadow Depository -- a criminal's bank of sorts. It's within range of a transport pod from their current location. Aeryn Sun says that the last Shadow Depository she saw had more firepower than a Gammak Base, but Stark says he has the door's motion detectors and the maps of its layout. One container would have enough wealth to buy the entire lot of slaves and make them rich. He got them from the designer, who he helped "cross over" to death. Aeryn says this would be a suicide mission, but D'Argo says if it's the only way to save his son they must consider it. Crichton says that it's not possible, as does Chiana, and D'Argo is upset that they won't even consider it. He asks Crichton if whenever he asked him to do something, he ever questioned if it was possible. D'Argo leaves alone on a transport, so Aeryn and Crichton follow in the Prowler. They go in and see D'Argo looking around. A blue woman is chatting with someone, but Crichton sees Scorpius in his place -- he's having visions again. As they walk through, their weapons are detected and the security man, Akkor, is straight on the scene. Crichton quickly acts as if they had been testing the security as they have something to deposit. As Crichton talks the guard round, they spot D'Argo breaching a door and they subsequently capture him. He says the security is weak when the blue woman comes up to him and says she knows Luxans, but D'Argo is intelligent. She says that he expects to be interrogated, it's a dance, and they shan't disappoint him. Back on Moya, Crichton has a go at Stark saying that he set D'Argo up, but Stark says that it's all part of the plan to get Jothee back and get the money. He says that D'Argo has breached security now so whilst they're resetting their codes he can link in, but he has to work quickly. Crichton asks how they'll get D'Argo back and Stark says that it’s all part of the plan and it will work. Meanwhile Zhaan and Chiana are plastering Rygel up to look like a statue. They knock him out with gas to suspend his bodily functions long enough so as not to be detected. Stark still hasn’t gotten through and Crichton says he's got less than an arn left. Stark tells him to go away and do nothing -- it's what D'Argo says he does best. Crichton puts his pulse pistol to Stark's head and asks if D'Argo really said that. When Stark says no Crichton tells him to never lie to him. Zhaan and Chiana go into the depository; Zhaan dressed as a pirate and Chiana as her assistant. She tells Akkor to get his leader and the blue woman appears and says she's Natira. Zhaan says she is Aralla and she hears that they've been having security problems -- her Luxan agent got half way into a vault without them noticing. Natira says he barely made it through the door and asks how he got their codes. Zhaan says it's not her job to plug her security holes; she just needs storage for one solar day. The Rygel "statue" passes the scans. Zhaan says it's priceless and that she wants her Luxan. Natira gives him back and Zhaan sends Chiana to take him back to the ship. Natira tells Zhaan that her assistants Crichton and Aeryn must go to the Observation Lounge; that's her rules. She shows Zhaan the containment, which shoots out from the back of the room. Crichton and Aeryn enter the lounge, when Natira's people whisper then suddenly leave. Crichton starts to hear Scorpius talking in his head, when Aeryn spots the real Scorpius on a monitor, who says he has come for his property and wants to speak with Natira straight away and Lt. Braca nails Akkor so he can. A female nurse then changes his "cooling rod", which Crichton and Aeryn see. Zhaan manages to leave Natira just before Scorpius gets to her and they hug! Zhaan, Crichton, and Aeryn return to Moya, as Scorpius tells Natira why he's here. She thought he died when the Gammak Base exploded so she seized his goods. She says she will provide him with goods of equal value, but he says no -- he wants triple the value to which she eventually agrees. Back on Moya, Crichton has another go at Stark, saying that he knew Scorpius was holding something here and he just wanted revenge. Stark refutes the claim, saying he's here for D'Argo's son and his people. Aeryn asks Pilot if Scorpius' command carrier was here and Pilot says they did detect a small ship earlier which Aeryn assumes is a Marauder on a stealth trajectory. Stark's modified their comms and has a passkey to control all the Depository's doors. Crichton wants more and gets Zhaan to concoct some paste that explodes when heated. Natira says she has some Borinium Ingots for him, which are worth at least triple the value of his goods. Meanwhile, Crichton goes to see D'Argo and they start to argue. Chiana then has a go at Crichton, who says he didn't come here to fight; just to see how D'Argo was. Rygel has gotten free inside the container, when Zhaan and Chiana come with Crichton and Aeryn to make the withdrawal. Rygel is switching the container when Crichton sees Natira licking Scorpius on one of the screens, then they leave the room. The container is retrieved and Rygel falls back inside. Crichton and Aeryn go to Natira's room where Crichton attempts to paste Scorpius' cooling rod. He starts to hear Scorpius' voice though so Aeryn has to do it for him. The PK Nurse comes and takes the rod, forcing Crichton and Aeryn to hide, and changes it for Scorpius. Natira says the Ingots have been transferred to his container, just as Zhaan and Chiana are retrieving the stolen goods. Scorpius retrieves his container and realizes there's nothing there but boxes and a statue's casing. Natira says it's the Delvian woman and Scorpius realises it is Crichton. They seal all exits and Stark's door opening device doesn't work. He manages to jam the video signal and turns the device on for Crichton. Aeryn says to get Zhaan, Rygel, and Chiana out and she and Crichton will act as a diversion. Crichton starts to hear Scorpius again and grabs Aeryn, kissing her and trying to tell her that Scorpius did something to him. He wants to tell her how he feels about her, but the guards interrupt. Aeryn and Crichton manage to knock them out. Scorpius' rod starts to fail and he tells Natira that if he gets Crichton all is forgiven. Zhaan, Rygel, and Chiana get to the last door, but Stark has started to break up at the thought of the plan failing. D'Argo takes over and Crichton again tries to tell Aeryn how he feels, but Aeryn says he doesn’t as if she knows. Scorpius is on his way to intercept them, when Zhaan has to use her gas to knock out the oncoming guards. D'Argo gets into their system and opens the door. Scorpius' assistant sees him in pain and wants to change his rod, but he doesn't let her. They all go to leave when Crichton goes to seal all the doors. As he does, Braca and a guard find him and Crichton knocks him out. Scorpius grabs him and pushes open the "sealed" door. He tells Crichton that he put a chip in his brain, a neuro biotracer chip, that's been touching every aspect of his personality and memories. He says he's learned it's saved his life a few times since he escaped the Gammak Base. Scorpius' rod starts to burn, when his nurse takes it out for him, but it explodes, knocking her out. He says Crichton can't let him die any more than he can sacrifice Crichton. Scorpius gets him to change the rod for him, but Crichton manages to fight it and throws the rod away, saying he'd rather die himself. He crawls away, leaving Scorpius writhing in pain, trying to reach the new rod. Back on Moya, Rygel's talking about their newfound wealth when Zhaan reminds him they agreed to do nothing with it until they bought the slaves. Stark apologizes for his behaviour, but Zhaan says he did brilliantly and D'Argo says he's eternally grateful. Stark's proven himself a worthy friend. Chiana say that was nice and D'Argo says that that tortured soul just gave him a chance to save his son, to which Chiana asks what of the other tortured soul. D'Argo says friends help each other, and Chiana says that friends also forgive. Crichton tells Aeryn about Scorpius' chip and says it was hard to let him die -- a part of him wishes that he'd saved him. He says he meant what he didn't get to say to her, and she holds him, saying she knows. Meanwhile, the Ingots in the cargo bay seem to come to life. + +In the Shadow Depository, Scorpius tells John Crichton that the neural clone drew him here, as Pilot plays a message from Crichton to everyone on Moya. He says that the chip is starting to take control, so he's gone to Scorpius to have it removed. He says that at least by exchanging himself for Ka Jothee he can do some good. Aeryn Sun points out how much Ka D'Argo misread him and quickly says this doesn't change anything. Instead of rescuing Jothee, they will rescue Crichton. The Zenetans ask about the currency and Chiana reminds them of what happened. Zelkin says he understands, but since they have no money, Moya is now his. Aeryn says that he's a joke; there are 30,000 containers on the Depository filled with riches and he'd rather point a gun at a girl. Jothee and Stark enter and everyone grabs hold of someone else, so Stark goes a bit mad and says how Scorpius killed 10,000 of his people. Rorf asks if he will act like this down there and when Stark says yes he agrees to go and rescue Crichton as long as he gets plenty of currency, which Aeryn says they all will. Pilot suddenly detects an approaching ship -- it's Talyn! Natira's asks Scorpius why Crichton is so important and why he can't just take him away. Scorpius says that he must soften Crichton's mind before removing the clone. Once that's done he'll take Crichton away on his command carrier. He says that the wormhole technology in Crichton's brain will sway the balance of power as we know it. Pilot thanks Crais for allowing Talyn to respond to his mother's distress signal. He is providing her with essential nutrients via link between them to help her recover. Aeryn asks how long they'll stay for and Crais says in two arns there'll be nothing more Talyn can do. Aeryn tells him of the plan to attack the Depository, but Crais says that he thought she didn't want to use Talyn for violence. She says this is different, but Crais says that there's always a reason for violence when it suits you. He thinks Crichton is already dead. Meanwhile Stark is explaining the plan to everyone, but they're all considerably confused. Stark says that everyone will be on a silent count, but there's tension between them all. Jothee's looking through D'Argo's quarters when D'Argo enters apologizing for not speaking sooner. Jothee says it's okay, he doesn't know what to say either. D'Argo asks who cut his tenkas and Jothee says he did. In a way D'Argo's done everything that ever happened to him. Jothee says he's interested in saving himself and won't help rescue Crichton. He only just got his freedom back and he won't leave it now. Scorpius goes into Crichton's mind, where Crichton is talking with the Scorpius Clone, when the real Scorpius enters. He asks the clone if he's found the information and the clone says it was well hidden, but the chip is ready to be removed. The real Scorpius says he'll take Crichton on his Carrier and paralyzes him with some sort of tranquilizer. Aeryn goes to Crais and says they're all going to die if he doesn't help and says he can have anything that he wants. D'Argo, meanwhile, tells Jothee he was wrong to ask for his help, but Jothee says if it's D'Argo's fight, then it's his fight too. The mercenaries come to talk to D'Argo about the plan. He says it's frelled, that they should use Moya as a distraction, and then storm the place. Aeryn asks if they're all ready and Zelkin asks what happens if Crichton doesn't want to be rescued. She says then it's simple: they put a bullet to his head and end it. Lt. Braca tells Scorpius that the Carrier will arrive six arns earlier than scheduled. Scorpius says he's always suspicious of good news and will remove the clone as soon as it arrives. His rod overheats, so he orders the chamber to be locked down. Natira agrees, but stays there and tells Crichton that she's never seen Scorpius worry about anyone before. Crichton tells her not to be jealous, and invites her to look in his head and asks the clone just how Scorpius will kill her. Rorf and Bekhesh are in the front of the Depository, waiting for Moya. Bekhesh tells Rygel over the comm. that the male is a poor tracker; it's the female Vorcarian that does the smelling. Zhaan goes to Teurac to ensure that he can produce flames. He can't, so he asks for some serum that will help him to, but it will also poison him. Rorf has found Crichton's location, but is attacked by a guard. Scorpius and Akkor question him, but he says he doesn't know Crichton and refuses to say why he's really here. Natira asks to take over and Scorpius says he should have listened to him -- he was trying to save him. Natira says Rorf has beautiful eyes, but Rorf still won't speak. She removes one of his eyes after which he tells them of the plan. D'Argo explains the plan to everyone on Moya and Pilot wishes them luck. Scorpius begins a search, while Natira talks about the scenery to Crichton. She says he can get the chip out without being killed. She goes to take his soft, blue eyes, when Moya storms past, shattering the windows of the room. The transport leaves Moya and Aeryn, D'Argo, and Bekhesh storm the entrance, killing the guards. Crichton tells Natira that if she lets him go he'll help her survive. Zhaan, Stark, and Teurac enter the generator and she gives him a lethal dose of the serum. Aeryn, D'Argo, and Bekhesh finish off all of the guards at the entrance. Teurac still can't produce the flames when Scorpius and the guards arrive. He can't shoot Teurac, because he'll explode, being a Sheyang, but Teurac commits suicide, blowing himself up along with the generator. Aeryn, D'Argo, and Bekhesh enter the main area, in the dark, and kill the horde of guards waiting behind the door. Natira ignores Scorpius' attempts at contact and Crichton persuades her to go into his head. The clone confirms that Scorpius is planning to kill her. She says that she'll take the tranquilizer out of Crichton if he'll take her away from Scorpius on Moya. The others enter the torture chamber, but Crichton's gone. Natira, Rorf, and Crichton are escaping, but the clone is stopping him from leaving. The Peacekeepers arrive and find the transport in the bay. They signal the Zenetans to try and strike a deal. On Moya, Zelkin puts a gun to Chiana's head and releases the Flax, trapping the transport pod from reaching the planet. Scorpius arrives in front of Crichton and Crichton shoots Akkor. He won't leave, though, and can't shoot Scorpius, so Natira runs off. Rorf is killed as D'Argo, Aeryn, and Bekhesh appear. Zhaan can't get through to Rygel, but Crais answers her! Talyn destroys the Zenetan ship, disabling the flax, and Chiana shoots Zelkin. Aeryn tells Rygel to pick up Stark and Zhaan, and them when Talyn is finished. She tells Crais to target her comm. and destroy the Depository. Crichton says he's going to Scorpius, but Aeryn knocks him out and they take him. Rygel's on his way to pick up Zhaan and Stark as the others enter the container. The transport pod picks up Zhaan and Stark as Aeryn, Bekhesh, D'Argo, and Crichton lock the container. With Scorpius approaching it, Talyn fires and the whole Depository goes down. Back on Moya, Rygel celebrates the money that was looted from the container, money that won't eat the ship. However Chiana, Zhaan, and Stark sadly remind him this wasn't without cost; Moya is still suffering from her burn and may never recover and Rorf and Teurac lost their lives. Bekhesh says that he'll ensure their families get their share and thanks the crew for teaching him to kill again. Meanwhile, Aeryn thanks Crais for returning, as he saved their lives. He says he did nothing -- Talyn returned of his own accord and despite what they want he has a warrior's instincts. He then asks her how Crichton is. Crichton is seemingly going crazy when D'Argo brings Jothee to see him and thank him. Crichton says he's here and he blames him for killing Scorpius and he's been trying to do it. D'Argo holds Crichton's face and asks what he's been trying to do, when Crichton says "D'Argo, kill me. D'Argo please, kill me." + +Rygel and Chiana are drowning their sorrows after finding out that the slaves in the auctions are sold in lots of 10,000. They'll have to buy them all just to get Jothee, so they will have little money left. Ka D'Argo meanwhile is telling Aeryn Sun of his anxiousness at the thought of seeing his son after abandoning him when Moya comes within range of the Caton Mines to contact the slavers. However, the lot they want has been sold to a special buyer for triple the asking price: yes, it's Scorpius! He left a message for John Crichton. He has Ka D'Argo's son and Crichton must surrender himself or the boy dies! Crichton asks Stark how Scorpius could have got the information and Stark says he thought he blocked Scorpius' attempt to trace the link from his console; they led him straight to Jothee. D'Argo blames Crichton for what happened and says he can't lose Jothee again, not like this. He leaves and sees a vision of Jothee in his quarters, who says he failed him again and he knows what he has to do. Chiana goes to comfort him and he says he was prepared to take Crichton by force and give him to Scorpius. He says that Jothee is blood and all he has left of his wife and asks why is that not enough. At the Shadow Depository, Scorpius wants Jothee, but Akkor tells him that the slavers won't search the lot just for one slave. Natira considers things between them settled, but Scorpius doesn't, not until he gets Crichton. He orders Lt. Braca to bring Jothee to him at maximum speed and says Natira can have the other slaves. Moya is suffering from metal fatigue all of a sudden. Meanwhile, Crichton has come up with a plan since he knows that Jothee is still in transit and since Scorpius doesn't have him they still have time. He tells the others what they need help to break in to the depository: a Vorcarian blood tracker, a Sheyang, a Tavlek gauntlet, and the Zenetan Pirates for the Flax. He says they can pay them to help using the money stolen from the Depository when suddenly Stark has a fit saying they're all dead. All the Banik slaves have been killed. Apparently, since he's a Stykera, he is attuned to the dead. But Crichton says Scorpius would not allow Jothee to die since he's too valuable and asks everyone has to trust him. Crichton, Aeryn, and D'Argo leave to approach. In his module, Crichton starts taunting Scorpius' neural clone who says that the task is almost complete. Crichton says now they're sharing, he knows how Scorpius thinks. Jothee is on his way to Scorpius when Natira asks why Crichton is so important to him. Scorpius says he destroyed his Gammak Base, but she says that he wouldn't waste his revenge on anything but a Scarran. Chiana goes to take a bit of their money, when Rygel sneaks up on her, clearly to do the same. They agree to 50-50 of a small portion, but when they look in the crates they find that all their money has gone! They hear he noise of tearing metal, when Chiana falls through the floor! She's approached by hundreds of creatures and uses a flame thrower to fend them off, however it is now obvious that the money is alive. Crichton arrives at his destination to find the Tavlek Bekhesh sitting on the floor praying. He's no longer wearing his gauntlet -- he apparently doesn't practice violence anymore, but the gauntlet is exactly what Crichton wants. Moya's suffering great pain and the creatures can't be repelled into space as they're unaffected by the vacuum. Chiana manages to bag a sample, whilst Rygel starts on Stark only for Zhaan to step in and say they're all in part to blame. Aeryn approaches the Sheyang vessel, offering an opportunity for profit. D'Argo meanwhile rescues two Vorcarians, Rorf and Rorg. Rorg is now carrying a child. Rorg agrees to Rorf helping D'Argo since he saved their lives. Aeryn gets the Sheyang, Teurac, to join them in their attack on the depository, although since he's injured and can't produce big enough flames, but he says he can do better. Jothee arrives at the depository, where Scorpius introduces himself. Jothee asks what he wants, and he replies that Jothee's father can give him something he wants very much. Zhaan's tests reveal that the creatures explode at too high a temperature for Moya to handle, but there are over 2,000 on board that have to be killed. Scorpius contacts them, wanting to speak with D'Argo, but Zhaan speaks. Stark suddenly steps in and says that Scorpius can kill Jothee if he wants, he's not getting Crichton. Zhaan and Chiana are angered by his words but Stark says that Scorpius can't kill Jothee and they can't show him any sign of weakness. Power begins to fail on Moya and Pilot says if they don't kill the creatures soon, Moya may die. Scorpius and Natira are getting down and dirty, when he asks what she really put in his container. She says they are Karack metallites that lie dormant and look like ingots, but when they awake they eat through metal. She says the Leviathan will die within a couple of days. Crichton finds Bekhesh's gauntlet and so Bekhesh agrees to help for the money. Meanwhile Zhaan has found a solution: they can flood Moya with adrexan vapor then ignite it -- the flames will destroy the creatures. Pilot is reluctant to burn Moya, but it may be her last hope. Rygel leaves to barter with the Zenetans, whilst Pilot seals Moya and releases the vapour through the affected areas - more than a ninth of Moya. Zhaan still has several hours to find another solution, so gets back to work. Rygel meets the Zenetans, only to find their commander was deposed by Durka! He attempts to bargain with Durka, but clearly not having changed he goes to kill Rygel, but Rygel's prepared and electrocutes Durka! Zhaan is desperate to find some way to fight back against the creatures, however she is out of time as the vapor has been absorbed and Moya's primary systems will soon be in danger. Heading to Pilot's den, she tells him that she will share his and Moya's pain despite the possibility it may overwhelm her. Stark promises to stay by her side, and Pilot ignites the vapor. A firestorm surges through Moya's corridors as Pilot and Zhaan scream in agony, however it is only a fraction of the pain Moya herself is feeling. Crichton returns with Bekhesh, only to find Moya on fire! Everyone is okay except Moya. Later Crichton and Aeryn walk through the burnt-out corridors, as Aeryn tells him that Moya can't starburst and Zhaan is weeping over Moya's pain. Crichton can't believe that their money did this damage, but Aeryn tells him it what happened is their fault and now they have no money to pay the mercenaries so Scorpius will kill Jothee, but Crichton promises he won't. The mercenaries are arguing, until Rygel comes in with Durka's head and takes control. D'Argo asks Aeryn where Crichton would've gone at a time like this and says he wants him confined to quarters. Aeryn reminds D'Argo that he's been trying to help. A transport pod returns and out steps Jothee! He and D'Argo hug in a moment of joy. D'Argo apologizes for what Jothee's been through, saying he never stopped thinking about him. Jothee says he never lost hope when D'Argo asks how he escaped from Scorpius. Jothee says he let him go. When Aeryn asks why, she and D'Argo just make a sudden, horrific realization. We cut to Crichton who is approached by Scorpius at the Depository. He says that Scorpius wants the wormhole technology and he wants the chip out of his head, finally the rift between them is not so great and he should do what he has to do. He says he wins, to which Scorpius replies "As if there was ever any doubt." + +As John Crichton is about to be dissolved by the assassins, Jenavian saves him, downing all the guards. She tells him that she's a Disruptor, of the Peacekeeper Special Directorate, and asks Crichton which branch he is from. Crichton plays along, saying that he didn't know he'd be getting backup. She says that she is to stay close to Clavor, and if he assumes the throne she will kill him. She says that she will kill Crichton if he wavers and jeopardizes the mission. Crichton confronts Clavor and after punching him says that he is not happy that he was nearly killed and wants off this planet. Jena is behind a silkscreen and ro-NA enters. Crichton says that he wants Scorpius off his back, Katralla to be able to marry who she wants, and he can be king. He warns Clavor not to try to kill him again and when he leaves Clavor orders ro-NA to get his mother. Crichton is telling Tyno what happened with D'Argo backing him up, but Chiana is skeptical and Tyno says he can find no evidence. He believes Crichton, though, and will upgrade security, but he can't accuse Clavor without proof because the royal family abhors violence. Katralla enters and slaps Crichton, then takes him to a room where she tells him he made a fool out of her. She knows Clavor poisoned her DNA, but doesn't believe that he'd kill anyone. The Empress now considers Crichton unstable and wants more tests on him. Katralla refuses to believe him, accusing him of lying, and if so, she can't marry him. On Moya, smoke has infiltrated her and Zhaan goes to see what it is. A being comes out of it proclaiming himself to be Kahaynu, who gave Moya a soul. He says that Moya is well and gave birth, but to a gunship. He says that he created these ships as beings of peace, but Moya's offspring can dispense carnage. He is here to decommission Moya and end her existence. Aeryn and Chiana are outside the palace with Chiana trying to convince Aeryn that she needs to tell Crichton how she feels. Dregon approaches and offers himself as a diversion, wanting her to go to the Barren Lands with him. Aeryn refuses point blank, saying she doesn't like him. Meanwhile, Katralla still refuses to believe Crichton when a floating robot comes into the room. The door is locked and the machine releases gas into the room. ro-NA enters to lead Crichton and Katralla away before they fall unconscious. Katralla apologizes for doubting Crichton; she will marry him. Rygel is talking to Empress Novia, but she is refusing to let Crichton leave the planet and continues to deny Clavor's involvement. Rygel suggests that she stash Crichton somewhere and she says that ro-NA has a ship full of gifts in orbit that they can use. Rygel suggests that they tell no one, not even Moya's crew, to throw the assailants off the scent so they become careless. Rygel asks Novia if she trusts ro-NA and she says that ro-NA will not betray them. ro-NA receives money from Scorpius as a down payment for her work, with the rest to come on the completion of her mission. Scorpius wants no witnesses left behind. On the transport, ro-NA gives Crichton the tracking device that Scorpius gave her to stop anyone knowing where they are going and although reluctant, he uses it. Moya is shutting down her systems in sequence, but Zhaan tries to stop her, telling Kahaynu that all life cherishes life. She is not convinced that Moya is doing this willingly so Kahaynu says he will let her do the convincing. Moya speaks, saying that she's fulfilled and will go willingly in peace, making Zhaan extremely upset. Ka D'Argo has a go at Rygel for not saying Crichton was leaving, while Tyno says that the transport disappeared and no signal has been received. D'Argo thinks it's Scorpius, while Aeryn says the Scarran so Chiana goes to speak with the latter. Crichton wonders why ro-NA's ship is so far away from the others and Crichton and ro-NA discuss possessions because she claims to have none. Meanwhile, Katralla and Jena are both in the ladies' room and start slagging each other off before Aeryn comes in and grabs them both up against the mirror, warning them what will happen if anything happens to Crichton. Clavor tells Cargn what Crichton did to him, but neither of them gassed him. Chiana enters the room and Cargn tells her to leave. She tries to tell them that the Nebari will get retribution if anything happens to Crichton. She leaves and Cargn realizes that they don't know where Crichton is either. Crichton, ro-NA, and the guards board her ship when the guards are shot. A gun is put to Crichton's head by Lieutenant Braca, who tells ro-NA to notify Scorpius. The transport is cut loose and ro-NA wants payment. Scorpius appears as an image and congratulates Crichton. When ro-NA asks for payment, Scorpius tells Braca to give her something special. Scorpius tells Crichton that D'Argo just visited him and doesn't seem to know where he is. Crichton asks what he wants and Scorpius says that the wormhole technology in his brain makes him unique in the galaxy and unique is always valuable. Crichton starts acting mad, knowing that Braca won't shoot him, but tries to get him to. Crichton starts punching controls and Braca can't control him. Crichton has engaged weapons and auto-defenses will fire if they don't identify themselves. When they don't comply, the defenses fire and as Braca tries to get control, ro-NA attacks him and ends up getting electrocuted. Braca calls Crichton insane and leaves the ship with the only spacesuit and helmet. Comms are down, when Crichton suddenly hears Scorpius' voice telling him to focus and that he must survive. Crichton picks up a gun and as the pod is destroyed Crichton jumps out into open space, using the force of the gunfire to carry him over to the pod. Zhaan summons Kahaynu and asks him to build Pilot a new ship so that he does not perish as well. Kahaynu refuses and tells her to say goodbye. Crichton is lying on a table with breathing apparatus on his face. D'Argo says that he's spoken with the Empress and she won't do anything. She's put everyone on notice. Crichton asks what he can do and D'Argo says either run away or stay here, he'll back Crichton whatever he chooses. Aeryn enters and D'Argo leaves them alone. She says that she's proud of Crichton for being the John she always knew -- fighting, resisting, never giving up. Crichton asks if she's stopped Scorpius chasing him or convinced the Empress not to make him marry the princess. She says that's no reason to get married. Crichton says that eighty cycles isn't that long if it will stop Clavor taking the throne and save lives. He says that he's tired and asks what he's supposed to do when there's no fight left. Aeryn says that he runs away and he asks "with you?" She says with all of them, together, but at her response he just lies down on the bed. She says that he can't quit, but he says he just can't go on. Aeryn asks if he's no longer the Crichton she knew, but he doesn't answer and she leaves. She goes to Dregon and asks him to explore the Barren Lands if he thinks he can keep up. Crichton is left on the bed, all alone. Pilot tells Zhaan that Moya has slipped from consciousness and he will soon follow. He tells Zhaan not to feel sad -- his life was good and Moya was right, they are fulfilled. Zhaan says it's been a pleasure and Pilot says he's ready now, he's seen the stars. Crichton is in the hall for the wedding, and Scorpius tells him that he's making a mistake. Crichton tells him that his one request for a wedding present was that Scorpius be banned from the planet, forever, and they said yes. The ceremony takes place, with everyone but Aeryn in attendance. When it's over, Crichton asks D'Argo where Aeryn was, but D'Argo says to forget about her. Crichton gives Chiana recordings for Pilot, Zhaan, and Aeryn, and Chiana hugs him and says she loves him. Katralla is turned into a statue and Tyno says that it's calibrated only for Sebaceans, so to endure the pain and rule wisely. D'Argo says he has good and bad news. The bad: He is married and must endure eighty cycles as a statue on a strange world. The good: He and Chiana are having fantastic sex! He and Crichton laugh as Crichton is turned into a statue. + +Counselor Tyno tells Ka D'Argo, Chiana, and Rygel that Scorpius has been told to leave the planet by the Empress. They believe that Moya will then return so they can leave, although Rygel wants to stay behind with John Crichton, for his own reasons. D'Argo speaks to Crichton, as does Chiana. Later, Clavor enters with Cargn soon to follow, and they chop off Crichton's head! They take it to an acid pit, since as a statue he remains alive, and they throw the head in and leave it to dissolve! Aeryn Sun and Dregon are preparing to rock-climb in the Barren Lands and she asks him why he's agreed to everything she has suggested and he kisses her, pronouncing his attraction. The Empress is mad at seeing Crichton's decapitated statue and orders that no one leaves the planet or contacts their ships until Crichton is made whole. Tyno questions Aeryn's whereabouts, but Rygel suggests Scorpius' involvement. Tyno then tells them they must find Crichton's head. Meanwhile, Crichton's head is removed from the acid pit -- by Scorpius! Scorpius mentions that he sampled Crichton's DNA in the Aurora Chair. Scorpy is interrupted when he hears a noise and is suddenly shot. Zhaan is fiddling with a DRD as Kahaynu tells her that she should leave on a transport. He goes to leave, but Zhaan says that if Moya and Pilot will die, then she and he will remain with them. She gets the DRD to start the Farscape-1's engine, sucking in the made-of-smoke Kahaynu. Zhaan says she will spare him if he spares Moya. He refuses and is sucked in. D'Argo couldn't find Crichton's head and feels responsible for Crichton's predicament. Jena puts on a headset -- she's the one that saved Crichton. If she gets it right, she says can put him back together. She manages to reconstitute Crichton, who is feeling a bit stiff. Clavor is angry and tells Cargn to do something because someone retrieved Crichton's head. Meanwhile in the Barren Lands, Dregon is stuck because it is his first real wall. Aeryn tries to help him up, but he grabs her leg and they fall! Jena has taken Crichton to some tent to keep him safe. She asks him why Scorpius is here, but he again says that he can't say. She forces him to tell the truth because he knows too much about her. He fills her in and asks why she picked him over Scorpius. She says that he is her best chance at completing her mission and asks for his help. Zhaan is praying for Pilot when Kahaynu appears and says that Moya lives. She is reactivated and Pilot wakes. He says that when he first came on board Moya he wanted to see if Zhaan was worthy; these beings will do anything for whoever is on board -- she could potentially produce an army of killing machines. Pilot says that Zhaan would never do that and Kahaynu says that he knows that now -- she will protect Pilot and Moya from those out to exploit her. Zhaan demands that he leaves and he agrees, but first Moya wants to speak with her. Moya says that she has one request for Zhaan: "sing". D'Argo asks Scorpius if he knows where Crichton is and he admits he doesn't, but is anxious to find him. They are now effectively allies. Scorpius says that Clavor and Cargn are their natural suspects. He then says that he will help them all get off the planet, take Crichton's wormhole knowledge and then hand him back. Cargn appears and says that he is honoured to meet D'Argo. He congratulates Scorpius on his plan to marry the princess, but D'Argo tells him that they despise Scorpius. He tries to use his power to get the truth about Crichton's condition and whereabouts from D'Argo. D'Argo says that he thinks Chiana knows and Scorpius then offers Cargn a deal, but he instead says he'll race Scorpius to Chiana. Aeryn is dragging Dregon inland to try to find help. Meanwhile D'Argo asks Rygel if he knows where Chiana is, but Rygel says they split up and agrees to help find her. Cargn has Chiana and knows that she knows nothing. Clavor then argues with Cargn and tries to sever all ties with him, but in response he kills Clavor! Jena asks Crichton if she can trust him, and he says that she can. Scorpius goes to D'Argo and tells him that they both needed to kill Cargn who has Chiana. D'Argo says that Crichton will die before going to Scorpius, but he says that D'Argo underestimates the strength of their relationship; even Crichton doesn't understand yet. Meanwhile Jena and Crichton are skinny-dipping in a lake, and she gives him a weapon saying that she may not be able to protect him after tomorrow then they kiss. Dregon apologises to Aeryn and talks to her about being scared of emotional pain and that it's all worth it for the days when they are truly in love. He says that it's a shame that she can't get back to tell Crichton that she loves him. Jena and Crichton prepare for show time and just before she offers him the test, but he says they're not compatible. Jena goes in, asking him to give her time. In the Barren Lands, someone finds Aeryn and Dregon and goes to get help. Jena is in the room with Clavor's body and Tyno offers his condolences. Rygel says that it's the Scarran's doing, but Tyno says the Empress knows that but nonetheless they'll all be put to death. Crichton enters, says hello to Rygel, and asks about the others, then leaves, presumably to join them. Scorpius and D'Argo find Chiana hanging over the acid pit with Cargn protecting her. Cargn wants to kill them, but Scorpius tells him he's been defeated by his own suspicions. Scorpius is suffering from the heat, and Cargn says that his Scarran half thrives on heat, but his Peacekeeper side hates it hence his thermal regulator suit and a cooling rod inserted directly into his brain. A fight ensues with Cargn getting the upper hand until Crichton comes in and shoots him a number of times and dumps him in the acid. Chiana falls, but D'Argo does a huge leap and carries her to safety. D'Argo and Chiana leave and Crichton grabs Scorpius' head to dump it in the acid. He stops, remembering when Scorpius was leaving something to remember him by and Crichton says that he's not his enemy or his friend and if he doesn't leave him alone, the next time they meet one of them will be dead. Crichton leaves and Scorpius gets up with a grin and cockily flicks the acid. Crichton is refusing to be a statue, but the Empress says that Katralla is already pregnant; they used DNA samples. Crichton does a 180 and says that the child deserves two parents -- make him a statue. Novia agrees, but Tyno says that it's not possible. Since Crichton is not Sebacean, he would die if he were made a statue again. Crichton says that he won't live for another eighty cycles, and suggests that Tyno takes his place. The Empress says that they're not compatible, but Crichton says that it doesn't matter -- Katralla's already pregnant. Crichton says that they love each other and asks Katralla if it works for her. She says yes and thanks him and says she'll never forget him. The Empress says that as long as the secret does not escape, it can be done. He says the good guys win for once and goes to leave, but Katralla asks if he wants to see his offspring. He does and cuddles the young girl. On Moya, Chiana asks D'Argo why Crichton didn't kill Scorpius. They apparently don't know what happened to Moya while she was gone. D'Argo is upset because Crichton will never see his daughter again -- it hits close to home. Aeryn is exercising in the maintenance bay. Crichton enters and says that he's glad she's OK. She gets up and without words she offers him the test. They take it, and after a passionate kiss, Aeryn turns and leaves. They both look confused, or perhaps upset. As the scene closes they both smile, and look happy. + +Aeryn Sun is in the maintenance bay, pulling some Moya components out of John Crichton's module to use in her Prowler. Unsurprisingly, he objects, when a ball of energy suddenly penetrates Moya's hull, and examines everyone in turn. When it reaches Crichton it hovers above his head, so Aeryn shoots it, but it envelopes Crichton. Ka D'Argo comes along to see what's happening, and the ball starts to vibrate, throwing Crichton back out, shortly followed by some sort of beast, which lands on Crichton and runs off. Crichton can't remember what happened when he was inside the ball, while Zhaan finds some blood from the beast on the floor. Rygel tells D'Argo to sniff out the creature, but D'Argo can only smell Crichton. Chiana is trying to get Crichton to explain what happened, but he asks her to get him more clothes. Zhaan says that since Crichton was not cut, the blood must have come from the creature, but it's definitely Crichton's blood. Chiana is in Crichton's quarters, but the beast is there and corners her. He says "Chiana" and stumbles over some words. She tries to run, but he pins her down, and he convinces her that he is Crichton. Chiana takes him to Zhaan, but the real Crichton is less that convinced and asks it what it wants. It jumps on Crichton and Zhaan knocks it unconscious with a sedative. Zhaan later tells Crichton that her blood analysis proves that it is his blood, and he wonders why anyone would clone him. The ball starts fluctuating again, and out pops another Crichton, this time an apparently more evolved "future" version with a super-brain. The crew lock future John in a cell, and the real Crichton quizzes him. Future John explains that he is like an alternate version of Crichton, with all his memories intact, so the real Crichton questions him to test his memories. The ball starts fluctuating again, and now it's creating an inter-dimensional portal that is trying to pull Moya through. Future John tells Aeryn to use the defense screen to counter the pull, but the real Crichton has already thought of it. Future John tells Aeryn that they have to do this right, so she agrees to take him to help, but only at gunpoint. Crichton is sorting out the defence screen, when future John says that they have to calibrate it to the ball, so they must reduce the setting to 85%. After quickly mulling it over, Crichton goes with it and the screen is successful in reflecting back the ball's pull, but Pilot says it will probably only last about four arns. The beast John wakes, with Chiana by his side, and again gets angry, although she manages to calm him down. Future John comes along with Aeryn, but says that they won't learn anything here. He mentions that Crichton is the template, the original, and they are the copies and then asks Pilot if the ball has communicated yet, but the real Crichton is already looking at the signals. Future John joins him, and re-analyses the communications. The ball starts communicating, but now only the Crichtons can hear. It is a vessel and it needs one of the "samples" to go back. If it doesn't get one, it will absorb all bio-matter within a certain distance of its radius. D'Argo asks what's going on and Crichton says that one of them is going to die. Beast John tells Chiana that it will be him who dies, but Chiana suggests the "guy with the big head". Future John thinks that the ball is a remarkable device, and the real Crichton realises that it must have chosen him because it's never had the chance to get data on a human. Future John says that the answer is to return the most expendable one of them, but the real Crichton says no. Rygel agrees with future John, but Crichton says they may be wrong, and they can't just chuck him through like he's nothing. Future John says that they'll see what they can do, but when the time comes. Chiana tells the beast that he knows Crichton, and they'll get through it. He says that he does know Crichton, he'll save Moya, save Pip -- there's only one answer. Pilot says that he doesn't think that future John will be successful in analysing the samples. Pilot says that he and Moya would never expect an innocent being to die, and he will understand if Crichton leaves. Crichton says he won't, and Pilot says that if they have the solution but Crichton will not stop until he has to. The defense screen is failing, and so Crichton is called to command. Future John is talking with Zhaan, but he says he won't find a solution -- it's over. Zhaan can't believe that he's giving up, but he says he's facing reality. Zhaan says that he is no longer the Crichton she knew. Crichton is trying to patch up the screen, as D'Argo tells him to start facing reality, but he needs more time. The wires explode, and the defence screen is almost down. Future John tells him that it's time, and offers to take care of it. Crichton asks how he can be so calm, but he says that he is prepared to do what has to be done, and tells Crichton not to feel bad. D'Argo goes with Crichton, but Chiana has hidden beast John away; she set him free. Chiana chews Crichton out, saying that he thinks beast John is nothing, but he's him. The ball fluctuates again, and future John tells Aeryn that they must re-assess, and says it would make sense to get rid of Crichton, but she disagrees so he knocks her out. Crichton finds beast John, but lets him go, and joins future John in the maintenance bay. Future John says that he thought he would let beast John go, but Crichton says that they couldn't save themselves at someone else's expense. Future John says that he sees him as Crichton sees beast John, and fires at him. Crichton dodges, and future John says that if Crichton wasn't here he would not volunteer to go. Crichton pulls his gun on future John, but throws it down; he couldn't do it. Future John knocks him down, saying that with Crichton here he would always be an outsider. Crichton says that if he's the future then he is glad he won't be here to see it. Beast John suddenly leaps in and kills future John with a pipe. Saying that this is not his place, beast John accepts his fate. When Crichton says that he understands, beast John carries future John through the ball. D'Argo comforts Crichton, saying that future John was only one of possible genetic path. Chiana says that she heard what he did, but he says that it took a while and it needed help. Chiana says that she's glad it worked out and he says he wishes he could be, but the least developed one did the right thing, and somehow she knew he would. She says she knew because she knows him, and then she leaves him alone. + +Moya has been targeted by an alien ship, with the crew rallying to rejuvenate the defense screen, acquired in "PK Tech Girl". Zhaan has gone over to the Halosian ship, which is badly damaged, to try and stop them from firing. She is confronted by a bird-like creature called Tak, who is feigning injury, and says that his ship was attacked by Talyn! Zhaan says she can help them, and that Moya has no weapons. Hearing this, Tak strikes her down and orders his second, Yoz, to fire. Ka D'Argo and Chiana manage to get the defense screen up in time, but the effect of the beam on it causes a problem for the crew: when they come to, John Crichton is in Aeryn Sun's body, Aeryn's in Rygel's body and Rygel's in Crichton's body! Amongst much confusion, they find that the three in Pilot's den have also switched bodies: D'Argo is in Pilot, Pilot's in Chiana and Chiana is in D'Argo's body. D'Argo is having trouble sorting out the sounds he can hear from Moya, so Pilot tries to explain to him what to do. Meanwhile Rygel thinks it's all a dream, but when Crichton whacks him round the head and he finds himself still in Crichton's body, he attacks Aeryn, desperate to get his old body back. Tak says that Zhaan lied -- they have a defense shield. He shows her Talyn firing, and says that 30 of his crew are dead. It will take 3 arns to recharge the weapon, and Zhaan tells them they're wrong about Moya, but they remain unconvinced. Pilot tells D'Argo how to distinguish between the sounds that he can hear and with everyone in Pilot's den Crichton gives them all picture tags to hang around their necks so they know who is in whom. Pilot explains what he last remembers -- Zhaan docked on the Halosian vessel and the defense screen was damaged by the shot, and it needs repair. Pilot thinks that if they align the defense screen to 62% like it was during the first shot, they may switch back, so Crichton and Aeryn get to work. Meanwhile Tak agrees to go over to Moya to see that it she has no weapons, but Zhaan must stay as insurance. Pilot is getting queasy, when Zhaan gets in touch to explain the situation. Pilot begins foaming at the mouth, apparently rejecting Chiana's body. The Halosian shuttle arrives, and Rygel, Aeryn, Chiana, and Crichton go to meet Tak. As he arrives, Rygel suddenly needs to pee, and has to go in the middle of the maintenance bay, after some how-to pointers from Crichton. Pilot tells D'Argo that if he stays calm he's fine, but he feels like all his senses are gone. D'Argo says that everything Pilot goes through makes his own life feel insignificant, but Pilot says that he doesn't experience love and friendship. Zhaan is praying, when Yoz says that she believes Moya is harmless. She shows Zhaan a video of Crais saying that he travels in peace, however the Halosians fire unprovoked; the attack was merely Talyn and Crais defending themselves. Zhaan is relieved that Crais does not appear to be mistreating or using Talyn for battle. Yoz explains that Tak fired on Talyn as every kill he makes gets him closer to evolving. Meanwhile, Crichton has fixed the defense screen, when he notices his breasts. As Chiana and Aeryn walk in, he gives them a wiggle and a feel, and on noticing the others in the doorway, his only excuse is "I'm a guy!" Rygel is showing around Tak, who throws up on Moya's neural cluster, and Rygel again asks to be changed back. As they leave, the sick starts to attack Moya's circuitry! Tak returns to his ship, where he asks Zhaan what they meant by "switching back", but she doesn't know. He says that he'll destroy Moya, so Zhaan tries to convince Yoz to remove him, so she can "evolve" quicker, since he failed to destroy Moya first time. Chiana in D'Argo's body corners Rygel who's in Crichton's body, and says she wants to get off the ship. In an amusing scene she tries to convince him by offering to perform sexual acts, but Rygel refuses saying he wants to regain his throne, and only a Dominar can do that. Crichton and Aeryn come along, and Rygel mentions the sick, so they figure that must be causing the trouble on Moya. They go to the conduits, and find the sick destroying them. Crichton comes up with a plan, although he doesn't really know what he's doing since he's making it up as he goes. They shut down the defense screen and neutralise the acid. The Halosians fire just as they put the defense screen back up, and they switch again: Crichton in Rygel, Aeryn in Crichton, Rygel in Aeryn, and in Pilot's den Pilot is in D'Argo, D'Argo in Chiana and Chiana is in Pilot, but D'Argo and Chiana can't wake an unconscious Pilot, and think he may be dying. Tak says that he'll ram Moya since his weapons won't work, but Zhaan manages to convince Yoz to take over. Back on Moya, Crichton comes up with a plan; get the power of the defense screen to 62% again and let them fire to switch bodies. The Halosians remain on a ramming course, and Moya is attempting to starburst. Zhaan uses her plant-power to pull her hand out of the handcuff, knocks out Yoz, and manages to steer the ship around Moya. Zhaan contacts Moya and says she has control. Crichton in Rygel's body asks her to fire again, but she thinks he's mad and asks to speak to Crichton but Aeryn's in his body. Rygel says that they think he's paranoid when they say no one ever listens to him, but it's the truth. She shoots again and everyone switches back to their own body. Everyone is happy to be back in their own bodies, and Pilot asks Zhaan about Talyn. The two take solace in that, although powerful, he isn't being used as a weapon by Crais. Pilot then goes to talk to Moya, whom he says wants to know all his experiences whilst he was away from her. Zhaan tells Rygel that the damage to her hand will heal slowly, and it make never fully recover. D'Argo asks Chiana what she did with his tenkas, since they feel different. He says that he enjoyed being inside her body, but quickly corrects himself saying he likes her body and they hastily leave together. Aeryn mentions what Crichton did in her body and he says it was interesting to be in each other's shoes, to which she replies, "you were in my shoes, I was in your pants!" + +Chiana is browsing a small commerce station along with Rygel XVI and Aeryn Sun. The shopkeeper, Kyvan, offers Chiana a painting, and Rygel a Hynerian tiara. He takes it in exchange for one food cube, and as they leave, Kyvan gives Chiana the painting, which is of her wearing her favourite necklace, for free, saying that it is a window in time. On Moya, John Crichton and Ka D'Argo are trying to fix the defense screen, and Pilot tells them that they're experiencing anomalies. Chiana, Rygel and Aeryn return, and Chiana sees a DRD with her necklace. She takes it back, and the painting changes to her with a broken leg. When she gets up, she trips on the DRD and a snapping sound is heard. Chiana thinks that the painting can predict the future, but Crichton doesn't buy it. Zotoh Zhaan wonders if it's one of the others playing tricks. Since Pilot assigned the DRD to find the necklace a while ago, Crichton thinks it's just a coincidence. Zhaan wants to perform test on the painting, and despite Chiana's initial objections Zhaan gets a piece. Meanwhile Rygel discovers that the tiara is actually authentic. D'Argo asks Chiana if she really wants to know the future, and wants her to get rid of the painting, because he is concerned. She asks if he really cares what happens to her, and he does, and she says she is glad he does. D'Argo says that he wants her to be sensible and get rid of it, but she gets annoyed and forces him to leave. Aeryn and Crichton discuss the situation, with both of them in a lousy mood. Aeryn suggests that Kyvan set it all up because Chiana insulted her art. Crichton half-jokes that if it was up to him, every door on Moya would be locked up so nothing that can be a danger can get in, and Aeryn tells him that if she had her way Rygel would be thrown off the ship, and possibly Chiana too since they both cause trouble. Crichton takes offense at this, and asks if she would feel better if everyone including Pilot was gone so she could have the ship to herself. When Aeryn asks if he's offering, Crichton storms out. Zhaan is doing some analysis, and hears a voice. Crichton enters and startles her, and she says that everything is not OK. He asks her to tell him, but she can't find anything in the painting. Crichton says that it must have been all in Chiana's mind, but Zhaan says no -- Chiana is in danger. She can't tell Crichton what, because she only has suspicions, but she says that soon she may need everyone to do exactly as she says, quickly and without questions, and asks if he'll obey. Crichton says that when the time comes he will back her up, and she wants the portrait, so she can destroy it. Chiana screams, as the painting has turned into her burning in flames. Crichton runs the portrait to Zhaan, while the others go to the cargo bay. D'Argo puts her in the freezer, and as Pilot can regulate the temperature and keep the air flowing he and Crichton decide to leave her in there to play it safe. However, despite the fact that nothing in the freezer is combustible, Chiana suddenly catches fire. As she screams, the others try desperately to get the doors open but nothing works and the door controls don't respond for Pilot. Eventually it opens, but by then Chiana has seemingly burned to death and left only ashes. Pilot manages to get the door open, but all that is left are the remnants of Chiana's clothes. Rygel goes to Zhaan and asks why she couldn't have saved Chiana. Zhaan blames herself, but Crichton says they should dispose of the painting, so she burns it. Pilot tells Aeryn that there was nothing wrong with the freezer, and nothing he or Moya did caused it. D'Argo calls Crichton to the central chamber -- the painting has repaired itself and shows D'Argo, so they smash it on the floor before it finishes changing. D'Argo wants to flush it out of the airlock, and Aeryn decides to go to Kyvan for answers, taking Crichton's module, much to her displeasure, as her Prowler is in the middle of maintenance. They flush it out and move away from the fragments, and Zhaan again hears a voice in the corridor. Aeryn flies away in the module, and discovers Rygel hiding in the back. Rygel wants to make a profit and settle the score with Kyvan at the same time, admitting he will miss Chiana. The painting reconstitutes and shows D'Argo impaled. Zhaan freaks out, and D'Argo says it symbolises a Qualta Blade so he gives it to Zhaan to lock away. D'Argo tells Crichton that he's been a good friend, when Aeryn's Prowler, which he is standing in front of, suddenly activates and lurches forward skewering D'Argo. Crichton is horrified, however D'Argo then shatters. D'Argo is transported to a strange place, where he hears Chiana. She thinks that they're in the portrait. Meanwhile Aeryn and Rygel arrive on the station to confront Kyvan, and threaten to shoot her. She says that she was forced to paint the portrait by Maldis. Meanwhile, the portrait has changed yet again and shows Crichton being electrocuted. Aeryn tells Crichton and Zhaan over the comms, and she says that they only dispersed him and she knew he'd coalesce again one day. Zhaan starts praying, and Crichton tells Aeryn to get some information. Zhaan grabs Crichton and tells him via their bond of Unity that she has a plan. She says that he must focus Maldis' attention on him for as long as possible, and says to ignore what she says next. She breaks the bond, and Zhaan says they can't beat Maldis; she is giving up, and pushes him into an exposed circuit. Crichton is transported inside the picture, and hears D'Argo. The archways apparently take you somewhere else, so D'Argo tells Crichton not to go through. Crichton calls Maldis, who appears behind him. Maldis says that he is saving his revenge for Zhaan, and wanted her to see her shipmates die first. He then starts calling Zhaan again. The portrait changes now to display Zhaan's broken body. Zhaan goes to Pilot, and he says that he'll do exactly as she asked. Maldis tells Crichton that Zhaan is afraid because she is alone. Zhaan tries to leave the den, but slips off the walk way and falls into the abyss below causing her to appear in the painting, where Crichton tells her not to give up. He tells everyone to stay calm so that Maldis can't feed on their fear. Maldis threatens Earth, D'Argo's son Jothee and the prospect of sending Chiana back to Nebari Prime in an attempt to push their buttons. He turns to Zhaan, and starts walking over her, saying that in 100 microts he will finish them. Pilot sends a priority message to Aeryn to kill Kyvan and leave fast. Aeryn shoots Kyvan, and she and Rygel just manage to escape in the module before the commerce station shatters like glass. Maldis is weakened, and Zhaan jumps up and suddenly gives him a good hiding, throwing him into an archway. They all leave quickly through the portal in the wall, and a giant hand appears. The DRDs shoot the hand and the wall, and it all smashes. Chiana is eating with Rygel, and asks why her leg is still hurt. She explains to Rygel the whole Maldis/Kyvan thing, but he doesn't get it. Crichton asks Zhaan if Maldis is gone for good, but she says she doesn't know. She adds that her fear wasn't an act -- she's never been more scared in her life. + +Aboard Moya, Chiana walks around in pain. She goes to speak to Crichton, who is busy in the maintenance bay attempting to learn more about Moya's systems. It's clear she's distressed and needs to talk but Crichton is too engrossed in what he's doing and basically tells her to get lost. Leaving, she moves to another area and cuts into her flesh before extracting a small glowing disc from her body. After being extracted for a few seconds, it stops flashing. Chiana is upset, saying "Nerri" before smashing a DRD that arrived to dispose of the disc. Chiana then steals Aeryn's Prowler and flees Moya. Naturally, Aeryn is furious that Chiana has stolen her ship and makes her anger known to everyone. Zhaan and Ka D'Argo bring along the disc, having found it covered with Chiana's blood. Zhann explains that it's a Life Disc, which some species have implanted in then to maintain a bond with someone close to them. However, as this Life Disc no longer functions, the person Chiana was connected to has died. Crichton finally realises that this is what Chiana wanted to talk to him about. Down on a planet, Chiana is cornered by a group of young men. Aeryn, Crichton, and Rygel go down to the planet, which Rygel says is a royal cemetery planet. Crichton finds some of Chiana's clothes, and he and Aeryn go to find her in the underground caves, whilst Rygel finds a crate of jewels. Aeryn and Crichton hear Chiana screaming, and go to save her. She's in a room hanging upside down, but apparently is doing so by choice. She tells the others that they shouldn't have come looking for her, and the youths start talking some dren. Chiana has made a hasty exit, and when the boys leave, Crichton tells Aeryn to go find Chiana, since she is angry at him. Rygel returns to Moya, with the jewels stolen from the cemetery, where D'Argo berates him for leaving Crichton and Aeryn behind on the planet. Aeryn visits Chiana, and returns the disc. Chiana says it's her brother, Nerri, and he's dead. She tells Aeryn about what they do on this planet, and asks Aeryn to stay with her, at least for "the Gathering." Crichton speaks to two of the youths, who say it's time to jump. They go out into an opening, at the top of a huge pit. One of the youths, Molnon, starts a short speech about how they are "taking the stone", and one of them jumps into the pit, only to be caught near the bottom by a sonic net, which Aeryn says is sustained by their own voices. Another jumps, but is not caught, and dies. Chiana then says that she has got to do that. Chiana is with a pregnant girl, Vyna, and when Crichton calls her Aeryn tells him to leave her alone. She tells Crichton that it was her brother's life disc, and says that if he tries to make her leave she will stay to spite him. Molnon is then seen asking Chiana to stay on the planet. On Moya, Zhaan is chanting, saying that Rygel's items may be cursed. Aeryn asks Vyna what she spoke to Chiana about; apparently Chiana wants to jump. Crichton goes to speak to Chiana, but she doesn't want to know and tells him to go away, stating she doesn't need his help. Crichton tells her that she doesn't need them -- they're just stoned monkeys that jump off cliffs. Chiana says that at least they live before they die. Aeryn tells Crichton that it's Chiana's choice, and annoyed, Crichton leaves. Aeryn then asks Chiana if she'll really jump, and she says she might. Crichton finds an older woman, that has been following him. She says that at 22 cycles if they don't take the stone they hide and make themselves lost, because the others don't like seeing them diseased. Crichton talks to Molnon, saying that it's easy for them to jump knowing they will die, but Chiana isn't going to die. Molnon won't talk until Crichton takes a drug, so he does. Molnon then tells him that he's scared of dying, so Chiana will take his place in the jump. Crichton then trips out from the drug. Aeryn finds Crichton on the floor, and he tells her that he convinced him to get Chiana not to jump. He sends Aeryn to take a sample of the youths to Zhaan to see if she can cure them. Crichton takes some pills for his headache, and Chiana runs up to him saying that Molnon told her what they spoke about. Crichton says that it's great; now they can leave, but she says no -- she's jumping. Crichton argues with her, but she says that she wants to jump -- she has to. Crichton says that she can't want to die, and injects her, knocking her unconscious. Aeryn won't let Crichton take Chiana, saying that he can't take her; if Chiana wants to kill herself then she'll find a way, if not here then elsewhere, so he has to let her jump. Crichton asks when she became so insightful, and she simply replies that she understands loss. Rygel has decorated his quarters with the stolen goods, which all start to fall off the walls. Zhaan tells Crichton that the youths are suffering from radiation poisoning-- the caves amplify the effect. Rygel has a go at Zhaan and D'Argo for making the stuff in his room cursed. Vyna is having her baby, and Crichton and Aeryn say that if they move out of the caves they'll live longer, including her baby, but she says that it's the clans that make the rules, not Molnon. Chiana is about to take the stone, as Crichton and Aeryn come and tell them about the radiation. Molnon says that they won't move to the surface, so Crichton says he will force him to take the stone if the clans don't vote. Naturally, Molnon agrees. In his quarters, Rygel is getting scared, and just to make sure he takes the items back the curse causes some needles to fire at him pinning him against a wall,so he agrees to take all the items back. Molnon tells Crichton that the clans voted to stay -- all of them -- they want to take the stone. Chiana has apparently gone ahead, so Crichton punches Molnon out. He then visits Chiana and tells her of the clans' vote. She tells Crichton that when she was younger she never had any courage -- she followed Nerri, so she has to do this. She jumps and is caught in the net. Both Crichton and Chiana are overjoyed that she made it. Chiana buries Nerri's life disc, whilst Crichton asks Aeryn if he seems a bit crazy lately. Rygel's returning his stuff, as Crichton goes to Chiana to see if she's OK. She says that the jump was incredible -- he should have tried it. He says that he's too old, and it's time to go. + +Zhaan, D'Argo and John Crichton enter a strange building, to be greeted by a guard. He quickly retreats, and they soon find themselves in a room, where they are confronted by a female Luxan, Nilaam, who recognises D'Argo as a General. He quickly tries to leave, because she is an Orican. She tells him not to go, and calls him closer. She's dying, and he says that he will attend her, if she deems him worthy. She judges him, but finds him unworthy, and throws him back proclaiming him a fraud. D'Argo says that he wants to leave, but Zhaan tells him he shouldn't. She tells Crichton that Nilaam didn't mean to harm D'Argo -- she's an Orican; a holy woman revered by all Luxans. D'Argo says that she called him a fraud because he's not a real General, even though the markings on him suggest he is. His General was wounded during his last campaign, and to protect him D'Argo took his mark of rank. Crichton and Zhaan say that Nilaam should understand why he did it, and D'Argo agrees and goes to see her, where he persuades her to listen. On Moya, Chiana is doing D'Argo's washing. Aeryn asks her to do hers, but she refuses, saying that she does D'Argo's because she likes D'Argo. Meanwhile, D'Argo tells Crichton and Zhaan that he will attend Nilaam, and he will assist her in the Ritual of Passing. Crichton is upset because it could kill him, but D'Argo says it's the highest honour Luxans know. Zhaan says she envies him, because during the ritual he will go part way into the next realm, and then come back. Crichton tries to deter him, but he's made up his mind. While D'Argo and Zhaan return to Moya, Crichton visits Nilaam, in hopes that she may have died. Crichton says that he's worried that his friend may die. She can't promise that no harm will come to D'Argo, only that she will try to keep him safe. She says that she doesn't want to die, and hasn't seen another Luxan for nine cycles. Rygel visits D'Argo, as he wants to sell Nilaam some things. Chiana enters and asks D'Argo if the ritual might be dangerous, to which D'Argo lies and says not in the least. D'Argo returns to Nilaam and they begin the ritual, as Crichton waits outside. D'Argo starts screaming, and Crichton tries to go in, and when he makes it he pulls out his gun, but Nilaam zaps it out of his hand. When Crichton tends to D'Argo, they realize that Nilaam has somehow regained her youth. Chiana is stuck in the amnexus fluids, which froze during the ritual. Pilot informs them that Moya's hydric systems are failing on a number of tiers. Nilaam says that she was supposed to die, but on sensing D'Argo's power, she did the Ritual of Renewal instead. She then starts caressing D'Argo, and Crichton makes a hasty exit. Zhaan can't break down the frozen fluid, and Pilot says that areas of Moya's outer skin are deteriorating, but they don't know why. Nilaam and D'Argo finish up, and she says that she can do anything now, including helping D'Argo find his son. They still can't free Chiana, as Rygel enters, apparently awoken from his sleep to find the weak spots on the outer hull, which has started to breach. Rygel says that hull breaches are almost unheard of on Leviathans, when suddenly Moya shakes and the hull breaches. Rygel is sucked away, but gets stuck in the hole, plugging the breach. Nilaam and D'Argo come along, and Nilaam can supposedly help. She tries, but Moya shakes again and the deterioration increases; it doesn't work, so she goes off to pray. D'Argo goes to Nilaam while she meditates, asking if they caused it. She says that she didn't know at the time, but the power she sensed during the ritual was Moya's, not D'Argo's. but she says that Moya will recover. D'Argo says that Moya is dying, and she wants to go get her Tevek Scrolls, and leave because she is a disease to the ship. As Aeryn and Zhaan discuss Nilaam's involvement, Pilot chimes in and asks to speak to Aeryn Sun in private. Pilot tells her that he is dying, but he doesn't know how they can fix it. Moya is apparently feeling the effects of old age. Aeryn storms off, saying she won't let Nilaam keep what she has stolen. Aeryn goes after D'Argo and Nilaam, and shoots at her. D'Argo gets in the way, but Nilaam's separates the shot and sends it round them. She surrounds Aeryn and Crichton by ice, and gets D'Argo to leave with her. Nilaam's incantations are not working, so she wants to get as far away as possible. D'Argo will not leave Moya, as she's more than just "a ship". Nilaam says that she can't lose it, and she doesn't know what to do. Crichton comes to speak with D'Argo, and says they're out of time. He says that he doesn't know what Nilaam intended, but it is murder. D'Argo says that he knows what has to be done, and gets upset. D'Argo goes to Nilaam, and she says that she treasured the gifts he gave her. She says she's not afraid anymore, and asks for D'Argo's strength on last time. They carry out the Ritual of Passing, and Nilaam dies in D'Argo's arms. On Moya, Chiana is free, as is Rygel. Pilot thanks Aeryn for her concern. When she asks how long he will live, he says that most Leviathans survive for 300 cycles, but his species live for over 1000. When bonded to Leviathans they live no longer than their host. When Moya dies, so will he, and he wouldn't have it any other way. Crichton visits D'Argo, who says he wants some time alone, but not yet. + +A squadron of Peacekeepers march through Moya, led by Lieutenant Velorek who enter the Pilot's den where a female Pilot is controlling the ship. He has arrived to give her one final chance to cooperate with a secret project being implemented by the Peacekeepers. Pilot refuses, stating that she has been bonded to Moya for twenty-one cycles and tells him he'll never understand the connection between them. Suddenly Velorek tells Pilot that another Pilot has been found, much to her shock. Regardless, she refuses to cooperate and insists on the removal of the control collar, at which time Captain Crais enters, asking Velorek what is taking so long. Once he has confirmed there is a new Pilot he orders the Peacekeeper troops to fire, and they brutally kill the female Pilot. Crais then furiously orders Velorek to get on with it before leaving. The troops start talking about the messy details of the job, prompting Velorek to order them to keep their opinions to themselves. They all comply with a "Yes sir!", and take off their helmets. Amongst them, Officer Aeryn Sun. It's revealed that this is a recording being watched by a shocked Crichton. Chiana found it while searching through the top-tier. Neither can believe that Aeryn was on Moya before and that she helped kill the previous pilot. The rest of the crew, Aeryn included, watch in disgust. They ask why she never told them she'd been on Moya before, but she says she'd been on hundreds of Leviathans; she didn't know it was Moya. Zhaan, Rygel, and D'Argo were all aboard three cycles ago, and say that maybe she tortured them. She denies this, and Crichton tries to calm things down. After some comments from Rygel, she goes for him, but Crichton holds her back. Chiana stands up for Aeryn, reminding everyone that she was a Peacekeeper, and wonders what they all thought she used to do. She says that she was a Peacekeeper then, and her life, relationships and priorities were very different. Flashback to a Prowler arriving on Moya. Velorek greets Aeryn in the hangar, and says that she could have asked what the cargo was, but she says that her only question would be why she was pulled from Prowler duty, and when can she go back. The cargo? A replacement pilot. Crichton says that she saw Pilot, their Pilot, when he was brought aboard. She says that had she known it was him, she would have said. Everyone leaves her, not knowing what to say; upset but all agreeing that Pilot must not be allowed to see the recording. Crichton asks about Velorek, and she says his job was to bond the new pilot to the Leviathan. Flashback to Velorek, speaking with Pilot and trying to control him. Crais enters and Velorek stuns Pilot. Crais asks if Velorek's already running into problems. Aeryn tells Crichton what's done is done, she can't talk about it. She leaves, but remembers Crais telling Velorek that his job is to install the new pilot and teach him how to use her. Velorek says that he is young, and it will take too long. Crais says that Velorek, like a Pilot, can be replaced. Aeryn steps up to ask to be reinstated for Prowler duty, but Crais ignores her and leaves. Aeryn is in her training room at the punching bag, knuckles bleeding from hitting it so hard. She breaks down in tears, and Crichton comes along asking what happened back then. She tells him that there's a reason that she kept him at a distance at times; Peacekeepers are bred for one purpose. Relationships do not involve connecting with anyone, particularly for any long amount of time. Her relationships back then were somewhat painful. Crichton realises it's to do with Velorek. Flashback to Aeryn and Velorek getting it on, as Aeryn tells Crichton that they were lovers. He's never heard her use that word before, but she says she felt something unique with Velorek, and guesses it was love. Pilot appears on the clamshell, recording in hand, telling Aeryn that they must talk. Crichton is shocked that he got the tape, but Aeryn says that she must go alone. Aeryn silently enters Pilot's den, as he watches her approach. Aeryn apologizes to him and begs for forgiveness, telling him that no other two on the ship are as close as they are and she still has some of his DNA inside her. He tells her that it is because of these facts why betrayal cuts deep. Aeryn reminds him that the DNA is also the same as the Pilot that was killed and how she felt when she watched the recording, however this causes Pilot to lose control and, in a blind fury, lifts her up by the throat and tries to strangle her. Flashback to Pilot being lifted into place. Velorek removes his gag, and says that the ship's name is Moya. Pilot is strangling Aeryn, and she calls for Crichton. D'Argo joins him as they run to his den. In the flashback, Velorek tells Pilot that they won't bond him naturally because it would take over a cycle. Crichton and D'Argo try to stop Pilot, but he knocks them away and vents the chamber. In the flashback, Pilot says that his presence will surprise Moya, but Velorek says that he has no more time to adjust to his new surroundings. Pilot throws Aeryn down, and says that she killed the Pilot who belongs on Moya, and that she is defiling Moya now with her mere presence. He then shuts down power, telling the crew that until Aeryn leaves Moya will move no further. Chiana has a go at Rygel for showing Pilot the tape, and D'Argo tries to restore systems himself but fails. Crichton realizes there's more to Pilot's anger than what's on the recording, and begins to realize just how bad life on Moya was under the Peacekeepers. Zhaan heals Aeryn, but is angry with her. Aeryn says that Pilot's right, she defies Moya with her presence and she will leave. Zhaan, seeing Aeryn is truly sorry and regretting being so harsh, apologizes saying that Aeryn had no choice back then. In that world, that was the only kind of Peacekeeper she could be. Flashback to Aeryn and Velorek in bed. Aeryn goes to leave, but Velorek keeps her there, and asks her to stay with him, saying that he could make it happen. He says that there's something special about her, and asks if all she wants is to fly Prowlers and serve a madman like Crais. Aeryn says that is insubordination, but he says that Crais is a maniac, and that he will not let Crais' project kill this Leviathan. He again asks Aeryn to come with him, as she can be so much more. Crichton asks what Aeryn is doing, and Zhaan says she is going to leave. Crichton goes to Pilot, and says that they will hash it out here and now. Flashback to Pilot being bonded, saying he is in great pain. Velorek says that a permanent side effect of the grafting process is the great pain. He tells Pilot not to be afraid, and brings Moya back to consciousness. Moya recognises that he is not her original pilot and starts to violently buckle, however Velorek forces her to accept the change by hurting her through the control collar. Crichton is horrified by the revelation that Moya didn't choose to accept Pilot but was tortured into it, when Pilot suddenly rips out his bond to her. As systems fail everywhere, Crichton asks Pilot what he's done and tries to assess the damage. Pilot simply says that the pain is finally gone. Aeryn tells Crichton that Pilot has likely been in pain the whole time, and that they need Pilot's help to fix things. Flashback to Velorek giving Pilot control of the DRDs, and as Aeryn watches, he whispers to some of his team. Pilot then asks him what secret project he means, but Velorek says that it's nothing for him to concern himself with. Aeryn says that she has to talk to Pilot, but he has isolated himself. Aeryn says it's all her fault, so Crichton asks what else happened, but she just says that she has to talk to him. She and Crichton make their way to Pilot, and Crichton again asks what happened. Flashback to Aeryn massaging Velorek, saying she wants to go with him. She asks where they'll go, and he says he doesn't know. Aeryn tells him to change his mind, whatever he did with Crais' plan to put it back. As Velorek questions her, Crais enters and arrests him, and asks if she is the informant. She says yes, and he rewards her by allowing her to return to Prowler duty. Velorek says that he told her she was special, and is taken away. Crichton asks what happened to Velorek, but Aeryn's silence implies he was executed. She tells Crichton that Velorek never revealed what he did, so it would have been assumed that he'd been caught before he carried out his sabotage but now she knows the full truth; Crais' project was to breed a Leviathan warship. Velorek's act of sabotage was to install the contraceptive shield, which D'Argo shattered and led to the creation of Talyn. Aeryn and Crichton get in to Pilot's den, and fend off a DRD attack. Pilot doesn't want to talk, but Crichton says he wants to help Pilot because otherwise everyone will die; Pilot will starve to death due to the lack of nutrients, and without Pilot life support for the crew will stop working. Pilot says that Moya will be better off without him. Aeryn says that she deserves to die, and won't stop him from killing her, but asks him to spare the others and himself. He says that it's not her who deserves death, it's him; he didn't just replace the old pilot. Flashback to Pilot's home world, as Pilot tells Velorek that he so badly wants to see the stars. He is very young, and although he asked the Elders to be bonded to a Leviathan, they turned him down, saying he wasn't ready yet--and they weren't sure he would ever be worthy. Velorek offers him a Leviathan, saying that the old pilot will die no matter what he does; Velorek will find someone else if he disagrees. Velorek tells him this is his chance, he just has to be brave enough to take it. In the present Pilot tells Aeryn that that was the moment the old pilot's fate was sealed, as soon as he agreed, so he is responsible for her death, not Aeryn. Velorek might never have found someone else to agree, but he was so desperate to see the stars. Aeryn strokes Pilot's cheek in the same way Velorek did when he came aboard, saying that now she couldn't fathom not doing such a thing. She says that they've come a long way since then, and have a long way to go, and asks him to take the journey with her. Pilot strokes her face back, and says that he knows a way to get temporary control of Moya's systems. Later D'Argo works to restore Pilot's basic controls over Moya, and the crew have agreed that Pilot should be allowed to bond naturally with her. Pilot warns that the bonding could take a cycle and it may mean hard times ahead for the crew since he won't have as much control, but D'Argo assures him that doesn't matter and he deserves it. Pilot promises to prove he's worthy of Moya and them. D'Argo completes the process and Pilot says, surprised, that there's no longer any pain. Crichton tells Aeryn that Velorek was right; in a new place she will thrive. She says that Velorek told her she could be so much more, and it's exactly what Crichton said the first day he was here. Crichton asks if she thinks she loves this man, and after a long look they smile. + +Down on a pleasure planet, LoMo, Ka D'Argo and John Crichton are in a bar. D'Argo tells Crichton that he is exactly like a Sebacean, when Chiana comes over acting all trippy and mentions that Pilot banished them from Moya because they keep fighting all the time. Jool comes over, in a worse state than Chiana, and the girls leave to have more fun. Two other girls approach Crichton and D'Argo and they all go and dance. Later, D'Argo wakes Crichton telling him that the girls spiked their drinks and took their money. Crichton suddenly realizes that they're in a window, with people watching. When D'Argo tells him to get dressed, he notices that he's wearing stockings, and screams and runs off. On Moya, Pilot tells Crichton that he said ten solar days away from Moya and he meant ten. Crichton says that he's trying to explain what happened, but Pilot is not happy that he returned after two. Crichton says that Pilot told him that if he could explain it he could stay on board, so the story begins. Crichton and D'Argo are on a beach, arguing again, when they notice a familiar face from the bar and the window, an alien called Raxil. D'Argo wants to know if she stole their currency, but she says that she knows what happened to their females - the grey one and the really annoying gold one. She says that she has a recording, but Crichton is skeptical. She says that Crichton isn't very smart, but D'Argo has a brain. She then shows them Jool's comms, so they go with her. Raxil takes them to a Han-jee named Kabaah. Pilot has seemingly heard of the Han-jee but doesn't believe Crichton actually met one. Apparently Han-jee they record what they see, even when their eyes are not attached to their body. Kabaah has a recording of "the show," but they need to pay. Raxil is forced to hand over the money for them, since their currency was stolen, but her money just happens to be the same currency. Crichton is suspicious, but they plug themselves in and become immersed in the recording. It shows Jool doing a flip, attempting to impress the audience and win a bet with Chiana. Chiana twirls fire in front of a man, who then faints. The crowd applaud and Chiana orders a drink. She's approached by a man, Fe'Tor, who makes her inhale something. Apparently Fe'Tor rounds up all the good-looking women, gives them the whiff, and then the women do anything. He then hurts the women to produce freslin. D'Argo goes with Raxil to Fe'Tor's place and Crichton goes to the bar to look there. D'Argo returns to meet Crichton on the beach and describes his time at Fe'Tor's residence. Jool was there, taking a bath, as Chiana entertained Fe'Tor. Chiana thought that D'Argo was there because he was jealous. When D'Argo went to drag them back, Fe'Tor's men pulled guns on him and forced him to leave. D'Argo is upset with Raxil and strangles her, so she sprays something in his eye. Then we cut to the bar, where D'Argo is dancing. Pilot stops the story, saying that it makes no sense. He says that Crichton makes no sense, but Crichton says that this part is important. Raxil tells Crichton that she sprayed D'Argo with some freslin, a drug that makes people attracted to others, but the effects depend on where it's manufactured. She says that she thinks Fe'Tor wants the girls to milk them for freslin, as we see Fe'Tor taking Jool to the chamber. Raxil says that Fe'Tor has her mate, Sarl, and she wants to get him back. Crichton notices Fe'Tor's assistant enter the bar and goes up to him saying that he's looking for freslin, as we see Fe'Tor milking Jool at which point Pilot interjects stating that if having that much bodily fluid drained would have killed her; Crichton tells him to be quiet and let him finish the story. Crichton convinces the man and receives something that will get him into "the auction." Crichton goes to the Han-jee and forces it to show them Fe'Tor's compound's layout. In the auction room, Harvey appears, seemingly happy to finally be meeting Ka D'Argo. He gives advice, showing the two some circuit breakers that will blow the lights to every level. They find the milking room and count the numbers of steps between it and the auction room since they'll need to navigate it in the dark once the power is out but can't agree on the actual number. In Fe'Tor's chamber, Chiana awakes and goes too look for Jool, but Fe'Tor finds her. D'Argo argues with Raxil and she says that she didn't plan everything so they could back out now. D'Argo is irate that she planned everything and tells Crichton what she said. She's not impressed that they only have two measly guns, apparently having heard stories of how great they are. She says that she set it up so Fe'Tor would take Jool and Chiana and so she could get her mate back. She sprays D'Argo with freslin again, when Kabaah says that he has a live connection. Crichton sees Fe'Tor milking Chiana and tells D'Argo that he should look. A weird looking alien appears, but Raxil says that the freslin she sprayed D'Argo with makes him look this way, apparently a disguise. Pilot is having none of it, and says that he doesn't appreciate Crichton's lies. Crichton mentions that in all the time they've never known each other he has never lied to Pilot before. At the auction house, Fe'Tor tells his assistant to ring Jool until failure. As they enter, Fe'Tor suggests the Nebari girl to Crichton. He is surprised to see Raxil, thinking she had given up the freslin trade. The bidding begins as Crichton and D'Argo argue with Raxil for not saying that she used to trade. She tells D'Argo that he must stay calm or the freslin will wear off. Fe'Tor begins the auction for Chiana and when the bidding gets high, Crichton bids. He is then outbid, so asks to take a closer look. He then bids even higher, but again is outbid. Once again, Crichton gets a closer look, snuggling up asking Chiana where Jool is, which makes D'Argo angry. Crichton bids high, but again is outbid. This time it's too much and he says that he needs more time to outbid, but is told to step aside. Chiana is sold and D'Argo has a go at Crichton for caressing her body which causes him to change back to his usual appearance. Crichton takes out the lights, and gunfire ensues. D'Argo gets into the milking room and tongues the assistant. Raxil's mate is dead, but after D'Argo escapes with Jool, Chiana and Crichton enter the milking room to find Raxil, who has gotten her stolen machine design back and runs off. Chiana runs off too, but as Crichton goes to leave Fe'Tor attacks him. Chiana comes up behind him and throws a load of freslin over him, saying that he'll die happy. Back on Moya, Crichton tells Pilot that Raxil used them so it's not all their fault. Pilot still doesn't believe the story, because there were too many inconsistencies. Chiana and Jool are still sleeping, so Crichton says that he will explain again, but Pilot says no. He's located a planet nearby and says that Crichton and D'Argo will stay there in accommodation. They will return for the pair in eight solar days. Crichton says that it was real, but Pilot says he and Moya desire time away from their constant bickering and this adventure did not alleviate that need. He kicks Crichton out, and then Crichton has to tell D'Argo they're being thrown off Moya again and the two quickly descend into yet another argument. + +John is in a dress shop, and Aeryn walks down a catwalk in a white wedding dress, saying it doesn't work. John says it works all right, just not for the wedding. Aeryn then models another more sensual, somewhat more 'low-cut' dress, and this time John perks up and says that if she wears this, somebody's definitely going to marry her. Cut away back to John, who is still writing equations all over his hands. Chiana is with him, and says that his world can't be that hard to adjust to -- he just needs to ask her. An old lady interrupts, offering them food. They stay silent, and she says perhaps Aeryn wouldn't have liked his planet anyway. Back in the dress store, John hands over his credit card and tells Aeryn to do it. She is reluctant, but tries to ask the lady behind the counter to "charge it". John has to take over when the lady doesn't understand her, and Aeryn frustrated and embarrassed that no one ever understands her English, utters "this whole frellin' planet needs translator microbes". John tries to comfort and encourage her that she's doin' fine, as half the time no one even understands him. Cut to Chiana as she asks the old woman why she didn't leave with the others, and John asks, "Who is that woman?", Chiana tells him she thought she was with him. Out of the window, John spots another Leviathan, and Pilot tells him they've arrived at the Leviathan sacred burial place. Aeryn helps Ka D'Argo pack stuff onto his ship, asking how much he's taking, and telling him he could re-supply during the journey. D'Argo says that revenge is a feast best served immediately, and she says he'll get himself killed. Rygel says that they all will, but at least they can do it on their home planets. D'Argo says he can't believe Crais sacrificed himself to destroy the Command carrier, and Aeryn laments Talyn's death. Chiana asks John what he'll do when they've buried Talyn, and he replies that he'll carry on working on wormholes. Suddenly Chiana shudders with a vision, just as Pilot tells everyone to brace for collision, for the other Leviathan is charging Moya. The other Leviathan hasn't moved away, and Moya is somewhat damaged. Pilot says that Moya's neural cortex is impossible to target so successfully unless by another Leviathan, this was no accident on the other Leviathan's part. Apparently, its actions have something to do with Talyn. Rygel complains and asks who the frell the old woman is, when we see another vision with Aeryn throwing her bouquet at their wedding. Rygel is hovering by the cake, when John is snapped out of it by the real Rygel telling him to pay attention, as this is serious. John tells him that the plan to fix Moya is good. In another vision, a euphoric D'Argo is with two girls, one on each arm, and congratulates Aeryn and John, joking that tonight John is the second luckiest man in the universe. Back in reality, Pilot tells everyone that the rogue Leviathan has three offspring which were all were killed by the Peacekeepers. She will not let Talyn, a part/half Peacekeeper, be buried here. Pilot has yet to hear from the other Pilot, but keeps trying. Jool is with Aeryn, working on her Prowler, and asks when they get out of this if she's still planning to look for a ex-Peacekeeper unit. Aeryn doesn't answer, and Jool remarks that they assassinate people, to which Aeryn says they protect people against things like terrorism. Jool wants to give her some advice, but Aeryn says she's not tied to John in any way. Jool adds that in the short time she's know Aeryn, she's changed so much, and she shouldn't now go backwards again -- assassinating people seems like going backwards. Aeryn asks Jool to melt something, when she answers "with what, there's no power yet", Aeryn pulls her hair to make her scream, which quickly melts the metal. Chiana tells John that it looks like Moya will be okay. She says that what she said about not wanting him to go with her wasn't exactly so, but he says it's cool not to worry. He has a vision of her in a hotel room, dressed up all sexy, flirting with him, writhing on the bed. Non-vision, Chiana says that she'd love him to go with her, but he'd look so much like a Peacekeeper - not a good thing for what she plans to do. The old woman/Noranti then offers to talk to the other Leviathan for them as a negotiator. Chiana tells her to stick to cooking, and for John to deal with her. John gets up and walks towards her, but she suddenly blows some herbs in his face, and he shouts that he can't see. She tells him to go to the truth; ignore it and risk all. She whispers something in his ear, as he sees Aeryn as his bride, but then he sees chefs/waiters at the wedding getting shot, causing him to start shooting back but in reality. D'Argo comes in just escaping being shot and tongues him, asking the Noranti what she did. She says perhaps a slight misjudgement of his weight, and D'Argo knocks her out. Pilot tells D'Argo and Aeryn that the rogue Leviathan starved her Pilot to death, and is threatening to attack again if they don't take Talyn's remains and leave. Rygel says that they should go, and with Moya injured, Aeryn agrees, but Pilot insists that Moya will not go because Talyn deserves to be buried there. Back in John's vision, he is listening to Aeryn and his dad talking, and she tells Jack that she's miserable here and John just doesn't see it, and she wonders when he's going to wake up. He says he is awake, and in reality Aeryn pulls him up. She tells John that Moya can't beat the rogue, but they can't convince Moya to leave, so Rygel and Chiana are trying to convince her. The old woman, now tied up, again offers to help, but John again asks who she is. Chiana tells Moya that everyone is concerned about her plan, and that she once asked Zhaan how she got along so well with Moya. Zhaan told her by being honest, no matter what. Chiana says that she thinks Moya should bury Talyn wherever she wants, and the other Leviathan should get out of their way. John sees a vision of Chiana, and asks her what all her stuff is. She tells him that she went shopping - "well, shoplifting", and that she got to know the boys a little better earlier. John asks why she has to sleep with all his friends, and she just continues to flirt with him, complaining Earth is just too repressed, when Jack comes in. She runs up to him and kisses him, Jack hugging her just shrugs telling a disapproving John, "well, your mother has been gone for such a long time", prompting John to say that this is still not right. Back in reality D'Argo says that he disagrees, and Chiana has a point. His ship has enough firepower to destroy the rogue. John doesn't think that Moya will let them actually kill one of her species, when Pilot tells them that Moya is not the first to be attacked by the rogue -- three other Leviathans have been killed and even more injured. It is now clear that the rogue Leviathan has gone insane and Moya begins to defend herself on her own. Pilot says that Moya understands the grief of losing a child, but has decided that this Leviathan's behavior is unacceptable. Therefore, Moya asks the crew to kill the rogue. D'Argo's ship and Aeryn's Prowler are prepared to take on the rogue Leviathan. John tells Jool to be there for Chiana, since she helped deliver Talyn, so shouldn't have to bury him alone. D'Argo tells Aeryn not to make any errors, but Aeryn says she doesn't make errors. Jool goes up to D'Argo and asks if he's OK with killing another living being, to which he just hisses through his teeth. John tells Aeryn to be careful, but she replies that she doesn't have to fly with D'Argo. D'Argo, John and Aeryn leave Moya as she enters the sacred area with the rogue following to attack. D'Argo tells John to keep the ship steady so he can shoot. Aeryn says that the other Leviathan is bigger than Moya, so the best she can do is annoy it. John has another vision, and tells D'Argo that he knows it's hard for him as everyone thinks he's a freak, prompting D'Argo to say hi to two kids nearby fishing, who reply they don't think he's a freak. The vision intersperses with a real-time conversation in D'Argo's ship, as John tells him not to kill Macton. In the vision, D'Argo says that all he wants is revenge, and says he's sorry that Aeryn is going to leave him, but not to take it out on him. In reality, John says it's not just Aeryn; they're all leaving. D'Argo tells him not to begrudge them their dreams, but John replies that it's some dream -- killing a man. D'Argo says that he should go straight to Earth, but John says he can't -- the Peacekeepers would follow. He and D'Argo continue to argue, both in the vision and on the ship. Moya dispatches Talyn's remains, as a weeping Chiana attempts to say some final words but is too grief-stricken to do so. As Jool holds her, Rygel takes over and gives Talyn a fitting eulogy -- he, a joy to his mother, and a credit to both his species. The rogue starts to charge at the remains intending to disperse them, so Aeryn launches an attack, shooting the rogue with the Prowler's weapons. This works, and the rogue leaves the remains and chases Aeryn into position where D'Argo can fire upon her. When the rogue is right in front, D'Argo's ship fires a shot that completely envelops the rogue Levithan before completely disintegrating her. Jool asks if they got her, and Aeryn says that she's gone, completely - they stare in awe at the power of the destruction - nothing at all remains. Rygel cheers that this means they're finally done; they're all unhurt, healthy, no one's trying to kill them -- and they can all finally go home. With the danger over, John visits the old woman and asks who she is. She says it doesn't matter, but she knows who he is -- she was a prisoner of the Peacekeepers, and he made them come back and rescue her escape pod after the command carrier imploded. So when the others got off, she stayed to repay her debt. John asks what she did to him, and she says that we all lie, but the lies that spew out do much less damage than the lies that stay hidden. Crichton unties her restraints and sets her free. He says that back on Earth when he was a kid, he would always dream of outer space. Yet now that he's here, all he dreams of is Earth, but lately none of his dreams work. Her herbs stripped away the lies, but he ran from it, and he's so tired of running. He asks her to show him again. She again blows something in his face. He sees himself putting the ring on Aeryn's finger, then the two of them happily dancing at the wedding reception, as in reality he is performing the dance with the old woman. Again, she is seen whispering in his ear. Jack then cuts in to dance with Aeryn. Next, everyone is seated and all of Crichton's friends from Moya are in attendance even Pilot, clapping as John and Aeryn kiss. Jack proposes a toast to his son and his new daughter, the new Mr. and Mrs. Crichton, when he's suddenly shot in the head. John pulls his gun out in reality, but the old woman makes him see the truth and confront his fear. The reception is stormed by Peacekeeper troops, who one by one shoot all the guests - Pilot, Rygel, D'Argo, Chiana, Jool and then Aeryn are all killed. In the middle of the reception room a model of Moya is blown to pieces, as well as the wedding cake. After the chaos, the majority of the guests are all lying dead. As John hovers in panic over a bleeding Aeryn, she says not to worry about her -- "she's never felt better", before she dies in his arms. John is devastated and cries out for her, when Scorpius comes in and kneels down next to him asking him the obvious question "what did you expect?". Returning to reality, John tells the old woman it's a nightmare -- his life, his dreams. Earth and his friends -- they're the two things that are most important to him, however he has tried to merge the two but they're incompatible. He can't go to Earth, and his friends are all leaving -- he's a dog with two bones. The old woman is confused, so John tells her the fable of a dog and it's beloved bone and how, while at a river, it tried to steal an identical bone from an identical dog, not realizing that it was looking at own reflection in the water. The dog opened its mouth, dropped its bone into the water and lost it forever. Crichton is like the dog, in that he tried to keep his friends on Moya as well as his dream of returning to Earth like the dog, by trying to take too much he's ended up with nothing. The old woman asks if a dog is smart enough to learn; if it could have had only one bone, which would it have wanted. John goes to the maintenance bay, where Aeryn is packing. He says that he's going with her; she's not leaving without him. She asks him what he wants; John says her. She tells him that it's not that easy for her -- he died, she watched it, but he's still alive, she has to go. He tells her to say goodbye, but she says they don't say goodbye. John tells her that they do this time; if she goes, then comes back, he couldn't handle the in between again. He says to say goodbye, so she says "Goodbye Crichton", and walks off in anguish. John grabs her, and says that his name is John; say it to his face. She pushes him and tells him to guarantee that he won't die in her arms again, so he pushes back and tells her to guarantee she won't die in his, to which she replies that she can, by leaving. He asks if she loves John Crichton, not the other, not him, but John Crichton. She says yes, and though she wishes to resist, they eventually kiss. He asks what it tastes like, and she tells him "yesterday". He sighs and says that no one could compete with that; he is so much better dead. She tells him that she can't do this again. He tells her that he can't let the one thing he loves fly away in a crappy little ship. Aeryn replies that if the fates meant them to be together, then they'll meet again. John replies that if it's up to the fates, then he'll toss a coin. She tells him to just make a frellin' wormhole and go home. John replies that there is no home, there's only her. She says that it's too late for her, and he tells her that if she does this they'll never see each other again. She asks if he loves Aeryn Sun, to which he says "beyond hope", and she says then don't make her say goodbye and don't make her stay. He walks away, and she kicks the pile of metal cases at her feet. John, hearing the commotion, stops and turns back, and they look across the room at each other. She kicks the fallen coin to him, and they walk towards each other in slow-motion. As John tosses the coin, the picture freezes coin mid-air, and we fade to black. Later John is in his module, near Moya, miserable. One by one, he hears and sees snippets of the others saying their goodbyes. D'Argo says that anything positive he will do will be because of John, his friend. Chiana tells him never to forget her, or that she loves him. Rygel says that of all the lesser species, he's grown to like his the best. The view pans around, where we see Aeryn in the Prowler. John remembers her saying that they're in the hands of fate now, they have to trust in that. Aeryn begins to cry, and tells John to fly safe, followed by "Goodbye, John Crichton", before her Prowler fades into the distance. Jool calls John and asks if he's alive, or out of fuel. He says that he's nearly out, and he's heading back to Moya. Harvey appears hovering over his shoulder, saying that the human subconscious is a fascinating place: malleable, permeable, fallible. He asks John to guess what he found there, but John tells him to go away as he doesn't feel like talking right now. Harvey says that he'll honor John's wishes, but having chosen their partnership above all else, John's well-being is now irrevocably his own. He says "my gift", and John hears again the old woman whispering what she had before. She tells him to be forgiving, be kind; her life, her world, on her time - he will know, "Aeryn is with child!" John screams for "old woman" who is still on Moya, and tells Pilot to put him through to Aeryn. She is out of range, so he tells Pilot to go after her, but Jool objects. The old woman grabs her, about to bite her ear, and says for Pilot to do as John says. John begs please, and Pilot says he'll attempt to plot Aeryn's course and they'll leave as soon as he returns, when suddenly a wormhole opens just behind Moya, and sucks her in! John is stranded, out of fuel and utterly alone in space. + +Rygel turns on a monitor to find Chiana and Ka Jothee having sex and gazes on. Meanwhile, Moya has docked at a commerce station near the Twin Suns of Qell to allow the crew to spend the money they stole from the Shadow Depository. As he gets drunk John Crichton is chatting to the barman, Moordil, when Ka D'Argo comes in and shows him some "union tattoo" for himself and Chiana, for their marriage. Stark tells Zhaan that they're going to find a planet where she can recuperate when they're finished. Aeryn Sun enters and sits with Crichton when a woman named Borlik asks if he is John Crichton. His reputation precedes him, and as she tells his story Crichton corrects her errors, blowing his cover. She says that they're all friends and they hate Peacekeepers here. As she orders him a drink, a storm suddenly hits sending the station into chaos. Everyone is okay, but shook up and Moya's been thrown into the docking ring. Pilot calls Chiana to help, and Jothee sees one of the frozen Interions move. Chiana bumps into Rygel, who calls her a slut. He says he saw them, so she tells him not to tell D'Argo, but Rygel says he'll smell Jothee all over her. D'Argo, who was checking out the damage to Moya, says she's okay but tangled in some cables. Borlik tells Crichton of the story of the three commerce stations which were cursed since they were built on the "Sacred Stillness." The other two are destroyed, and the storms that persist are getting worse and seem to be aimed at the station. The Interion tells Jothee that they were on a mission looking for someone. He and another got sick, but Jool found them. He then throws up on Jothee and dies. Meanwhile, Chiana manages to seal the vent, but sees a trapped child through a window on the station. Aeryn goes with Crichton to look for the child as Chiana says that Jothee killed the Interion. D'Argo's bringing a ship on board and wants Chiana and Jothee to check it out, so she sends Jothee to bathe to get rid of her scent. Aeryn tells Crichton that she's been thinking about how Peacekeepers relieve tension by reducing bodily fluids, through sex! Crichton is reluctant and says that now is not the time. As Aeryn unzips her suit she falls through the floor into a waste conduit. Pilot tells Crichton that the storm turned 90 degrees to hit them and another one is on its way in two arns. Rygel want to leave, but Crichton says no. He asks who might want to destroy the station and Moordil mentions a religious sect who think that by buying and selling on their sacred ground they are desecrating it. The ship that D'Argo brought aboard is protected by a defense screen which is still active. D'Argo tells Chiana that he's sorry and he wants to talk. She says she's not ready and she'll talk later. The others have brought the DRDs on to the station to search for the source attracting the storm, when Stark takes a look at Zhaan's head -- her condition is worsening much faster than they predicted. She says he shouldn't worry since he's an expert on dying and while he agrees he says he's just not an expert on her dying. Jothee tells Chiana that he thinks D'Argo knows about them when suddenly D'Argo comes in and smells something other than Jothee's bathing lotion. He asks why they're both in the room and doesn't believe their reason. Chiana asks if he's spoken to Rygel and he asks about what. He realizes that the two of them have betrayed him and shows Chiana the tattoo. He says she'll never have it and imprints it on Jothee after knocking her away. He leaves and says he'll never listen to anything either of them will have to say again. As he leaves, he reveals that the smell was simply a burnt out power cell from the cryo-chambers. It was their own reactions that gave them away. On the station, one of the DRDs picks up a signal and it goes crazy when Stark points it at Borlik, revealing that she is the source. She starts chanting and becomes stuck to the ceiling! The pipe she's against would freeze everyone if ruptured, so she's stuck there. Rygel stuffs a cloth in her mouth to shut her up. Pilot tells Crichton that a bigger source of the metal that the pipe's made of may attract her away, and they have a source of it on Moya -- one of the Interion's cryo-chambers. Moya is still stuck in the cables, so even if they remove Borlik they can't get her away to keep the storm away. Crichton asks Pilot if D'Argo has looked, but Pilot says he's not answering his comm. Rygel guesses what's happened and reveals the truth about Chiana and Jothee's relationship. Crichton goes to see D'Argo and says that he didn't know when D'Argo showed him the tattoos. He says they need D'Argo's help or they'll all die. D'Argo, clearly distraught, says that they broke his heart so everyone will all die. Crichton chews out Jothee and Chiana, angrily telling the two that they both betrayed the one person on Moya who would've done anything for either of them, even die. D'Argo, meanwhile, is drunk, but decides to go out anyway. Pilot says that Crichton told him D'Argo wasn't going and asks why he is. D'Argo just says goodbye, so Pilot urges him to come inside. Stark and Crichton are bringing the chamber aboard the station to pull Borlik onto it when Pilot tells Crichton that D'Argo's gone EVA. D'Argo says that only two cables are left and they are power cables. Pilot can't turn them off and D'Argo says that he doesn't need to wait for Crichton. Chiana tells D'Argo to wait, but he says that she'll never tell him what to do again. Chiana tells Crichton to speak to D'Argo, but he won't listen and says goodbye to Crichton. As Chiana screams, D'Argo neutralizes the cable and floats away, but is caught on the end. Crichton goes outside to help him and get Moya clear. Chiana tells him to get D'Argo, but he says he has to free Moya first. Aeryn finds the hatch to the nursery, but Moordil dies before he can give her the code to open it. She manages to shoot it open and get the group of children. Meanwhile, Crichton slips and floats away, but D'Argo catches him. They get the cable away and Crichton goes to go in, but D'Argo doesn't follow so Crichton says he won’t go alone. The storm is starting to shake the station again when Chiana and Jothee go to see D'Argo, who tells them both to stay away from him. Crichton finds Borlik stuck to Moya's wall, thinking she's won, but Crichton reveals that the door is detachable and sends her out as Pilot laughs maniacally. The storm follows and strikes her. The children are back on the station and Stark tells Zhaan they'll find a planet for her. Crichton tells Aeryn he's been thinking about her suggestion, but she says maybe they should wait. He asks what about fluid levels and she says there will be a backlog. Jothee is going to leave and is speaking with Chiana as D'Argo secretly watches. Jothee says that he betrayed D'Argo and Chiana says it wasn't all his fault. He asks why she did it and she says that she didn't like his plans for them but knew he wouldn't take no for an answer, so she did something unforgivable. Jothee says that she used him and she agrees but says he enjoyed it. He tells her that if D'Argo will listen to tell him he's sorry and that he'll return one day and make it up to both he and Chiana. D'Argo watches and burns the other union tattoo, almost in tears. + +Moya is orbiting a planet while being repaired. John Crichton, Aeryn Sun, Ka D'Argo, Stark, and Jool are down on the surface, which is the location of a peace memorial from a great battle in Peacekeeper history. Crichton makes D'Argo put some goggles on, which allow them to see, through a time tear, events in the past as they unfold. Aeryn tells Jool that 30 Peacekeepers lost their lives defending a group of nurses and children from a group called the Venek Horde. Jool doesn't buy it though, and fobs it off as Peacekeeper propaganda for morons, but Aeryn tells her the man who made peace, Sub-Officer Dacon, is a hero among her people. On Moya, Chiana finds Rygel in Zhaan's quarters, and both say they're there to steal whatever is left, but neither can bring themselves to want it. Meanwhile Stark tells Crichton that Zhaan bought his new clothes for him, and says he no longer hears her voice. Crichton makes him put on the goggles, but he sees so much death, and is quickly overwhelmed, that the goggles and what's behind his mask interact and before they can remove the goggles a huge flash of light momentarily blinds them, and when they regain their sight, they see the old monastery, and Jool comments on how real it looks. Suddenly flaming arrows are shot over the wall, one of which pierces Jool's arm. They run for cover, and Aeryn pushes the arrow through Jool's arm and out the other side. Crichton says that he thinks Stark's mask may have pulled them into the past, and D'Argo says that anything they change here may change the future. They're soon confronted by a group of Peacekeepers, prompting Aeryn to say that they're here as reinforcements. The commander, Officer Tarn, says that the Horde is jamming pulse weapons, so to grab a spear, when the Horde jumps the wall and a battle ensues. Officer Tarn and all the peacekeepers except Sub-Officer Dacon are amongst the many casualties on both sides. On Moya, Pilot calls Chiana to command, saying that Moya just received a request from the planet to break orbit -- written in basic Venek vernacular. Chiana says she thought the Venek abandoned the planet 500 cycles ago, and Pilot says that's what he thought too. Crichton asks Aeryn what her data device says, which is that all but one Peacekeeper were wiped out, and that's what happened. She adds that Sub-Officer Dacon dies when he's on the wall sending the ceasefire message. She says that the Venek's General Grines saw how the battle went with only women and children left and is outside now convincing the other generals to offer a ceasefire. D'Argo goes to get Jool and Stark to find the time tear, and Aeryn tells Crichton that she's found her pulse pistol works. Dacon finds one of the Horde members alive, but when Crichton pulls back his hood he sees it is General Grines. Jool is treated by a nurse for her arrow wound, saying the medicine is so good and taking a sip of it, only to find out that it's one part water and part Fellip urine! Aeryn goes to speak with Dacon, and asks if he's been an officer long, relaying some of his accomplishments. He reveals that Tarn was a noble man and always gave credit away; he is not a soldier, just a cook. He says he was scared he would be left as ranking officer, so he's glad she turned up, so she can take command. Stark finds the tear, and D'Argo pushes a reluctant Jool into the wall, but she doesn't go through. He tries again, and she lands in mud. She sees some Venek symbols draped over the walls, and screams to Stark that it's not the same here, but Stark already feels the billions dead. He doesn't want to find the tear anymore, and tells them that he felt thousands, millions, billions dead, but not the same ones he felt when they came through, causing Crichton to realise that they're changing the future. He says he has a plan, and Aeryn argues with him that it won't work, and that when the Horde attacks she'll show her way to get a ceasefire. Jool is back on Moya annoying Chiana, when Pilot says that, apparently devastated by conflict, the planet is still inhabited, but by only a fraction of the population that was there before. He says Moya's data stores say that a vicious war claimed millions of lives, and Chiana comments that when they arrived here, the Horde had made peace in the past. Aeryn talks with Dacon again, who says that the recruitment holochips never mentioned anything about dying. He asks Aeryn why she joined up, and she says she was born on a command carrier. He says it's no wonder she's fearless, but she says this is what Peacekeepers are meant to do -- help the defenseless; so it's easy to be fearless. She says he'll be fine. Crichton asks Grines why this place is so important, and Grines says that the Horde is bloodthirsty, almost uncontrollable, but he tries not to be. Their water supply has died out, and the mountain they're on is the source of the river, and the Horde will kill to get it. Grines says that whilst there are soldiers here, the Horde will not offer a ceasefire. Crichton says that there will not be any soldiers here when the Horde return. He says that he'll let Grynes go so long as the Horde do not harm the women and children. D'Argo is talking to Kelsa, who says that they were attacked by the Horde while on a healing caravan, and the Peacekeepers found them and brought them to the monastery for safety, but they may have been safer had the Peacekeepers not found them. She asks if D'Argo knows what the Horde does to children, and says that she would rather her daughter be at peace than with the Horde, and asks if she can depend on him. Cyntrina asks Stark why he was crying, and he says it's because of all the pain. She says that her father is dead, but she never cried, prompting Stark to hug her, and shed a tear. Crichton dresses Grines up in woman's wear, to get him safely over the wall. He thanks Crichton, but as he's climbing out, he's shot dead by Kelsa, who calls Crichton a traitor. The nurses tie him up, and D'Argo and Aeryn are angry with him saying that they didn't know. Kelsa wants to kill Crichton, but Stark tries to stop her. She doesn't believe that Grines was to make peace, but Cyntrina asks her mother not to kill anyone else. Crichton says that the Venek leaders are desperate to offer peace if the nurses give them a sign, and he promises they won't be hurt. A communication from the Veneks is shot over the wall, and the general says that they could accept the death of their general in battle, but to disgrace him in female's clothes is not acceptable, and at dawn their severed heads will be nailed to the walls. Harvey is suddenly next to Crichton, playing a sombre melody on a harmonica. He talks of the elasticity of time -- if they get events close enough to what happened, the outcome is likely to be the same. He won't make any suggestions about what they should do, he just tells Crichton to do better. Aeryn has convinced Dacon to record a message offering surrender, in hope that it'll work. Crichton tells her that a better way would be to let Dacon die, and when she says she doesn't want that, he says it's up to them to do something. Kelsa visits Stark, and he asks how she felt when she shot Grines, and she says she felt fear and hate. Stark says fear is good, but forget the hate. She asks Stark if she dies, will she be with her daughter, and he tells her "different beliefs, different destinations", he can't tell until the end. Cyntrina tells D'Argo that her father wasn't scary like D'Argo looks, and her mother says that when loved ones die, they must be remembered forever. She asks him if someone will remember her when she's dead and he tells her to make a mark in the stone to guarantee it, and hands her his knife to do so. Dacon has recorded the message, and Aeryn goes up to fire it. Dacon says that he'll do it, as it'd be better for him to get hurt than her. As Aeryn and Crichton watch on knowing what is to come, Dacon goes up the wall to send the message. Aeryn tells him he's a soldier, a brave hero, but he denies it, and says heroes always get killed. As he throws the spear, he is shot by an arrow, and falls off the wall, dead. Stark can't find the time tear, when the Veneks begin to attack again. Aeryn is upset about Dacon, but Crichton convinces her to untie him. When Kelsa objects, Aeryn tells him that he also has a pulse pistol. Another battle ensues, as back on Moya, Pilot tells the others that the planet is gone, so Chiana goes out to look for them. The battle continues, with nurses and Veneks being killed all over the place. With so many dead, the Veneks end up retreating, which causes the time tear to reappear, with no deaths -- they've restored the timeline. Before they leave, D'Argo says goodbye to Cyntrina, saying he may see her again when she grows up, Crichton tells Kelsa that the Horde won't attack if the soldiers are gone, and promises they'll be safe, and Aeryn goes and places Dacon's medal back on his body, then they all leave. Chiana tells Aeryn about all the changes they witnessed on Moya, but now nothing's changed except one thing, and Aeryn says the tear is unstable -- Stark tried but they can't go back and change things. Chiana asks if Crichton knows that, and Aeryn says yes, and she will get him back on Moya. She looks at the memorial, which shows all the nurses, most prominently Kelsa and her daughter Cyntrina, and then goes to Crichton, who says he screwed up. She says that they did the best they could, but he asks why they'd do that, what's the point? Her only answer is that there probably was no point, as we see through the goggles the Venek asking Kelsa and the nurses where the pulse weapons are, but when she says Crichton had them but they escaped, he says he needs to give the Horde something -- they're bloodthirsty. As she calls for Crichton, the general cannot control the Horde, and all the nurses are slaughtered. The memorial no longer commemorates the peace, but instead the nurses that lost their lives. Crichton and Aeryn are left head-on-shoulder, as D'Argo takes one last look at the wall, and sees Cyntrina's mark. + +The crew are still in orbit of the hospital planet with each member of the crew in turn contacting Pilot as to whether or not he's heard anything about John Crichton's condition, but he's heard nothing and says that he'll let them know as soon as he hears anything. On the planet, Lt. Braca asks Grunchlk why he hid from them, to which Grunchlk says that it was merely a precaution. He asks for his payment since he told them the moment Crichton arrived. Scorpius enters and says that he should be trying to prove that he still serves a purpose since their business on the planet is now finished, and he takes a bite of Crichton's brain. Crichton is still laid out on the operating table, brains and all, with Tocot, still injured, lying on the floor beside him. In his mind, the Scorpius clone, who did not leave with the chip as expected, speaks to Crichton, telling him that Crichton must die! Braca is ready to shoot Grunchlk when Officer Kobrin enters, saying that the command carrier's battle ended successfully, but the rendezvous has been delayed by five arns. Scorpius says that Crichton's friends won't stay away that long, but what worries him is that they may alert Crais and Talyn. Grunchlk says that he has a special private room that they may use. The Scorpius clone tells Crichton that his death is the only way to separate them and now that Scorpius has the neurochip, the clone no longer has to protect Crichton. Crichton asks why he's still in his head, but he doesn't know. He says that Scorpius won so Crichton should end it now. Meanwhile, Rygel is looking for Grunchlk when he hears Crichton screaming. He goes into the operating room, where he sees Tocot. Ka D'Argo orders Chiana and Ka Jothee to stay on Moya before he accompanies Stark and Zhaan down to the planet. Grunchlk tells Scorpius that he has had no contact with the crew for over nine arns when a transport is detected leaving Moya. Grunchlk says that he'll stall them, but Scorpius injects something into the back of his neck, which allows him to use a headset to control Grunchlk's mind. Zhaan, D'Argo, and Stark arrive on the planet and Zhaan manages to get Tocot breathing. The Diagnosan whispers "Scorpius". Crais, aboard Talyn, says that Scorpius must have come on a Prowler or Marauder on a stealth trajectory. Scorpius makes Grunchlk shoot himself and D'Argo later finds him lying in a corridor, where he says that he's sure that Scorpius is gone. Back in the operating room, Stark says that Crichton didn't want the operation if anyone else would be harmed, yet they used an Interion anyway. He says that they're not dead, but stuck between realms. D'Argo says that Crichton needs help and asks what Tocot can do. Tocot says that he could try a neural transplant, but it would use up a donor. Stark says that Crichton wouldn't want that. Grunchlk says that it might not even work and D'Argo says they need to know what Crichton wants, so Zhaan shares Unity with him. She gets past the clone and Crichton tells her to go away, there's no point. Zhaan breaks Unity and says that the clone is still in his head. Grunchlk notes that they're never going to do what needs to be done so Zhaan gets a lethal injection. D'Argo says they're going to help Crichton and get Scorpius out of his head. Stark stops Zhaan from injecting Crichton, but she says that he wants to die. D'Argo says that they'll not lose another and Tocot says that Scorpius' personality was in Crichton so long that it's merged with his consciousness. Zhaan says that there's only one merciful thing to do, to which Grunchlk agrees, so D'Argo sends them both out. He tells Tocot to restore Crichton's speech, but Tocot says that Crichton insisted on no harm to any donors. Stark says that Tocot is the one harming them -- he can hear their screams, so he injects one of the Interions. Crichton screams out to which Stark says that was mercy -- their pain was greater than his. Crichton starts to mumble so D'Argo tells him not to make him tongue him. Zhaan goes to meditate, when Crais contacts her. Grunchlk tells him to go and chase Scorpius, but Crais says he won't leave without Aeryn's body. Grunchlk says that Zhaan can take it up to Crais, but she says she can't do it; when they all leave, they'll take Aeryn. On Moya, Jothee and Chiana are cooking, but end up in an embrace, where they "stimulate" each other, then kiss and more! Meanwhile, Tocot has repaired Crichton's speech, then leaves to excrete. Crichton says that Aeryn's gone so he wants to die. D'Argo says that Aeryn would want him to keep fighting, and Stark says that the Scorpius in his head is only a remnant and he needs to show who is stronger. Crichton tells the clone that things are different now, so he wants to make some rules. He beats him up and throws him into a dumpster! Tocot detects an auto-release of one of the cryogenic pods and contacts Grunchlk. Grunchlk tells Tocot to let him deal with it and very anxiously tells him to get out of there. Tocot does check himself, though, and is killed by what's inside -- a Scarran! Grunchlk won't tell Scorpius why the Scarran is there, so Scorpius forces him to bite off the tip of his own finger! This makes Grunchlk speak and he says that the Scarrans offered him money to keep one of them hidden until Scorpius returned. He says he took it as an advance and was going to keep the Scarran frozen, but since the Peacekeepers came in all guns blazing he doubted Scorpius' good intentions and set the Scarran's chamber to auto-release. Had Scorpius behaved and paid him, he would've switched it off. Chiana and Jothee are finishing getting dressed when Rygel enters asking why the room is in such a mess. As cover, they say that they blew up a cooking pan, so he leaves unsuspecting. Meanwhile, Braca tells Scorpius where everyone is, and Scorpius decides to send Grunchlk to the Scarran. Crichton awakes and says that he beat the clone and asks how Stark knew what he had to do. Stark says that he didn't, it just sounded good. He goes to get Zhaan so they can leave. Meanwhile Grunchlk goes to speak with the Scarran, Ithrawan Plonek, who asks where Scorpius is. Grunchlk says he's not there, but he has someone who is nearly as good -- John Crichton. He tells him where Crichton is. Using his heat projection, Plonek asks if he's lying and if it's a trap, but Grunchlk, still controlled by Scorpius, is able to deny it. The Scarran stuffs him in a pod, then goes after Crichton. Scorpius then tells Kobrin that they need to get their information to the command carrier and says that Kobrin's piloting skills will be tested soon. Zhaan spots that Aeryn is still alive and Stark says that Grunchlk may have been planning to keep her as a donor. Zhaan says that Tocot's gifts could not save Aeryn, but Stark says he can't hear her -- her soul is too far away to be reached - any attempt to reach her would be dangerous. She says he's probably right, but then punches him out! When D'Argo opens the door for him and Crichton to leave, he comes face to face with Plonek. D'Argo hits him and quickly closes the door so they can exit the back way through the snow. D'Argo tells Crichton that the plan is to get the Scarran to follow them. Zhaan apologizes to the unconscious Stark and takes of his mask, focusing his energy on Aeryn's coffin. She links with Aeryn, who she finds sitting in her ejection seat. Zhaan asks if Aeryn knows her or who she herself is. Aeryn responds with her Peacekeeper rank and asks if Zhaan has come to reassign her. Zhaan says that she's come to take her back. She joins with Aeryn in Unity, but Aeryn says Zhaan shouldn't be there, and asks why she's doing it. Zhaan says because she loves Aeryn, but more importantly Crichton loves her. She says that Aeryn must take this gift, for Crichton's sake, but Aeryn says she can't; she knows what this will cost Zhaan and breaks Unity. Zhaan falls back from the coffin and is met by the gun of a PK commando. Another is guarding Stark, as Scorpius tells them to keep Stark. Braca tells them to terminate the Delvian, but suddenly they are shot by D'Argo's Qualta Blade -- it's Aeryn! She's alive! Scorpius realizes that the commandos are dead and tells Kobrin that they can wait no longer. Plonek, meanwhile, follows Crichton and D'Argo, but they're trapped outside by a jammed door. D'Argo starts a fight, but he has no chance. A Marauder leaves the planet on a stealth trajectory, and Crais and Talyn pursue. The Scarran is ready to finish D'Argo off when Aeryn appears and starts shooting at it. Crichton stabs it its open wound with ice. He can't believe it's really Aeryn, but she explains that Zhaan brought her back and they hug. Scorpius tells Crais to end the pursuit, but Crais says it will end in Scorpius' death. Scorpius says that they have information on board the Marauder that could help them defeat the Scarrans, so Crais should consider his fellow Sebaceans. Crais retorts that Scorpius should have considered one Sebacean that died because of him: Aeryn. They reach the Carrier which Scorpius says will destroy them. Crais says possibly, but he and Talyn agree, and they fire, destroying the Marauder in one shot. Crais contacts Pilot to tell him that Scorpius is dead and they draw the Carrier away before they starburst. Pilot tells the others, and Stark says he's with Zhaan, that Tocot is dead, and Grunchlk is as good as. Crichton says that they'll take the Interions, as one of them died at his hands and maybe like Aeryn they can be saved. As the others return to Moya, Braca tells Scorpius that Moya and Talyn have fled and they're soon to be picked up. Scorpius says that Kobrin over-estimated his piloting skills and comments that Peacekeeper First Command have taken care of Crais, and their task is more important -- they have a new Gammak Base waiting to go into operation; hundreds of Techs just waiting to apply the priceless wormhole technology. Chiana, Jothee, D'Argo, and Rygel are in the food room on Moya. Rygel says that Jothee and Chiana's time was productive and D'Argo agrees that they are two excellent cooks. Aeryn joins Crichton, looking at the Interions in the cargo bay. She says she shouldn't be here, but Crichton says it's exactly where she should be. He says he loves her. She says that she loves him, and they kiss. They're about to go further when she breaks it off, refusing to act on it. She says that she won't be the cause of anyone else's death because her judgment was faulty; she won't allow anyone else to sacrifice their life for hers. Surprised, Crichton asks, "what do you mean anyone else?" Stark is with Zhaan, when Crichton enters and says that what she did to bring Aeryn back, a gift of spiritual energy, took everything she had. He asks if there's anything he can do to help, but she says there's nothing. He says he won't accept that, but she says she has, she's dying. + +Moya has detected a transport pod closing in to rendezvous with Moya and everyone has concluded that it must be the crew of Talyn. John Crichton is anxious, asking Ka D'Argo which shirt looks better. Meanwhile Jool advises Chiana on what to wear for the reunion and the pod arrives as Crichton and D'Argo speculate on the state of Talyn's crew. The four go to the maintenance bay, but out of the pod step a Scarran, Nebari, and a female Hynerian, along with an unconscious Peacekeeper Tech. They say that they've just escaped imprisonment and ask for help. The Scarran, Naj Gil, says that they were part of a Peacekeeper weapons test, to see how different species would react to their new weapon. Chiana, Crichton, and the Nebari, Hubero, are on the pod looking for a Boolite -- a creature that has been blown to pieces but can survive as individual parts for half a cycle. On Talyn, Rygel asks Crais where they are and Crais replies that Talyn has found Moya at the extreme range of his sensors. Aeryn Sun enters with Stark's mask and tells Talyn to intercept. When Pilot senses Talyn's approach, D'Argo sends Crichton to welcome them back. In private, Chiana tells Hubero that she does not trust him, suspecting that he is a spy for the Nebari Establishment. Hubero then nervously drops "his" pants, revealing that he/she is an "androgen". Under the extremely conformist rule of the Nebari Establishment, intersex infants are terminated at birth, with only a small handful escaping on the fringes of society. Chiana accepts this as instant proof that Hubero was even more of an outcast in Nebari society that she was. Rygel is first out, but is hesitant when Crichton speaks to him. Crais is next, but when Aeryn steps out and Crichton acknowledges the "familiar face," she simply says "Hello John" and walks away. Immediately noticing a problem, Crichton asks what's wrong and Crais informs him that the other Crichton is dead. Rygel returns to his quarters to find the female Hynerian, Orrhn. She gets in his good books by treating him as a Dominar, flirting with him intently. Meanwhile, as Chiana, D'Argo, Jool, Naj Gil, and Hubero are in the bay, Chiana has a flash, saying that she heard a pulse blast, causing panic. Aeryn wanders past the Tech's cell and he tries to convince her to let him go and of the value of the escaped prisoners, but she doesn't care anymore. Crichton unpacks the other John's stuff, and after sizing up their pulse pistols, he takes back Winona. He throws Stark's mask aside, causing an image of him to appear. Stark says he has a message for Crichton and only Crichton, but is interrupted by Pilot who has detected a Peacekeeper distress call -- from aboard Moya! Pilot says that Moya will starburst and Talyn will follow on a close trajectory to meet up later. Chiana blames the Naj Gil, but D'Argo sticks up for him as he never left his side and points the finger at Hubero instead. Chiana jumps to her defense for the same reason, as Rygel acts as an alibi for Orrhn, as they had apparently been, ahem, let's say 'amorously' occupied at the time. Crichton wants to lock the prisoners up, but they all refuse in favor of continueing to accompany the person they'd been paired with. Everyone leaves and with Aeryn facing away from him, following a long look a crestfallen Crichton leaves too. Crais is trying to put the Boolite back together and Jool offers some of her biological know-how as to how it should be done, since he is struggling quite drastically. Crichton and Aeryn are repairing the transport pod, with her handing him requested tools as she works. She ignores his attempts at humour, but when he tries to talk about the other Crichton, offering his condolences, she gets up and leaves without a word. D'Argo enters and offers some advice, which is at first refused. When Crichton changes he's mind and asks, he says that he actually has no advice to give but that he understands it's tough, Crichton's jealousy over his own double/twin. Crichton says that the other guy, the actual copy died, and D'Argo recognizes that the problem is that Aeryn now thinks of him as 'the copy' instead. Crichton wakes Rygel from his sleeping with Orrhn and tells him that the prisoner's pod will be ready in half an arn. Rygel says that he doesn't want her to go because he thinks he's falling in love with her, but Crichton says to make the best of that half an arn they have left, for if he truly cares for her it's all the better he lets her go. When Crichton leaves, Orrhn opens her eyes and says she heard it all and likes it, then asks if he's ready to go at it again as she's heard Dominars are always up for it, needing no rest. Meanwhile, Chiana asks Hubero what her crime was and she replies that she's a non-conformist; and being an androgen she pretty much had no choice but to be one. Crais and Jool have managed to get the Boolite talking somewhat and Crichton asks who the traitor is, but it says it doesn't remember. Crais says that the memory may be in brain matter that they have yet to add or has already been destroyed in the blast. Pilot suddenly screams "shots fired" -- they rush about and find the Scarran has been shot. D'Argo threatens Hubero and then grabs Orrhn. Both Chiana and Rygel stand by them once again though, so Crichton gets a reluctant D'Argo to release them. Pilot says that another signal was sent, this time including Moya's coordinates. They find a transmitter expertly assembled from scraps of Moya and Crichton goes to the caged Tech only to find that the DRD watching him sensed no movement. Pilot says that the pod will be fixed in a quarter of an arn. As Crichton tells Rygel and Chiana that one of their people is the traitor, Chiana hides with Hubero in one of the empty metal crates while Rygel and Orrhn hide out in an access shaft, only to go at it again in there too. Jool and Crais heal the Scarran, as D'Argo and Aeryn search for Chiana. D'Argo is about to speak to her about Crichton, but she quickly tells him not to. When they leave, Hubero tells Chiana that she doesn't want to cause her any trouble and runs off to return to the transport pod. As Jool and Crais finish assembling the Boolite, more fire is detected; the DRD was destroyed and the Tech's cell has been opened. Naj Gil awakes, as Orrhn wakes Rygel. She tells him that he must move his ass now and much to his surprise pulls a knife on him to emphasize her point. As the others search, Orrhn tells Rygel that she struck a deal with the Tech before on the pod, and then on Moya she was pleased to find a great bargaining tool -- Rygel himself, of royal value. She reveals that she is actually a 'lowly' soldier, and he will be far more valuable than herself and a PK Tech and had to shot Naj Gil when he spotted her earlier scouting about. Rygel doesn't understand as all Hynerians sleep for hours after 'pleasure', but Orrhn reveals that the 'pleasure' was all his as she faked her orgasms so she didn't fall asleep with him and could roam Moya freely. Suddenly Moya is neutralized so that she can't move. The Tech appears before Jool and Crais and opens fire on them. Running through the passageways, Orrhn shoots and kills Hubero, much to Chiana's distress. The Tech makes it to the pod, where Orrhn is waiting for him with Rygel as a hostage. They leave Moya and begin broadcasting their location, as Crichton and Aeryn  with D'Argo take persuit in his new ship. The plan is to shoot the pod with a harpoon and board it to retrieve Rygel that way. Crichton worries the shot won't hold, but Aeryn reminds him it did with the Budong, however he has no idea what she's talking about, giving Aeryn the sad reminder that this isn't the Crichton she fell in love with. They take the shot and it works, and Aeryn and Crichton hook slide over to the pod. They blast their way in and Aeryn shoots the Tech dead. As Orrhn tries to escape with Rygel on his ThroneSled, Crichton only just manages to hold onto Rygel. When Orrhn realises she's doomed, with only Rygel holding on keeping her from floating away into space, she attemps to sweettalk him not to let her go, but to no avail, he sadly but determined let's her float off into space to her death. Crichton looks on and flippantly nods : "women". Talyn returns, as Aeryn, Crichton, and Rygel are lifted off the pod via the harpooned rope, just making it as the pod explodes below in their wake. Crichton is in his quarters, finally listening to his message, which is actually from the other John who recorded it after the destruction of the Scarren Dreadnought, just before he succumbed to his radiation poisoning. The other John explains that while the Scarrans are back to square one with the wormhole technology, the Peacekeepers are Crichton's problem; Scorpius cannot be left to crack the secrets which he might be very close to doing. Aeryn drawn by Crichton's voice silently eavesdrops and overhears as the other holograph John tells him not to push her because she needs time. They have a final go of rock-paper-scissors and as usual both draw the same rock, rock, scissors - just as before. Finally he emotionally wishes Crichton luck and a final goodbye. The message ends leaving a contemplating Crichton, as Aeryn silently steals away on the brink of tears. With everyone assembled in Pilot's den, Crichton explains the situation. Pilot says that he and Moya are against the idea and Talyn disagrees, too. Chiana says that they don't know how far Scorpius is in his research, or where he is and asks how Crichton will stop him. Jool opts out and Crichton says though he doesn't like it either he doesn't see another option. Unfortunately he knows he must do this, but understands if they wish to opt out as he's aware they need not. After a long, lingering pause, the others watch on as Aeryn slowly rises and joins Crichton, on seeing her join Crais soon follows. While D'Argo rolls his eyes, in a 'oh damn, here we go again' attitude, Chiana thinks it's crazy and says that they're all going to die. Crichton asks if she's saying it because she's actually 'seen' it or if she's just guessing. John goes on to say that we all have a path to follow and he knows this is his, it's just something he has to do -- he's going to hunt down the command carrier, and he's going to stop Scorpius at all costs.  + +Aeryn Sun still has the gun to Scorpius-John's head, but he manages to knock it away and scramble to his feet. She holds him at bay with her own pulse pistol, but he taunts her in an attempt to get her to fire. As she does, Jack pushes her aside, saying that the clone is dying and it wants her to shoot so that Crichton dies too. Scorpius-John tells Aeryn to be more decisive next time and shoot quicker. The clone dies and Crichton is back; the real Crichton, and he and Aeryn hug. On Talyn, Crais tells Stark that something is wrong and they should check the docking bays and airlocks. Stark tells Crais that bay 2 recently performed atmosphere replenishment, as if it had opened, but they landed their pod in bay 1. Suddenly, a Scarran enters sending Crais and Stark to the ground. As Crichton and Aeryn talk, Furlow returns with more of Jack's equipment. He wants something better and they send Furlow to search the base for it. Jack unlocks Crichton's wormhole information and says that Crichton's mind needs time to process the equations. The base comes under attack, as Rygel remains unconscious in the gun turret. The Scarran recognizes Talyn as a Peacekeeper vessel and tries to get information from Crais. Stark steps in and tells the Scarran how Crais stole Talyn and says that he is Crais' slave. He asks the Scarran to kill Crais so he can serve the Scarran instead. The Scarran orders Crais to make the ship operational. Crichton doesn't feel as if anything's unlocked, when Jack asks him for an oscillation dampener. Crichton hands him something that can be modified to work, and realizes that the information is surfacing in his subconscious. The Charrids continue to fire from a distance while Aeryn fends off a Charrid to get into the turret. Rygel tells her that he was injured by shrapnel from a mortar. She wants to take over, but he disagrees since she is still going mobile and asks for food to keep him going. Crichton is beginning to make sense of all the wormhole information and asks Jack what it is they are building. He asks how far Jack will take it to clean up the pieces, saying that he will kill him, Furlow, and Aeryn. Jack says that Aeryn poses no threat, he is uncertain of Furlow, but he no longer doubts Crichton's intentions. Jack needs a quarter of an arn to finish, but asks everyone to stay clear so as not to be exposed to radiation. Crichton and Aeryn go to re-check the perimeter. Meanwhile, Furlow brings Jack the remaining materials and Jack says that he hasn't initiated the reaction yet, and when he does, there is no emergency shutdown. After 1.4 arns, the device will melt down and be destroyed, so Jack has only one chance and he will fly the module. When he asks Furlow to leave, she turns and shoots him. She signals and two Charrids descend from the ceiling. She tells them that she had to kill Jack because he wouldn't have cooperated. She wants to fly the module, but the Charrids don't trust her anymore; she allowed too many of them to die. They are unsure of her loyalties. Crichton and Aeryn hear gunfire and return to Furlow. She says that the Charrids snuck in, and although she nailed them, they got Jack. Jack reverts to his true form and dies, as Crichton vows to finish the weapon. Furlow is sent to check her booby traps and Aeryn tells Crichton that he has to finish the device, whilst Crichton only hopes he can. Stark tells Crais that Talyn's sensors are recovering and once they return he can target and kill the Scarran. Crais says that it would require too much continued fire, when the Scarran returns. Stark tells him that the neural transponder is the best way to operate the ship, since there is no pilot. Crais then tells Stark to get Talyn to prepare two transponders -- one for him, and one for the Scarran. Aeryn goes to Crichton, who remembers the final pieces of the wormhole information, and he says that he knows what it does -- it could destroy a whole planet. It will self-destruct after one use. Furlow returns and Aeryn goes to seal a hole that she found. The Scarran tells Stark that he wants the transponder soon. Meanwhile, Furlow asks Crichton who else has the device and when he says no one she remarks on how valuable it would be. Crichton says that the Scarrans have her data, so they must be destroyed, and asks her to clear a launch path for the shuttle. Aeryn joins Rygel and wonders why the Charrids haven't squeezed them into a crossfire. Crichton finds Furlow trying to drive away with the device and she gets him at gunpoint to drop his weapon and destroy his goggles, saying that she will go to meet the dreadnought. She opens the door, revealing a flare which almost blinds Crichton and drives away. Rygel and Aeryn see Furlow's escape, with Crichton running to a stranded vehicle. Aeryn joins him and they follow Furlow and on the way Aeryn asks if Crichton can use the wormhole technology to return to Earth. When he says yes, she says that when they have finished their business here they will go together. They are tailed by the Charrids, but the on board gun doesn't work. Aeryn jumps out of the vehicle, dropping a mine. She lures the Charrid towards her and shoots the mine, turning the vehicle over, before she kills the driver. Meanwhile, Crichton continues his chase, managing to turn over Furlow's vehicle. They stand off with their guns and Furlow says that she won't leave without a weapon. A flare hits and Furlow takes Crichton down. The Scarran wants a transponder, so Crais gets Talyn to stick in the Hand of Friendship to hold him as Talyn fires from two sides continuously until the Scarran dies. Stark saves Crais from being caught in the crossfire. The device has been actived and the casing is opening, causing it to emit radiation at certain intervals. Crichton says that it will be useless by the time the dreadnought arrives and he needs to close the casing, however to do so he risks exposure. Furlow says that they both have to go, and urges Crichton to not be the hero but just walk away. Crichton refuses, so Furlow leaves. Crichton then carefully approaches the device, and times his attempt to try and avoid the radiation. However, it doesn't work, and just before the casing is closed Crichton is exposed to a fatal amount. Crichton is devastated, now knowing he is to soon die regardless of what happens. Aeryn arrives, and she and Crichton return to the base. Crais asks Rygel his status and he wants to be picked up to leave. Crais then moves on to Crichton and Aeryn, and Crichton says that they have one shot, and calls for Crais to pick up Rygel and get Talyn to starburst immediately. The others refuse to leave and Crais asks what they can do. Crichton tells him to lure the Scarrans into a wormhole that he will create. As he speaks, Crichton falls off his module and kisses Aeryn. When she asks what is wrong, he replies that he was exposed to the massive radiation of the device; he couldn't stop it. She tries to take over the flight, but Crichton says that she doesn't know what to do. He can't talk her through it, because it's half intuition -- only he knows it. Aeryn says that she loves him and she says that in that case she knows he has to do this, but he is coming back. Crichton launches and Crais sends a message threat to the dreadnought, as Aeryn plants explosives all over Furlow's base. A flare hits, and Crichton creates a wormhole. Talyn is targeted by the Scarrans as Aeryn blows up the base. She and Rygel then wait in the turret. Crichton starts the displacement engine, as Crais sends the Scarrans a message of surrender and gets Talyn to draw them in. As everyone watches, Crichton completes the swirl linking the wormhole with the star. The wormhole fills with the star's energy and then shoots forward and envelops the dreadnought, completely destroying it before it all vanishes. Crais and Stark are left shocked at witnessing the sheer power of a wormhole weapon. Aeryn calls out for Crichton and to her relief he is still there. He says that he told her he would come back. On Talyn, Crichton is in the final stages of his poisoning and is lying in bed near death. Crais enters the room and says that Talyn's radiation treatments should but Crichton interrupts and says that he knows nothing can be done. Crais says that his sacrifice does not go unnoticed and Crichton tells him to find the better part of himself and to take care of the others. Crais says goodbye, and leaves. Crichton tells Rygel that he can't have his stuff and after they both laugh, Rygel says that it will be hard not to think of him, with Crichton adding that he will miss Rygel. When Rygel leaves, Crichton convulses and Starks goes to soothe him with his energy. As he removes his hand, Crichton pulls it back on to his forehead before Stark leaves. Alone, Aeryn tells Crichton that she is angry and that they had good times. Crichton says that he wouldn't change it for the world and says that she made him a better person. She says that she loves him so much and he reciprocates. She would've gone to Earth and he says that he is sorry that she never got to meet his real dad and he never got to meet hers. He says that he is sorry about a lot of things, but she says that he doesn't want him to go that way. He says that now Scorpius is gone, he is at peace and he doesn't want to hurt. He tells her that he did some good things, and is proud of his life, when he's with her. She kisses him and then he tells her not to worry -- he's never felt better, before passing away. Aeryn, filled with emotion, gets into bed, under the covers, and snuggles up next to him. + +We open inside John Crichton's mind, as he and Harvey are in a war truck with black and white picture. Harvey informs John that if Scorpius finds out that he intends to sabotage wormhole technology, he will kill him. Apparently, Harvey no longer wants to die, but to survive. Snapping John out of it, aboard a transport pod, Aeryn Sun tells him that Rygel and Ka D'Argo have reported in from the command carrier. Bialar Crais asks why Jool's hair is red, and she mentions it's because she's anxious. She doesn't know why she came, and wishes she and Chiana had skipped out before, so John says to turn the pod around and let her go. Aeryn says that Moya is over four arns away, hiding with Talyn, at the rendezvous point. The group land on the Carrier, where Scorpius' crew stands to greet them. Scorpius welcomes them, and John gets Aeryn to test the I-Yensch bracelet by hurting his thumb; it works, as Scorpius feels the pain too. D'Argo tells Aeryn that they've been treated fine so far. Scorpius announces that he is granting John and his companions full diplomatic rights, immunities, and courtesies while aboard the ship. He approaches John and says that at last the rift between them is finally bridged. Scorpius asks what convinced John to help him, and John lists the crew saying that it's time he did something for them. He tells Scorpius not to screw with them, and to give them what they want. Scorpius agrees, and Crais interjects to mention one more thing -- they want to bring Talyn aboard for a full cognitive replacement. Scorpius says that this wasn't part of the original agreement, and Braca says it's too risky to bring a gunship aboard. Crais says that Talyn's weapons are shut down, and despite Braca's objections, John says it's not for Crais and adds it to his list of demands, so Scorpius agrees. Crais requests project schematics so that he can isolate Talyn's design flaws, and also requests that Lt. Larell join him as a Leviathan specialist, since she is best qualified. Braca leads him off, and Scorpius invites John to join his friends for refreshments in the Officer's Lounge. He declines, as he came here to work, prompting Scorpius to ask whether that's for or against him. In the Officer's Lounge, Peacekeepers are complaining about having to welcome criminals, but everyone is silenced when Chiana, Jool, Aeryn, Rygel, and D'Argo enter. As Aeryn walks over to get a drink, someone mutters "traitor". As Braca leads Crais to his quarters, he says that there's hostility among the crew as they feel he betrayed them by abusing his command, and he feels the same way. As they walk, more mutters of "traitor" are heard. Scorpius and John join Co-Kura Strappa in the experiment room. They have prepared a small, limited workstation for John, which he destroys saying that he won't eat at the kiddie table -- give him the big toys or send him home. Braca and Crais arrive at the quarters, and Braca tells him not to bother searching for surveillance -- he's not that important. Crais says that he predicted Braca's rise in this organization, and he stands by it. He calls Braca a "consummate Peacekeeper", which seems to anger Braca, so he leaves. Jool says that it's too weird being here, and says to Aeryn that growing up here must have been awful. Aeryn however, despite everything, has some good memories of growing up on the Carrier and tells Jool that it wasn't awful. Chiana asks one of the Peacekeepers if there's room for another at the table, but he kicks it away saying "no". She flirts with him a little but he is having none of it. D'Argo tells Chiana that it's time to move on, and the Peacekeeper calls her a Nebari tralk, and D'Argo a Luxan who took a Sebacean wife and murdered her. Aeryn stops D'Argo from retaliating, reminding him that's not why they're here. Braca comes in and calls the Peacekeeper, Lt. Reljik, who says they were just getting to know each other. Rygel gets the intelligence reports on the Hynerian political situation, and Braca tells D'Argo that he can have his surgery any time now, and they are working on the other thing he wanted. Henta, one of Aeryn's old friends, approaches her, and says that she heard Aeryn was here but didn't believe it. Aeryn offers her a drink, but she says she only drinks with Peacekeepers and throws it in her face, much to the amusement of the others in the room. Strappa is explaining things to John, and he mentions liquification. John says that Linfer explained it, prompting Scorpius to ask what else she said. John says that she died, and asks to see some of her equations. When they hesitate, he says to open the bag or call him a cab -- he can't to it blind, so they reluctantly agree. D'Argo is undergoing the surgery to remove the rings from his body. Aeryn tells John that it's safe to talk here as the mist in the room interferes with surveillance. John asks how she is; she wishes she was elsewhere, but asks if he's decided on a plan. Crichton admits he came aboard with three options available to him; erase their data, send the research in the wrong direction or abandon the plan and run like hell. Unfortunately, Crichton doesn't know how to erase the data and can't divert the research since he doesn't understand wormhole technology himself. That leaves the idea of making a run for it, and although Crichton isn't seriously considering it he warns her not to get too comfortable. Three Peacekeepers, including Reljik, are drinking in the lounge, where Reljik says he could never stand Luxans and he has a plan to give them a scare. Jool and D'Argo are in the misty room, where she tells him that she doesn't trust Scorpius, and asks if this will be where they die. One of the Peacekeepers enters the room with a metal plate on his arm, supporting a rotating blade at the end. A battle ensues with both D'Argo and Jool getting involved. D'Argo attempts to stop the man from falling of a platform, but the man lets go and falls. Reljik enters the room with troops telling D'Argo and Jool not to move. In his room, Scorpius chews out Reljik, informing him that if any guests are harmed, not only will the assailant be executed, but so will he, and sends him away. John asks if anyone can think of a reason to stay, prompting a hasty apology from Scorpius, with assurance that it won't happen again. D'Argo agrees, saying that he's heading back to Moya. Scorpius deems that unacceptable, but John says the less of them on board, the less chance of anyone getting to them. Braca suggests that it will reduce their incentive to keep promises, causing D'Argo to remind Braca of his other promise. Scorpius orders Braca to hand over the file on Macton Tal, D'Argo's wife's brother and killer. D'Argo thanks them and leaves. Crais is in his quarters, when Lt. Larell comes to join him. He asks if she has a problem working with someone who lost command, and she says no -- Scorpius stole his command from him. She adds that even though he left without a word, her feelings for him didn't change, and they kiss. She breaks off, and says that Scorpius knows of their past as she was put in the Aurora Chair, and he realizes that, as he suspected, everyone he knew had been coerced into spying on him. They both say they don't hate one another, and kiss again. John is introduced to a new theory -- to stabilize a wormhole before re-entry. Strappa talks to John about it, when Scorpius asks why no progress has been made. He wants to move faster, and suggest that perhaps, subconsciously, he is holding back. John suggests that he's cool with the idea that Scorpius only wants wormholes to go after Scarrans, if it's true, which Scorpius says it is, and he can prove it, with excerpts from his personal file before he was a Peacekeeper. John asks Harvey if the Scarrans are the threat that Scorpius claims. Harvey says that he can speak objectively, since he's lacking Scorpius' passion, but he concurs. The Scarrans pose a threat to all races. He says that Scorpius has shown his biography to very few people, and John finds that interesting since he's been lying to his face. Harvey adds that he managed to normalize John's energy signature, so he can't detect John's lying. Crais and Lt. Larell go to see Talyn, who has been brought aboard. Crais boards him while Braca asks Larell if he believed her confession. She seems to think so, since he trusts her fully. John and Aeryn are in a planetary terrain reconstruction where combat training takes place. John asks Aeryn if the Scarrans are the real enemy, but Aeryn can only say it's what they were taught. John asks if wormholes are the only way to stop them, but Aeryn suggests it's not his problem; he should focus on why he's here. John says his work is taking a while, so maybe she should return to Moya. Rygel is back on Moya with Jool, Chiana, and D'Argo, and is pleased by the intelligence reports. Chiana has a sudden vision of Pilot screaming, when Pilot suddenly detects Peacekeepers approaching. They attempt starburst, but are shot mid way through, and Pilot screams in agony. Crais and Larell are on Talyn, where she asks what it was like to receive the neural interface. She asks why he would give it up, but Crais says Talyn would not take orders. She says that neither would he, to which he replies that is why he is no longer a captain. She asks if he regrets leaving the Peacekeepers, and he says sometimes. But what he regrets most is not trying to take her. She answers that she wouldn't have gone, not then. Aeryn goes to see Henta, and tells her she was forced to leave by Crais. Henta reminds her that Aeryn could've come back when Crais went renegade, but Aeryn says it was too late then. She didn't want to come back, to which her friend calls her a traitor, but Aeryn retorts with "deserter". Before Aeryn can say more, an alert comes in regarding a captured Leviathan. Strappa tells John about Linfer, and John says he liked her. He finds something wrong with equations, but before he can do anything Aeryn comes in telling John that they've captured Moya. Reljik asks what is going on, and starts to recite Scorpius' orders, when a female interrupts him, flatters him a little, and asks that he look over the prisoners for her. Meanwhile, John and Aeryn are met by Peacekeepers, but knock them out and take their guns. Scorpius asks the lady what she has done, mentioning that the Gammak project is under his authority. She reminds him that his authority is not absolute, and introduces Kor Tosko, the special Luxan ambassador. He tells Scorpius that the Luxans signed a defense agreement with the Peacekeepers, and he was sent to promote other such agreements. The trouble is, half the planets he visits fear the Peacekeepers, and the lady says the other half laugh at them for their inability to capture a handful of escaped prisoners whose exploits are becoming legendary. They care about their opinions because they are uniting as much of the Uncharted Territories as possible to improve their bargaining position with the Scarrans. Scorpius can't believe that they want to negotiate, to which she says a truce is being explored. Scorpius says that may be construed as a sign of weakness, but the Luxan suggests that is what the alliances are for, angering Scorpius. Meanwhile, John and Aeryn are met by Braca, who stops them to tell them Scorpius didn't capture Moya. The woman says now is not the time to provoke the Scarrans, and this project imperils a truce. Scorpius says that he knows the Scarrans, and this idea is suicide. John storms in, sticking his gun in Scorpius' face, telling him to let them go or they will kill him. Scorpius says that Moya and friends are unharmed. The woman interjects, saying they cannot see them as she has taken them into custody. John asks who she is, and she introduces herself as Commandant Mele-On Grayza, and says he must be Crichton. John says that when his friends are threatened, he's infamous for making stupid moves. She agrees, but can't accept Scorpius' deal, and tells Scorpius that he has lost control. Scorpius comms the ship, telling his crew to release Moya and her crew at once. He then tells Braca to have security take Grayza to her vessel and escort them out of this sector. She says that they'll do it his way, but she will return with a full council sanction; he shouldn't have made her an enemy, and John shouldn't have pointed a weapon at her. Grayza leaves, telling Reljik to release the prisoners. He asks if she's sure, prompting her to grab him and say he was ordered, as she stuffs something into his collar. John comms Pilot, and reassures him it will not occur again, and he will hold Scorpius to his word. Scorpius explains to John that this is the stupidity he has to deal with, and says John mustn't fail. Reljik's device bleeps -- it's a comm from Grayza, who says that she intends to remove Scorpius from command. Reljik suggest that few will argue with that, and she says that given the crew's low opinion of Scorpius, and the time it takes to go through channel, she is concerned about Scorpius' safety. Reljik says that Scorpius is well protected, but his bracelet makes him vulnerable. She says then she is equally concerned for John's safety, and Reljik says he'll do his best. Rygel and Jool are gambling with the Peacekeepers, as Aeryn tries to reason with Henta saying she kept some ideals from the Peacekeepers but to no avail. D'Argo tells Scorpius that he can't believe the Luxans made a pact with Peacekeepers. Scorpius says that they remain autonomous, but D'Argo asks for how long. John tells Aeryn in the misty room that his knowledge is becoming clearer, and he could now steer Scorpius in the wrong direction, but he's not 100% sure it's the right thing to do. Aeryn says that the other John gave his life to stop the Scarrans getting his information, but John says that it's his shift now; the other didn't get Scorpius' back-story or know what they know. John says that his next move isn't clear. Aeryn tells him to get clear soon, because he needs to make the decision. Meanwhile Lt. Larell tells Crais that he could come back to the Peacekeepers; by giving Scorpius what he wants from John he could prove his loyalty. John and Aeryn are walking when Aeryn realizes that they're being followed. She leads John into the generator room, but the Peacekeepers enter and a fight ensues. Scorpius is feeling John's pain, and alerts Braca of the assault. One Peacekeeper is killed by a reversed pulse blast, while John uses a jetpack to propel another into the generator, vaporizing him. John flies up with the jetpack but is pursued by Reljik. Eventually, John manages to send him into a generator. Aeryn is met on the ground by Braca's men who shut the generator down so it is safe. John goes to Scorpius with a pulse pistol, just in case, and Scorpius tells him time is running out; Grayza will return soon, and he must realize that the situation was changed by her arrival; their time is short. John says that he can't go faster, but Scorpius believes he's stalling. He had hoped John would see reason. John says that he's here wearing a bracelet, what more does he want? Scorpius brings up an image of Earth, saying that he wants cooperation. John pulls the gun on Scorpius, but Scorpius stabs his own hand and John drops the gun. Scorpius hits John, saying it took quite some effort to locate his planet, and get visual confirmation. Even without wormholes, Earth is within reach; at top speed it'd take just over sixty cycles. Scorpius says that either John gives him what he wants or he swears that he will keep John alive long enough so that he can witness his home world's destruction. + +Aeryn Sun is on Valdun, a planet of mystics and seers, walking through a town square and past an image of John Crichton. A man with bloody eyes approaches her saying he can talk to the dead, but she ushers him away. As she walks up some steps, she looks over her shoulder, but doesn't see Crichton. On Talyn, Crais blames Stark for Aeryn's being on Valdun. They argue, with Stark saying that Aeryn wants him, until Rygel intervenes. Stark then tells the others that Valdun is filled with mystics and frauds and Aeryn's gone to talk to Crichton. Aeryn sits on the balcony of her hotel room in regular street clothes. She studies her knife and glances at her pulse pistol, before calling someone via a comms, asking him to raise a man called Talyn Lyczac her father. Lying on her bed, confronted by a hidden memory of the old Crichton, and begins to remember the alternate life she lived, in which she and Crichton grew old together. Particularly, she remembers the pain she felt when she was older. She receives a knock at the door from a strange looking man. She says that he found her and told her he could contact her dead father, Talyn Lyczac, so she wants him to show her. He says that he can do more than just contact him. He is Talyn Lyczac! Stark and Rygel arrive on Valdun and Stark hears Zhaan's voice. Rygel complains to Crais over the comms that Stark is going mad and begs him to come down. The blood-eyed man comes up to Rygel and as Rygel laughs at him, the man speaks of Kellor, whom he says forgives Rygel and knows a Dominar could not go against his own family. Rygel hovers back to Stark, wanting to leave. As they go to speak to the hotel owner, a familiar face looks on. Talyn tells Aeryn that he had his face altered to hide. Using a Peacekeeper blood spectrometer, Aeryn discovers that their blood matches -- he is Talyn. He goes to leave, knowing he is not what she wants, but she tells him to wait. Stark and Rygel ask the hotel owner about Aeryn. Stark describes her as beautiful and says they are very close. The owner says that no Sebaceans are staying in his hotel and tells them to try a rival across town. As the owner and Rygel continue to talk, Stark hears Zhaan's voice and starts to walk away. He notices someone and quickly retreats, telling Rygel to not let her see them. He points her out to Rygel -- it's Xhalax Sun! They watch as she executes the blood-eyed man for talking to Rygel. On Talyn, Stark holds Crais at gunpoint for not killing Xhalax. Crais tells them that he knew that if they killed Xhalax, Peacekeeper High Command would send another squad, and another, so he offered Xhalax her life in return for telling High Command that they were all dead. Stark doesn't believe, and wants to kill him, but Rygel won't let him because Crais is the only one to pilot Talyn in Aeryn's absence. Talyn asks Aeryn whom she really wanted to find and she tells him that it was a man who died. Talyn says that he will return later with a being that may be able to contact her loved one. When he leaves, Aeryn asks the hotel owner of his origins, but the owner is not forthcoming. Crais, Rygel, and Stark all arrive, and Stark seeing a dying old woman nearby, helps with her 'passing over'  contacting and retrieving some residual info on Aeryn's location from the dying/dead woman. He's informed she's there on one of the levels above. On the way back up to her room, Aeryn notices a number of couples kissing in the passageways and is reminded of loving times she and Crichton had shared, seeing visions of them making love. Stark and Crais knock on her door, but she refuses to speak or let them enter, so Stark forces Crais to his knees at gunpoint outside her door which Aeryn's able to witness through door's peephole. Aeryn steps out and Stark tells her that Xhalax is indeed alive and on Valdun. She brushes it off, saying that she's seen Crichton and her father and that any minute he will see Zhaan. Stark tells Aeryn that she's not just another vision as Crais never actually killed Xhalax, and pleads for her to come back with them saying he'll look after her. She tells him not to touch her, then brushes up against Crais in a puton sexual manner, saying he always wanted her, to steal her away from Crichton, teasing if he wishes he may now have the chance ? Stark pulls her up, but she gets him up against a wall at knifepoint and spits out that she will spear the last eye he has left, that what makes him even worse than Crais is he thinks he's so much better, then sends them both away. Meanwhile, Talyn has got the thing that he wanted in a box and lets Xhalax know. In her hotel room, Aeryn steps out on her balcony and calls out for Crichton. She recalls a moment back on the Ancients' Earth simulation, and starts to kiss a vision of him, the same way he kissed her then. When he vanishes, she gets up and goes over to the open balcony, where Rygel hovers up from below up to her, telling her of what he's been told about Kellor, whom he says was important in his life. Also that he's been missing her, but he knows that self-sacrifice is not the answer. He says that unlike Crais and Stark, he doesn't want to get with her, but Crichton loved her and wouldn't have wanted his death to lead her hereto her own. When she gets a knock from 'her father' Talyn, she tells him to just leave. But Talyn has brought the Seer Cresus, a four foot four-eyed creature eerily looking much like a large half aborted clawed baby in a metal casing, asking her whom she wants to see/contact. Aeryn tells it about Crichton, that he loved her and that he made her a better person. After much contorting a short image of Crichton appears above the Seer's head on the metal casing saying "help me, bring me back." The Seer says through Talyn that it's never felt a stronger vision and Talyn adds that sometimes it can raise the dead. He leaves to get someone who he says will assist with the raising/reanimation. Aeryn dismisses it and lies down exasperated. Crichton appears at her side, saying they can't bring him back. She asks him if it was easy to be a hero, to just leave her behind. They start kissing, then suddenly Aeryn sadly realizes she's actually alone. Xhalax storms into her room, and after a brief exchange of words complaining about having to amputate her own leg after they abandoned her wounded, Talyn follows her in shortly after. Xhalax knocks him onto the bed and threatens to kill him. Aeryn tries to convince her that he's not the one she wants, but Xhalax gets Talyn to lie down and roll over, then unceromoniously shoots him dead. She says that things couldn't have worked out better and she's glad Aeryn and Talyn had met as it makes this revenge all the sweeter. She blames Aeryn for everything that has happened to her since her birth and says she wants Aeryn's pained suffering. She was so close to love and then lost it all in an instant. She asks Aeryn, now that she also has nothing, how it feels ? Crais, Stark, and Rygel are trying to get information from the hotel owner, and after they threaten his life, he shows them a small hidden dumbwaiter-like type elevator they can use to access Aeryn's room. Suddenly, a few of the townspeople start shooting at them. Aeryn tells Xhalax that when she walked in she knew that "Talyn" was not really her father; she had deeply hoped that he might've been, just like she'd hoped to see Crichton again, but in her heart she knew he wasn't her father. Xhalax wants not to believe her. Aeryn says that the Peacekeepers aren't actually as remarkable like she used to wrongly believe -- because they do nothing for love. Xhalax says that she's wrong about that. After Aeryn's birth she was given an order that High Command called a "choice" -- either Aeryn or Talyn had to die. She chose to kill Talyn so that Aeryn could live, and that she did for love. Meanwhile, Stark fights back against the townsfolk as Crais escapes up in the access lift to attempt save Aeryn. Xhalax has Aeryn out on the balcony and says that she was not an assassin but a pilot before she killed Talyn, but they made her kill again and again after that till eventually she stopped caring. She knew Aeryn's suffering might ease her pain and it has. Aeryn says that Xhalax doesn't want to kill her and Xhalax shoots twice but misses. Aeryn calls her out to the balcony, walks right up to the weapon and says that she can't miss up close, unless she really wants to. Then tells Xhalax to rather drop the gun, she hesitates, then just as she is about to Crais storms in and shoots her. Aeryn grabs Xhalax in her arms, half hanging over the ledge of the balcony, but Xhalax tells her to just let her go. She tells Aeryn that she died a long time ago, and looking into each other's eyes Xhalax tells Aeryn to live for her, then reluctantly Aeryn lets her go, to fall to her death far below.  On Talyn, Crais and Rygel watch a recording from Stark, who says that Zhaan is communicating with him and he has gone to look for her. He tells them not to follow and asks them to give the Crichton on Moya his mask, that he will know what to do with it. He asks them to take care of Aeryn, and says he will find them again. Crais says that Talyn has located Moya, and when they meet up, he will leave once Talyn has found another to pilot him. In her room, Aeryn finishes dressing up in her old leather clothes, hair tied back. She tells a vision of Crichton that maybe if he had lived she could have become something different, but now he is gone she is what she was bred to be. Vision-Crichton calls her over, but she refuses, saying that he has to go now. As she leaves, Cresus, who was still sitting there forgotten, and seems to have no means of self-propulsion, tells her that what they do on Valdun is usually mostly a fraud, but with Aeryn it seems/may have been real and asks if she wants to try one more time. Without looking she walks out and away, determined not to look back. + +John Crichton, Ka D'Argo, Jool, and Chiana are travelling in a badly damaged transport pod, damage that was apparently caused by Jool. As oxygen is depleting, they stumble across a Leviathan, though not Moya, wearing a control collar. With nowhere to go, Crichton takes them there, citing it as their only alternative. They dock, and as they look around someone jumps on D'Argo's back, but is shot down by Chiana. D'Argo looks to Crichton and tells him he knew they shouldn't have come. The pod is "dead" and D'Argo says they need 3k wiring and narium coils to get it operational, leading Crichton to suggest a scavenger hunt. Jool suggests borrowing a transport pod, but Chiana has checked and there are none; it looks as though it has been abandoned. As D'Argo and Crichton go on a search, Jool stays behind in the pod, and Crichton tells Chiana to stay with her. During their search, D'Argo stumbles across some bones, which he thinks may be Sebacean. The Leviathan is completely mangled and as D'Argo finds the 3k wire Crichton notices that the ship is oozing pus. D'Argo comments that it is diseased and Crichton wonders if it was hit by some bio-chemical weapon since there are no DRDs. D'Argo wants to go get the narium coils and leave, but to his objection Crichton wants to get to the ship's Pilot so they know what they're dealing with, so they split up. Chiana prepares to leave Jool to join the "treasure hunt", but a scared Jool tells her that they don't have weapons, violence, or war on her planet, so Chiana clocks her with her gun twice. Jool punches her back and Chiana replies, "Violence. you'll get the hang of it." Crichton goes to Pilot's den, and in doing so scares two of the scavenger people off. As he approaches the Pilot, it starts to growl at him and Crichton notices that it only has one arm. Crichton says he's not going to hurt him and asks what happened to him. The Pilot responds by asking Crichton to kill him. Chiana finds a group of scavenger people eating and they eye her up, but she tries to fend them off. Meanwhile, the Pilot again asks Crichton to kill him and says his arms where cut. Crichton reminds him that they'll grow back, but the Pilot splutters that "they cut". Crichton is horrified to realize that every time this Pilot's arms grow back the scavengers just cut them off again. and wonders why they would do that. Pilot reveals that the scavengers eat them. The scavenger people try to eat Chiana and she starts shooting. D'Argo hears and runs towards her, but meets an alien man on the way. D'Argo asks where Chiana is, when the man encases him in some sort of bubble. Crichton finds the man and some scavengers dragging D'Argo, when one jumps on him. Chiana hears and joins him, but all they can do is watch as the man sucks out D'Argo's brain, and the scavengers start to munch on him. Chiana shoots them and kneels over D'Argo's lifeless body. Meanwhile, Moya has starburst without warning in response to a distress call -- from Talyn. He's floating adrift and neither he nor Crais respond to communication. Aeryn goes over and sees extensive damage and finds Crais unconscious. Chiana and Crichton are dragging D'Argo's body when they spot some scavengers eating the ship and Crichton shoots them. Meanwhile, Jool is still alone trying not to be scared, but everything is starting to get on top of her. She goes to leave, but when the door opens by itself she runs back to the transport. Chiana and Crichton drag D'Argo to Pilot's den and Crichton asks Pilot where he can get narium coils. Pilot who occasionally lapses into his native language tells Crichton that the Leviathan, called Rovhu, was a detention ship for the criminally insane. They were part of a convoy, transporting a man called Kaarvok. However the convoy was attacked by Scarrans, Kaarvok escaped and Rovhu, unable to starburst due to the control collar, drifted into the Uncharted Territories. They were drifting with nowhere to go and no food. Crichton asks about why the other prisoners are now scavengers, but Pilot reveals there were no other prisoners. Kaarvok was so dangerous he was the only one. The scavengers are actually the Peacekeeper crew. As they speak, Chiana burns D'Argo's body and, with Crichton's help, drops it over the edge of the walkway into the chamber below. Kaarvok vents the den and then enters. He knocks out Crichton and chases Chiana. He encases her in a bubble, then out pop two Chianas! Kaarvok grabs one and the other refuses to help and runs away, as the grabbed one has her brain sucked out. Rygel goes over to Talyn and tells Aeryn that she's not taking Crais back to Moya. He says that Talyn's supposed to be the meanest, hardest ship ever, yet somebody or something beat the yotz out of him. Aeryn disagrees and says that if they can keep him alive they can find out what happened. Chiana is in Kaarvok's room, trying to get her head around seeing her twin. Crichton thinks she is dead and says that D'Argo's dead and he can see his brains being sucked out. He tells Pilot that the only way out is to take back control. Kaarvok goes to a cell and talks to a prisoner -- it's D'Argo! He says that he saved D'Argo from the Xarai. D'Argo asks what he did with Chiana and he says she's very, very pretty, but the last he heard she was having her best bits eaten by the Xarai. D'Argo asks what Kaarvok did to him; he saw a clone. Kaarvok says that it wasn't a clone; he twinned him: two D'Argos equal and original. He asks why, and Kaarvok says they're going to make babies! He says that he could twin D'Argo again, but once twinned 30 or 40 times you become like the Xarai. He says he'll spare D'Argo the pain as long as he'll breed with one of the over-twinned Xarai. Rovhu starts to move, so Kaarvok leaves D'Argo. As Crichton is looking for the central plexus chamber, Pilot screams and by the time Crichton has returned he finds Pilot has been killed by a harpoon shot to the head. On Moya, Aeryn says that she's going to search for the others. Rygel objects and tells Stark they'll give her 300 microts. Stark says that Talyn will recover, but Crais may not. Jool, still alone, contemplates shooting herself. Meanwhile, Crichton gets Rovhu moving. Chiana hides from Kaarvok, who's on the move, and finds D'Argo with the woman all over him. He asks for help, and she wonders if she's not interrupting something. She finds some narium coils and sets him free. She wants to leave, but D'Argo says he'll go to Pilot's den and meet her at the transport in a quarter of an arn. Crichton tells Kaarvok that he's preparing for starburst, which will destroy Rovhu because of the control collar although at this point he would be putting the diseased Leviathan out of his misery, so Kaarvok shoots at him. Meanwhile, Jool is still contemplating suicide, but as Chiana comes in she pulls the trigger but misses herself. Kaarvok attempts to suck Crichton's brain as he initiates starburst. D'Argo calls for Crichton, who manages to avoid Kaarvok's attack. His twin thing gets stuck in the controls and as the Xarai go to eat him, the twinner explodes and catches Crichton on the way out. D'Argo and Crichton run to the transport where Crichton is surprised to see Jool, and even more surprised to see Chiana alive. As they get on the pod, Crichton walks through the door and is surprised to see Jool alive and even more surprised to see a twin of himself! The transport escapes as the control collar rips Rovhu apart and the two Crichton's just stare at each other awkwardly. Back on Moya, D'Argo tells Stark of how weird it was to see himself, even only for a tenth of a microt and all he remembers is it was a corpse. Chiana says it was just a copy, a fake, but D'Argo says that Kaarvok told him it was an original, equal, but how does he know he's not the copy? Anxious, Chiana says you just know. Meanwhile, with a pulse pistol on the table in between, the two Crichtons play rock, paper, scissors. As Aeryn and Rygel watch on, she asks, "how is 'he'?", and Rygel replies, "still tied." As the two Crichtons continue to throw the same, they recall Kaarvok's words. They are both the original Crichton. No differences, perfectly equal. + +Following the split of not only Moya and Talyn, but also of the crew, John Crichton, Crais, and Aeryn Sun are on Talyn, whilst Rygel and Stark are away doing recon on a transport pod. Crichton is having serious problems, with things not working and the DRDs constantly hovering over him all the time, so he goes to command only to find that the door won't open. Meanwhile, Aeryn, who is with Crais on command, has taken propulsion off-line, in hope that it will help speed Talyn's recovery. Crais mentions that she has a remarkable understanding of Talyn's systems, and then asks if she's thought more about his previous proposal. John is finally let in and he asks Crais why the DRDs are working around him 24/7 so he can't sleep, why he's finding doors locked and the shower cold. He says it's not really a problem, but Crais should not mess with his stuff and he asks where Winona is. This prompts Crais to ask Talyn to have the DRDs search for it, claiming his own innocence. Crichton suddenly notices a moon in their way, but it's no moon. It's a budong and it swallows Talyn whole! Talyn starts to panic, firing weapons, maneuvering thrusters and the like, so Crais and Aeryn try to reason with him. Crichton says that they're still moving down -- they're being swallowed. As Crichton and Crais begin to argue, Aeryn steps in and says that Crichton's right -- they don't want to be swallowed. Crichton says to drop an anchor, so they get to work. Crichton and Aeryn prepare some torpedoes, and go outside to hook them to the bones of the budong. After some turbulence and a miss, they succeed. Stark and Rygel return from recon, but Talyn is not at the rendezvous point. Rygel attempts to call them, but Stark reminds him that comms silence is necessary as Aeryn's mother, and the Peacekeeper Retrieval Squad, are still out there. Stark spots the budong and starts to shut everything down so that they don't attract it. Rygel says he's never heard of that before, but Stark says that's because they're all dead! Rygel decides to get them out of there, but Stark objects. Luckily the budong avoids them and Rygel unsurprisingly passes wind. Aeryn returns to command, where Crais says they have something to discuss and he's engaged privacy mode so it will just be between the two of them. Crichton is still finding doors locked, when Crais' voice, apparently breaking up from interference, tells Crichton to meet him in his quarters. Crais says to Aeryn that he wanted to wait for her to make up her own mind, but events have led to a different situation. Crichton finds a vidchip in Crais' quarters, while Aeryn says she won't remain aboard Talyn under these circumstances, so Crais says that it may be best for her to see him as he is and begins to undress. Meanwhile in Crais' quarters, Crichton watches the vidchip, which contains a video of Aeryn and Crais having sex during a previous encounter. Crichton is somber as he walks to command and enters just as Crais is zipping up. Tension is in the air and Crais says that Talyn has completed the scan and he believes that they can navigate any obstacles like acids and get out by navigating the digestive tract, so Crichton asks if Talyn might freak at the plan to fly out the budong's ass. Aeryn says that he'll be fine with help and she's decided to take the neural interface with Talyn. Crichton is disturbed that they will all be one and asks if there is anything that he can do. When Crais says no, Crichton storms off. Aeryn follows and says she wants him there and that it's the right thing for her to do. He says that she should do whatever, but not to say it's the best thing to do. She asks what he means and he says that it means that she does what she wants to, when she wants to, and with who she wants to. He says it's always about what she wants and she can be with Crais and rejoin the Peacekeeper family she's been pining for. She asks if he's finished and says that he's right -- she doesn't want him there. Stark tells Rygel that he's not overreacting; budongs are deadly. He's tied up Rygel, who through his gag insults Stark's mother. Stark asks what he said and Rygel regurgitates all over him. Stark runs off to clean himself, as Rygel says that he loves that trick. As Crichton runs back to try to get into command, only to find the door locked, Aeryn receives the "Hand of Friendship". Aeryn says that Talyn is beyond beautiful and Crais says welcome to our world. Crais teaches Aeryn how to use the interface and she opens comms and hears Rygel calling for them. Crais explains their situation and Rygel calls Stark out, saying that he claims to be a budong expert. Stark says that the budong's stomach is an inferno, and nothing ever leaves a budong alive, which causes Talyn to panic and try and release the mooring controls. As Crais tries to stop him, Talyn causes him great pain. Crichton arrives on command, when Aeryn notices that Crais has gone; she was busy so she didn't notice. She uses the transponder to find him -- he's trying to release the cables. Crichton takes her gun to stop him, but he manages to detach a cable. Aeryn gets the door open and Crichton shoots the panel to stop Crais from releasing the last one. Crais says that he wishes Crichton had killed him and begins writhing in pain, screaming for Crichton to kill him. There are lesions all over his body. Aeryn manages to knock Talyn out to stop him. In the quarters, Crichton wakes up Crais and asks what's going on. Crais says that it's cybernetic bleed-back; the sores and lesions are physical symptoms. At times of high emotion he and Talyn merge and Talyn gains a degree of control over Crais. Resistance to it causes him pain. Crichton says that he set up Aeryn for the same problems, but Crais says that she'll not be affected and that the choice was Aeryn's. Crichton says that he keeps hearing that Crais has changed, but he thinks that weather changes and they just keep making the same mistakes. Aeryn comes in and says that she put Talyn in sleep mode. Crichton says that they need to figure out what to do next and goes to check on the cables. Rygel wants to escape, when Stark comes up with a plan. He goes to use the comms, but Rygel won't give him the missing piece, so Stark fights for it. Aeryn goes to Crichton, who says that they should be fine and she asks what his problem is. Crichton says that he's doing the good little soldier bit and as they begin to argue, Stark contacts them, saying that they will get out of there. He says that he and Rygel will feed the budong too much ice and Talyn will dump his cesium fuel to make the ice explode, causing the budong to vomit so that Talyn can ride it out. Crichton and Aeryn say no -- they need the fuel. Stark says that they must have some other explosives and Aeryn remembers that the torpedoes have warheads, which she disarmed. Crichton goes outside to arm them, while Aeryn wakes Crais and talks Crichton through the procedure. Stark flies across the budong's eye, making "electromagnetic candy" for it to eat. Meanwhile Crichton arms the warhead and Aeryn says that she'll maneuver and asks Crais to wake Talyn, but Crais says Talyn is already awake! Aeryn tries to tell Crichton to wait, but the comms aren't working. Crichton releases the cable and Crais says that Talyn is moving to leave Crichton behind. Aeryn looks for him and sees the open door, saying that Talyn just spaced Crichton. Crichton is still calling Aeryn, but he can't open the door to get inside. Crais says that Talyn never trusted Crichton, Talyn sees him as a threat to Aeryn, and he wants to protect her. Crais says he tried to persuade Talyn, but to no avail. Aeryn tells Crais to tell Talyn to go back and get Crichton, but Crais says he can't. Aeryn tells him not to lie to her; it's not about Talyn it's about him, her, and Crichton -- he's taught Talyn everything he knows. Crichton realizes that it's Talyn, as Aeryn looks at the open hatch again and gets Talyn to show her the truth. Aeryn tells Crais that it's all Peacekeeper lies and as he goes to say sorry she says that he should be and runs to get Crichton. Talyn won't open the door, even when Crais suggests he does what she says. Aeryn tells Talyn that before Crichton dies, she wants to share something with him denied to Peacekeepers; something he'll never know. She does so and then tells Talyn that is what it is to need someone and says that Talyn doesn't need her and never will and she rips off the transponder. Talyn opens the door just in time before detonation and rides the vomit out. They bring the pod aboard and set course away. Crais wants Aeryn to reconsider, but she says that she has always done what others believe is right, but this is really right. He shows Aeryn the vidchip, saying some of the entries are very creative. Aeryn goes to Crichton, and says that he knows it's not real; Talyn altered the last part of the image -- she never recreated with Crais, not that it should matter. He says that it does, but she says that it never did before. Aeryn says that she had this life and she liked it; it had rules, she followed them and that made everything right, but then he came along and frelled everything up. This strange human, with arrogance and stubbornness. She says that he saw the recording and didn't say a word; she says that he's like a plague and he has ruined her life, yet she just keeps coming back and then she says that he can talk. He shows her his starcharts and his names for stars. He shows her a bright star -- his point of reference. He says that it always becomes the center of his chart and he always names it Aeryn. He says that it's his one constant and as he caresses her face he asks if she wants to name some stars. She says there are a lot of them, but he says there's plenty of time and they kiss. + +As the Peacekeepers continue wormhole tests, another Prowler pilot returns from a test flight liquefied. Linfer blames the pilot, but Lt. Braca is having none of it. Co-Kura Strappa indicates that the equations she decoded from the neural chip are incomplete -- there is an encrypted section. Scorpius believes that this section may hold the key to wormhole technology, but Linfer is certain that she's cracked it. So certain in fact, that she offers to pilot a test flight herself. Scorpius decides that it is necessary to access the neural chip in an attempt to unlock the encoded section, under the supervision of Braca and Nurse Froy. On accessing the chip, Scorpius finds John Crichton and explains that he is not the real Crichton, but rather the result of a neural spillover of the real Crichton's personality into the chip, but for Scorpius' purposes, he will do. Scorpius tells Crichton that they're in his head, and he plans on persuading Crichton to help him by showing him his past. He begins by showing Crichton his first twelve cycles of life and his earliest memories of pain. Then we see a Scarran female, Tauza, and how she forced a young Scorpius to sit up, even though he was suffering from the heat. He believed his father was Sebacean and forced his Scarran mother to birth him which is the story the Scarrans told him. On Moya, Crichton continues to make Moya fly around looking for wormholes, as they have been doing for 15 solar days. Ka D'Argo is getting agitated and feels that Crichton is indulging himself. He tells Crichton that Jool and Chiana need to get off the ship because they're driving each other mad. Crichton says that after this one they will stop and leaves to get some rest. Back to Scorpius' memories, we learn that Scorpius was born with Sebacean heat delirium. Tauza had convinced Scorpius that his loyalties lie with the Scarrans and that he would have to learn to be strong. Scorpius explains that he was also taught endurance and we see Tauza taunting the young Scorpius with water before pouring it over the floor after he asks for it. A Prowler emerges near Moya, sending a distress signal. D'Argo and Chiana believe it may be a trap, but Pilot says that the Prowler is occupied by a Relgarian, a species that he and Moya trust. It's Linfer and she requests to come aboard. Despite D'Argo's objections, Pilot welcomes her. D'Argo, Chiana, and Jool greet her with guns and DRDs in attack posture. Linfer steps out of the Prowler and says that she has solved the shielding problem and asks D'Argo to tell Crichton that she has come to offer him the secret to wormhole travel. Froy tells Braca that Scorpius' readings will soon be at critical levels, but Braca tells her to continue. Scorpius tells Crichton that Tauza's attempts to teach him control weren't entirely unsuccessful; he learned that his hybrid body has the ability to perceive energy readings, different for each species, and the change when the subject is being dishonest. Scorpius explains that her lies made him even more determined to find the truth about his parentage and says that he feigned obedience and over time she grew careless, but he did not. He managed to escape what turned out to be a Scarran dreadnought, and jumped ship on an escape pod before hiding on a commerce planet. Crichton, however, remains unconvinced by his story. On Moya, Linfer tells Pilot and Crichton that Scorpius is still alive and says that she came on her own. She managed to find one of the wormhole's exit nodes which she believed Crichton would have been attempting to study. She is convinced that Scorpius would have killed her, and tells Crichton that since his original craft did not employ phase shielding, he is lucky to be alive. Had the wormhole been unstable, as most are, he would not have survived. She explains that she has developed a unique band of negative phase shielding, which allows any vessel to travel through any wormhole. She offers it to Crichton, in exchange for Moya. Whilst Crichton is against this, Pilot seems ready to accept such an offer. Scorpius tells Crichton that in desperation, he travelled the Uncharted Territories for many cycles, before he eventually flew in to Peacekeeper space and surrendered to the first command carrier he found. We see his conversation with its Captain, Molayne. Scorpius proposed an exchange of information: some of his tactical knowledge of Scarrans in exchange for the truth about his parentage, so he could find out who he should be. Molayne told him that they knew what happened, and the Scarran did indeed lie to him. Scorpius was told of a Leviathan that was full of civilians attempting to find a colonisable planet in the Uncharted Territories, which was attacked by Scarrans. One transport pod survived and we see a reconstruction based on the log files that Molayne showed him. A Sebacean female and a Sebacean male argued over what had happened, with the woman particularly upset, saying that if there was a risk then they shouldn't have come at all. Both were upset and scared. During the night, they were confronted by a Scarran, who killed the male and took the female. Scorpius explains that the woman, Rylani Jeema Dellos, was 22 cycles, and that the transport was never salvaged. Scorpius went to find it, thinking that no-one had touched it in 10 cycles. Before he entered, he noticed a type of plant, which looked unique. Inside, he discovered that the transport was actually rigged with a trap and he was recaptured by Tauza. We see Tauza trying to get information on his Peacekeeper encounters, after she told him that he was too weak to overcome his flaws alone, referring to his new the cooling system. He was tortured and the memory of this causes Scorpius to awake and stop for a while. Strappa tells him that he believes Linfer may have intended to defect, so Scorpius tells him to find out whether this was the case, a sentiment that Braca mirrors. On Moya, the crew discuss Linfer's offer and Crichton says that Pilot and Moya are warming to the offer. Jool, Chiana, and D'Argo are all against it for various reasons, none believing every aspect of Linfer's story. Jool and Chiana start arguing, but Crichton seems to want to accept Linfer's offer. D'Argo proceeds to remind him that that is exactly the attitude that got Zhaan killed and walks out. Jool takes some food to Linfer to get away from the bickering, but Linfer says she was wrong -- her tissue has begun to liquefy and her shielding only delayed its onset. The Prowler leaves Moya, as Crichton runs on to command and tells Pilot to get her back. She thanks Pilot for granting her request and then her prowler explodes. Crichton is angry that they let her go, but Jool mentions that it's funny how Crichton supports Pilot only when they want the same thing. He tells her that's crap, but she says that the truth is never crap. Scorpius accesses the chip again and tells Crichton that he showed him his memories to show what the Scarrans are like. He asks Crichton to help him, as Scarrans far outnumber Peacekeepers and without a superior weapon they will be destroyed. Crichton says that they want to kill Scarrans, Scarrans want to kill them, he doesn't see the difference, so Scorpius says that he'll show him. We see Tauza telling Scorpius that she lied about his parentage to make him hate Sebaceans. She shows him his parents -- Rylani, tied up, and a Scarran male, who raped her. Tauza told him that the mating process fractured her fragile psyche, and during the gestation period she pleaded for death. But because his birth was difficult, it was actually Scorpius that caused her death. In 90 other such matings, both the female and her offspring perished, but they saved only Scorpius to see if Sebacean genetics could serve them, but they now realize that they are useless, even as breeding stock; the Sebacean race will eradicated. Scorpius managed to trick Tauza and kill her. He managed to escape again and sent a locator signal that allowed a Carrier to overtake and destroy the dreadnought. We see Scorpius' memory of a conversation with Molayne, in which he was made exempt from all purity regulations and accepted as a Peacekeeper. He tells Crichton that he quickly advanced in rank, and created a special task force to develop wormhole technology. He doesn't want it so that he can betray the Peacekeepers and use it for personal reasons, he doesn't want power, he wants revenge -- to wipe out Scarrans before they wipe out other races. He appeals for Crichton's help, saying that eventually Scarrans will reach Earth. Scorpius asks him to unlock the remaining calculations, but Crichton says that it's not his to give away. The Ancients told him, "If you're not smart enough to discover it for yourself, you're not smart enough to use it wisely." He refuses, and after Scorpius tries to force him, he disperses himself. Scorpius begins to overheat at the confrontation with Crichton and awakes to Braca who removes the frazzled chip and replaces the cooling rod. D'Argo visits Crichton and Crichton asks if D'Argo's ever wondered if they've been on Moya too long and the toast to that changing. But Crichton reminds him that Scorpius is still alive, and says that Linfer found them, and if she can, Scorpius can. Scorpius recites equations to Strappa - he actually received some of the locked equations. It's incomplete, but should put them on track. Braca enters and confirms that the chip was destroyed by the heat. He says that it doesn't matter -- they may now have the data they need. He tells Braca that his performance has been exemplary and once he leaves, Scorpius steps up and looks pleasantly at a plant, the same type that was outside his mother's transport. + +On Talyn, John Crichton is teaching Aeryn Sun to read English and they start to talk about how the Ancients have called for him and that he is now seeking them out. He starts to kiss her leg, when through the window he sees a familiar sight -- a wormhole leading to Earth. On command, Crichton calls for the Ancients and "Jack" comes aboard. He says that he thought he knew John, but he may have been wrong. If he was, he may have to kill Crichton. Jack enters Crichton's mind and says that the Ancients found a world to inhabit, but on travelling to this new home they saw something. Jack shows Crichton an image of the Farscape-1 module being flown through an unstable wormhole, by an unknown alien. It happened about a third of a cycle ago, but Crichton says he knows nothing about it. The module also had a phase stabilizer on board -- a device allowing for safe travel through any wormhole. Crichton tries to convince Jack that he didn't do anything and doesn't know of "the gift" that the Ancients gave him. Suddenly, Harvey calls Crichton, the surrounding being a fair ground's bumper cars. Harvey says that Jack will terminate both of them if he learns of Harvey's existence and says that Scorpius didn't build the module; he only has access to Crichton's knowledge of the module, and if Crichton couldn't rebuild the module from memory, Scorpius would therefore not be able to do so either. He leads Crichton to one conclusion: Furlow. Crichton tells Jack about Furlow and they leave his mind. Jack shows everyone on command the alien flying through and Rygel recognizes it. He tells Stark that it was a Charrid -- they invaded Hynerian space 1,000 cycles ago, killing a billion Hynerians, including 80 million of their young. He says that they repelled the Charrids with suicide attacks, but with wormhole technology they could invade without warning as they have no defense against that. Bialar Crais enters and says that it's more serious than they could imagine -- unconfirmed reports suggest an alliance between the Charrids and the Scarrans. Jack tells Crichton that the Ancients may not be able to defend against a hostile species. He stayed behind to stop anyone finding their new home. He probably won't ever be able to join them. They go to Dam-Ba-Da, Furlow's planet and find it sterilized. Crichton and Aeryn take some weapons and Crichton apologises for screwing up her life again. They continue talking and he says that he wouldn't like to go home alone, but she says she wouldn't want him to and they agree to talk about it later. Everyone leaves in a transport pod when Jack detects a solar flare -- he can sense when they're coming. They land, and Crais, Crichton, and Aeryn go to Furlow's base, but are met with heavy gunfire. Another flare comes, and an army of Charrids surround them from either side. The three fend them off, when Crais announces that Talyn knows they're in trouble and is coming to help. They unsuccessfully try to talk Talyn out of it because another flare is imminent. Talyn comes, but is blinded by the flare and because of the neural link, so is Crais. Crichton and Aeryn storm the base, while Stark retrieves Crais and takes him back to the pod. Crichton and Aeryn find Furlow tied up and as they cut her down more Charrids attack. They fend them off, saving one for questioning. It threatens them and Furlow says that the only way into the base is through the front entrance. Furlow shows Crichton the duplicated module and says she flew it through an unstable wormhole four times and survived. She hired the Charrids for security, but they double-crossed her, killed all her techs, and tortured her. Stark takes Crais back to find Talyn, and Rygel and Jack are sent to join Crichton and Aeryn. Furlow asks Crichton who Jack is and he explains that he is here making sure that the wormhole technology doesn't fall into the wrong hands. Rygel goes to the Charrid, who threatens him. Rygel says he knows about Charrid physiology and weaponry. He has a Charrid weapon designed to be effective even against their own kind and he doesn't care that the others want him alive. Jack tells Furlow that she has no idea of the value of wormhole technology, when the Charrids begin a mortar attack. As Aeryn scouts, she hears a scream; Rygel has killed the Charrid, but was told a Scarran dreadnought is on its way to the planet and it will arrive in six arns. Aeryn says that even if Talyn could see, he couldn't stand up to a dreadnought -- it's twice the size of a command carrier. She takes Rygel with her to go and do something about the Charrids. Jack and John tell Furlow that they are prepared to destroy the technology if the Charrids get in. Stark and Crais find Talyn badly damaged, as Aeryn shows Rygel how to operate one of the gun turrets to keep the Charrids away. Rygel is reluctant to stay there alone, but with a bit of reverse psychology she persuades him. Meanwhile, Jack tells Furlow that a wormhole can be turned into a weapon of incredible destruction. He says that there's too much danger to sell the technology, but Furlow pulls a gun on him. He shows her his true Ancient form, saying that he understands the risks that wormhole technology brings and convinces her to put her weapon down. Aeryn sets explosives all around the base, as Furlow tries to get Crichton to go with her. She says that they can leave before the Scarrans arrive, only selling the wormhole technology to peaceful races because the Scarrans won't leave anybody breathing. Her computer is suddenly remotely tapped in to by the Scarrans, and although Crichton and Aeryn blow it up, the Scarrans managed to get enough data to create a phase stabilizer of their own. Jack says that they need to destroy the dreadnought, but they have nothing powerful enough to do so. Jack thinks they can convert the stabilizer to a weapon, but he needs Crichton's help. He tells Crichton of the equations that he implanted in Crichton's memory during their last encounter to guide him to develop it on his own. He says that knowledge is dangerous and the Ancients didn't want to give it to him at all. He says he can unlock it, but if the Ancients knew they would kill the both of them, but he says he has no choice. Jack gets Furlow to get the things that he needs and once she's gone, Crichton tells Jack that he has a confession and tells Jack that he knew of the stuff that they put in his head. Jack asks how and so Crichton tells him that Scorpius put a chip in his head, but it's gone now, more or less. When Aeryn returns, he says there's more -- a chunk of Scorpius' personality was left behind. Jack says that they can’t unlock the information in front of the clone and says that although his mental powers are limited, together they may be able to drive the clone from his mind. An explosion occurs and Crichton is knocked unconscious. As the Charrids enter, Harvey calls for Crichton and threatens him, saying that he will not go easily -- either he will survive or neither of them will. Aeryn and Furlow manage to kill the Charrids and Aeryn wakes Crichton. Crichton has decided to go through with it and Rygel calls saying that he has run out of ammo. Aeryn goes to give him some more, telling Crichton not to start without her. On Talyn, Crais tries to take manual control to help Talyn and says that something doesn't feel right -- it must be the docking control. Stark gets through to Aeryn, but soon loses communication when a flare strikes. Aeryn stocks up Rygel's ammo, as he fends off some Charrids on vehicles, apparently enjoying this. Aeryn returns to Crichton and he hands over his gun. After they kiss, Jack begins. Harvey and Crichton are on a rollercoaster. Harvey pleads with John for mercy, as he doesn't want the wormhole knowledge. Although Scorpius does have a copy, Harvey doesn't know of care if he can access it so there's no reason to get rid of him but Crichton disagrees. He says that he is happy to co-exist, but Crichton isn't. As the rollercoaster starts to pick up speed, Harvey reminds Crichton that he's helped him in the past, and even saved his life but Crichton counters that Harvey was helping himself. As the coaster begins to fall, Harvey tells John that the alien is using him, and he'll kill everyone when he's finished with Crichton, who gets angry when he lists Aeryn as a possible victim since Harvey killed her. Harvey reminds him that she's alive, but Crichton tells him that they lost Zhaan as a result. Harvey feels himself starting to be purged from Crichton's mind and gets desperate. As Jack struggles, Harvey and Crichton are seen hanging from the rollercoaster structure. Harvey begs to be saved, but John refuses and Harvey climbs up and dangerously snarls "I warned you!"  just before they both fall. In real time, Crichton and Jack fall to the floor. Rygel continues to fire, but a number of vehicles come from behind and launch a mortar into the turret, which leaves Rygel badly wounded. Aeryn finishes CPR on Crichton and he awakes, only it's not Crichton -- it's Harvey! Scorpius-John grabs Aeryn by the throat and says that Crichton gambled and lost. With tears in her eyes, Aeryn puts Crichton's gun to his head, ready to shoot him. + +Just after Scorpius threatened to go to Earth, he tells John Crichton that he doesn't care of Earth or his species; only that they matter to John. He says that he's out of time -- the Commandant may return at any time, and he must give her results or she will scrap the research and the Scarrans will take over half the galaxy. John just tells Scorpius that he's screwed, but Scorpius reminds him that if he is "screwed", then things around here will get very ugly. John, Aeryn, and Crais are in the Officer's Lounge, and Aeryn says that they've already succeeded as Grayza is due back soon with the authorization to shut down the wormhole project, but John says that Scorpius will not just sit back and let his baby die. In the restorative chamber, Jool, Ka D'Argo, Rygel, and Chiana agree that they'll stay no longer. The others enter, and John tells them that Grayza's arrival changes everything. He tells them that he's run out of time to destroy the research from the inside; there's only one option left -- destroy the command carrier! John tells them that all of Scorpius' data is on the ship, this ship is the Peacekeeper wormhole project. Rygel says that the ship is over a metra long, prompting Chiana to ask if it can be done. John says that he doesn't care how, while Aeryn tells them that there are over 50,000 men, women, and children on board, but John maintains that they'll find a way to get them off. D'Argo objects, although John reminds him that is what they came here to do. He asks Crais if there is a way, and Crais replies that he'll need to see specs on the modifications since he left. John assures them that they can do this, and that they have to try. Rygel says that he's seen how powerful wormhole weapons can be and what horrible destruction they can wreak -- no one should wield such power. Crais attempts to board Talyn, but an officer stops him, saying that Scorpius has ordered them not to allow Crais on board. John and Harvey talk, and John asks if Scorpius really would attack Earth. Harvey says that he wouldn't put it past Scorpius to travel for sixty cycles to destroy an insignificant planet simply for revenge, and then asks if whether if he gained the ability to return home, he would really destroy that information. Co-Kura Strappa snaps him out of the discussion, and John is absentmindedly writing all over his hands wormhole equations which is unlocking more secrets. As Co-Kura leaves to enter in the new data, John realizes that he is accessing the wormhole knowledge through his subconscious and he could succeed in controlling them if he wants. Lt. Larell tells Crais that he must get aboard Talyn, but Crais replies that Talyn is dead, unless he has something to trade. Braca enters Scorpius' command room, bringing in Crais under armed escort. Crais says he has a demand, prompting Scorpius to send him away. As he is dragged out, Crais says that he demands he suffers no repercussions for his actions during exile, that the Leviathan hybrid be resurrected, and he will be the leader of that project alongside Lt. Larell, but Scorpius stops him. He says that he assumes Crais has something comparable to offer, and Crais responds that he has more than that. Scorpius says that once Commandant Grayza returns, any agreement they make may not be honored, but Crais says that an executive order signed now, no matter what Scorpius' dishonors may be in the future, will stand. Scorpius accepts his terms, and has Crais released. Crais tells Scorpius that John has no intention of helping him -- he is conspiring with some of Moya's crew to destroy the Carrier. Aeryn enters the Peacekeeper training ground, finding an injured girl. She takes a look and cleans it up, but Henta comes along, and hits the wound, saying to let it bleed and scar, as she'll want it later, and sends her away. She tells Aeryn not to make her soft, but Aeryn says that there is so much she doesn't know. Crais comes along and tells Aeryn there is a problem, and to follow him. Meanwhile, D'Argo, Rygel, Chiana, and Jool have secured their information on the Carrier for John, but are stopped by security. John is still working, and Strappa says that the equations are flowing from him. Scorpius enters and says that it seems John's subconscious has blossomed, despite himself. He tells John that his plot against the ship has failed -- his friends are in custody. Crais is brought in, and John leaps on him. He's restrained, but screams that Crais is dead. Scorpius says that if Grayza insists his friends stay imprisoned then so be it. John says that it was all him, but Scorpius tells him that he makes no more demands; cooperate or he'll kill them all. D'Argo, Rygel, Jool, and Chiana are in a cell, where D'Argo says he was a prisoner for 8 cycles before. Rygel adds that last time it took him 130 cycles to escape from the Peacekeepers -- he was lucky. John goes to the generator room to meet with Aeryn, but Crais is there too. She tells John that he needs to listen. Crais says that the ship can't be destroyed by throwing switches; he needed the distraction so that Scorpius would believe that the plot had failed -- he kept Aeryn safe because he needs her. He says that all he cared for are gone, his parents were taken away, his brother is dead, so now he does and lives only for his interests. Despite that, he understands the power of the technology, and the horror that will wash over the galaxy if anyone wields it, but he now knows that he's the only individual capable of stopping it. John goes to leave but Aeryn says that they're all on the same page; they all want the ship destroyed. Crais tells John that the only way to do that is with Talyn. Aeryn adds that Crais proposes that he and Talyn starburst while still in the Carrier's hangar, doing such in an inclosed space will cause a massive explosion, causing the hangar to collapse upon itself. It will then take at least half an arn for the rest of the Carrier to fully implode, giving the crew some time to escape. John asks Aeryn to tell him that she believes Crais, so she in turn asks if he has another way to destroy the ship. Crichton admits he hasn't, then asks Crais where they meet with him and Talyn. Crais tells him they won't; starburst in a confined space will in fact destroy Talyn as well as himself but notes it will be the hero's death the young Leviathan deserves. However he tells Crichton he will need a significant distraction to occupy Scorpius, and John says he'll get one. John returns to the experiment room and tells Strappa that they're going on a trip to get his module. Larell meets Crais in a corridor and asks what's happening. She tells him that she knows something is wrong, and if she suspects he's conspiring against Scorpius she must report it. Crais says that yes, she must, and tells her not to be disloyal to Scorpius in any way. In front of everyone, he hits knocking her down, and tells her to tell Scorpius it won't work -- next time he sends a spy, to send someone he actually cares about. On Moya, Strappa tells John to hurry. In his den, Pilot tells John that Moya understands; at least the violent death he was destined for this way will be a more noble one. He asks if he'll see John again, and John tells him to be ready to starburst away if he doesn't see them rushing at her to escape, and to give Moya his love. Pilot forwards her love to him, as well as his own. Aeryn is walking the corridors with a rope, as John is prepping his module for flight. Scorpius asks why he got it, and John says that he has a theory as to why his primitive ship with no shields survives wormholes. Scorpius calls for the first pilot who is ready to fly it, but Crichton says no -- they may screw things up. He admits that he could die on the trip, but that the Commandant will execute him on her return anyway. He invites/challenges Scorpius, who will die anyway due to the bracelet if anything does go wrong, to accompany him instead to finally experience wormholes up close, unless he's too afraid to do so !? Scorpius and John are in the module, and enter the nearby wormhole. Scorpius tells John that the experience is without description. They approach a zone of instability, as the entire ship listens to them over the comms, distracted. Crais tries to get to Talyn, but the same officer stops him again and says Scorpius' orders changed -- if Crais tried to board Talyn again he was to shoot to kill. Strappa announces that all their readings are in the danger zone, while Crais throws a small grenade to distract the Peacekeepers. Aeryn swings down from the ceiling and they take the Peacekeepers out. John tells Scorpius that flying wormholes takes finesse, and manages to stabilize. Aeryn has her hand on Crais' face, and tells him to go now. Scorpius says that he's never felt this "connected", and Strappa tells them they should return to the Carrier. Crais boards Talyn, and tells him not to be afraid. He says that his weapons were all confiscated by the Peacekeepers, and Moya will be enslaved unless they do something radical, together. John and Scorpius return, when Crais' voice booms over the ship-wide comm. He tells Scorpius that he is making his final goodbyes, and that he is standing in Scorpius' heart about to squeeze hard. Scorpius tells Braca to locate and stop him. Crais tells Scorpius that he is the most repellent of creatures; he wasn't born into the Peacekeepers or conscripted against he's will and taken from his home like Crais but actively chose to be one. Scorpius orders to scramble all Prowlers, but Braca tells him they're not planning to escape. Crais says that the last time he left this ship, his ship, Scorpius forced him out, and stole his life from him. This time, he is not leaving quietly. Scorpius calls to get the traitor off the ship, but as the Carrier starts to shake, John tells him to hang on to something. Scorpius is shocked at realizing that Crichton and Crais were working together all along, and snarls as Strappa. At Crais' order, Talyn starbursts and is destroyed in a massive explosion, sending energy rippling through the Carrier. People, in a panic, run through the corridors screaming, as D'Argo says to the others, "he's done it -- it's going down". Escape pods, Prowlers and Marauders start fleeing the doomed carrier. D'Argo and the others shout to be released, as the cell begins to fall apart. Aeryn clears the training ground, as Scorpius leaves the experiment room. The next room he enters becomes flooded with water, but Scorpius continues to walk, only stopping for a moment to watch his ship fall. John tries to get an outraged Strappa to leave, saying that the wormhole technology would not just be a scientific achievement, as he sees it -- but a weapon with the potential to kill millions, and he can not let the Peacekeepers have it. Strappa informs him that other than John he too holds significant data, and Scorpius will find him and force him to tell him what he knows. They go to the Aurora Chair to wipe his memories, where John tells him that he's very brave. Aeryn arrives at the cell, where as it collapses the bars bend, allowing everyone to escape. Scorpius returns to his command room and comms the ship to begin priority-one escape procedures, and then tells Braca to go with him. Aeryn comms John to tell him the others are OK, and John says not to wait -- he's going to his module and they'll meet back at Moya. John erases the knowledge from Strappa's mind, as D'Argo calls Pilot to patch him through to his ship. He voice activates it for rescue retrieval. Aeryn is faced by Henta in a corridor, where she blames Aeryn for costing some people their lives. Aeryn replies that she knows she's saving millions, but Henta says she cannot save herself. Just then, one of the bolts of fire emanating from the destruction hits her, and Aeryn is forced to watch her former friend ensure a painful death. Pilot tells D'Argo that they must escape before the implosion or Moya will be destroyed. John reaches his module, but is met by Scorpius. John says that it looks like their partnership is over. Scorpius says that John's name will be remembered by millions, as because of him the Scarrans will soon destroy them all. John replies that one evil at a time is the best he can do. John asks if he'll still go after Earth; Scorpius replies that the only vengeance he ever cared about is now no longer within his grasp. They tell each other the codes to remove their i-Yench bracelets. John says "we were close", and throws the bracelet down. He says that if they're going to get off this boat, now would be a good time. Scorpius tells him that he may not be getting off, and sadly says goodbye. John calls for him, but he leaves. Aeryn comms that the others are away, and she's leaving in a Prowler now. John tells her to fly safe. Back on Moya, D'Argo says he knew they'd ultimately leave each other but he didn't know it'd take this long, and Rygel replies that he won't miss anyone. Then, "well, maybe a little". Chiana tells D'Argo that she'll probably try to find the Nebari resistance. Jool is with Pilot, who asks whether or not she'll also leave if they find her people. She starts to cry, and says that from what she can tell, she won't be the only one leaving Moya soon, which saddens Pilot. On command, John is seated, still writing equations on his body next to a sad and silent Aeryn, as they think about Crais and Talyn's sacrifice. + +Scorpius awakes from visions of being on Moya with John Crichton and finding a wormhole to a call from Lieutenant Braca. As Scorpius unplugs himself from some device, Braca tells him that he thinks they've finally done it. Scorpius leaves and on the way looks out a window to see a wormhole. On Moya, Crichton wants Moya to continue searching for what he believes may be a wormhole. Pilot refuses to go any further unless the others agree, but they’ve had enough. Chiana tells Pilot to get them out of there and Jool leaves too. Despite Crichton's pleas, even Ka D'Argo says that enough is enough and leaves himself. Crichton tries one last time to get Pilot to continue, but instead he tells Crichton that Moya is about to pass through a cluster. When she does, Crichton sees some kind of energy being that passes straight through his body a couple of times, and he falls to the floor. Suddenly, he is lifted in the air, and blood starts dripping all over the floor. When Crichton wakes, he tells Pilot that a light came in to Moya, but Pilot knows nothing about it. Crichton sees his pool of blood, and runs off command screaming for the others. Chiana spots him and he asks if she's alright. She says yes, but that he looks terrible. He tries to describe what happened, then asks if he is cut. She looks and says that maybe he imagined it. He takes her to command, but his blood has been cleaned up. When Chiana asks, Pilot again says that he registered nothing. Chiana tells Crichton to go eat and then bathe because he stinks. Crichton takes the DRD who mopped up his blood and tries to find some, but finds nothing. He goes and sits down, then suddenly notices blood all down his forearm. Crichton goes to Pilot, who again tells him that scans indicate the cluster is harmless. He then suggests that it may have something to do with degradation from Kaarvok's cloning. Jool wonders what's going on as her chamber is boiling hot and the maintenance bay is leaking. Chiana says that Pilot is having trouble with the internals as she places a bucket underneath a leak. D'Argo and Crichton come in and Crichton says that something is very wrong and wants the others to sit and watch him in case he bleeds again. Very reluctantly, D'Argo forces the girls to sit and watch. The dripping water continues and after a few minutes Chiana asks to go. She gets up but slips; there's water all over the floor as the bucket is over-flowing. Jool wonders why it's full already and Crichton reiterates that strange things are happening. He had the DRD record them and the playback shows them falling unconscious and then suddenly speeding up. Needless to say, everyone is baffled. Back on the Carrier, Braca tells Scorpius that the prowler maintained integrity on the last six re-entries, with no gravitational distortions. The project leader, Drillic, says that Scorpius' indecision is a waste of time -- a manned flight should take place immediately. Co-Kura Strappa says that if the trial is not completed soon, they will have to find another wormhole to test. When Drillic insists, Scorpius cunningly agrees. D'Argo says they were out for about half an arn, when Jool notes that she may have lost time earlier but had put it down to a malfunction. Everyone goes to see Pilot, who now stinks, and he awakes throwing them back, saying that for one of them, judgment starts now. Crichton asks what he means, and he says Pilot is gone - he's here now. Pilot is possessed. He says that he can stay in Pilot for a while without harming his body, so he can find the diseased energy rider. When they passed through the cluster, a rider escaped and now inhabits one of their bodies. He says that he must taste them one at a time to find it. They leave Pilot, and try to find out if they have any control of Moya now that Pilot has been overtaken. Jool says that she thinks it's in Crichton since he was the first affected, when Chiana says maybe Pilot is the only infected one. D'Argo says that they have no control over Moya. On the Carrier, the prowler pilot has returned but is not responding to comms. When they check, he has been reduced to goo. Scorpius says that his integrity is definitely not intact. Drillic says that it won't happen again, but Scorpius tells him that it will happen once more and orders him to pilot the next trial. He objects, but Scorpius tells him that Braca will insist. He makes Co-Kura Strappa the new project leader and tells him that knowing what to expect, he can find out what went wrong. Crichton and D'Argo return to Tallip, the rider inside Pilot, who says that they cannot ambush him. D'Argo says he wants to see Pilot who tells them that Tallip's not lying -- a creature is in one of them. Tallip repossesses Pilot and asks them to help him find the rider. He says that if he were to possess them, he would destroy them. He tells them that the rider should not know anything about their private lives, as that may help narrow their search. D'Argo and Crichton then tell each other personal things before questioning Chiana. After a pause she answers them, so they turn to Jool. She tells them how she was frozen, but changes her previous story on how her cousins were frozen, saying she was lying before. Chiana doesn't believe her and tells Tallip to take Jool. Despite the ensuing objections, Tallip does indeed taste her in an extremely painful process, but after says that he did not find the rider which may still be hidden in Jool and so he must taste each of them in turn. While D'Argo stays with Jool, Crichton and Chiana get a DRD and start talking to Moya through it and she agrees to help. The DRD, which Crichton names "Pike", takes them to Moya's starburst chamber, below the neural cluster, where Pilot cannot detect anything. In the chamber, a control comes down that Chiana pushes, initializing a small energy burst, which they soon shut off. Chiana asks why Moya would ask them here for this and walks towards the starburst crystals where the energy forms. The rider can be seen above her head and it reveals itself through Chiana to Crichton. The rider says that it's glad that he knows and she jumps on him saying that she wants to try the body and that the body wants him. She says that Tallip said she would hurt the body, but he's lying -- she loves the tight body. She says that she hides because Tallip wants to kill her; he likes pain and after he will kill the crew. She says that she won't lie, and touches Crichton, causing him pleasure, to indicate Tallip is pain and she is not. Scorpius is injecting himself, presumably with nutrients, when Braca interrupts. Scorpius asks Braca why a human -- Crichton -- can survive re-entry and not a Sebacean. Scorpius says that Braca is his second in command because he doesn't ask questions and asks Braca why Peacekeeper High Command gives them so much reign in chasing Crichton and researching wormholes. Braca says he doesn't question High Command and Scorpius asks him if it would surprise him to learn that the Scarrans are planning a massive assault against them, but they have not struck because they fear the hidden wormhole weapons. Braca says that they have no hidden weapons, but Scorpius says that they lied and he thinks the Scarrans are beginning to suspect that. High Command reports that the Scarrans have been amassing armies and the latest estimates have Scarran warriors outnumbering Peacekeepers ten to one. Scorpius says that if and when they attack, the Peacekeepers will lose, unless they harness a superior weapon -- wormhole technology. Without it, Sebaceans will be gone and sometimes he thinks it's already inevitable. On Moya, Crichton uses DRD Pike to ask Moya what she wants them to do. Moya states that she wants Crichton to hand Chiana and the energy rider over to Tallip. Even so, Crichton is still wary of just handing her over therefore he and D'Argo go to Tallip and say that they've hidden the rider, but Tallip chooses to taste D'Argo. Meanwhile, Jool goes to Chiana and threatens her, when Crichton comes along. The rider grabs both Crichton and Jool by the throat and when she lets them go Tallip tastes Chiana and drives the rider out, but it goes into Pilot. Jool comforts Chiana, while Tallip says he killed the rider, but he has mastered Pilot's body and the ship, and now he will stay. Crichton finds Pike again, and tells Moya that she was right and he should have handed the rider over straight away although he still thinks Tallip would have betrayed them and has another plan that requires her help. He sends Jool to the neural cluster where D'Argo is waiting and drags Chiana off with him. He says Moya is going to redirect starburst energy to kill Tallip and when he calls Chiana she has to join two wires then get out of the room. D'Argo and Jool do their part and Crichton tells Tallip that he's killing Pilot because of his circulation rate. He convinces Tallip to go into Moya and Crichton signals Chiana who manages to join the wires and gets out of the room just in time before the starburst energy incinerates her. Pike is not so lucky however and is trapped inside. The starburst energy floods into Pilot's den and destroys Tallip just before he can inhabit Moya. Pilot tells Crichton that he can't stop trying to get everything back to normal. Jool leaves to rest, when Crichton calls D'Argo. He doesn't answer and Chiana says he's here with them. Suddenly D'Argo walks in, and baffled, Crichton leaves to sleep. Meanwhile Scorpius is resting again, this time not hooked up and has visions of grabbing Crichton by the throat and telling him to tell all he knows about wormholes. Crichton manages to turn it round, and he tells Scorpius it's game over as he throws Scorpius into the wormhole. Scorpius suddenly awakes, with a look of both determination and fright. + +Crais prepares to shoot Xhalax Sun, but instead he tries to bargain with her, saying that he will exchange Talyn, the escaped prisoners, and even John Crichton for Aeryn Sun and his reinstatement as a Peacekeeper. He then turns to the camera, asking, "Is that what you think happened Crichton?" and on Talyn he tells Crichton that he knows he will never be a Peacekeeper again. Aeryn joins them on command and mentions that another Peacekeeper Retrieval Squad will be sent after them, prompting Crichton to tell Crais that he should be noble and jump ship. As Crais reminds Crichton that they're chasing Talyn too, he suddenly feels pain in his head and says that Talyn is out of control. They're flying directly into a sun! Crais tells everyone that the sun is emitting radiation that is compelling him to fly into the sun, but he cannot get control. Talyn does manage to change the course himself just in time. Everyone goes to assess the damage, leaving Crais on command. As Crichton and Aeryn assess a damaged conduit, some mist starts to vent through the walls, although neither see it. Crichton gets a shock from the conduit, prompting Aeryn to suck his finger to make it better. Stark finds some mist and hears a voice, which he thinks is Talyn. Aeryn and Crichton continue repairs, when Aeryn tells Crichton to pay attention to his work. He places his hand on her leg, prompting banter about how easily distracted Crichton is by her. To prove her point she purposely drops a spanner and bends over in front of him. As they start to make out up against the wall, Crichton notices the mist. On command, Crais tells Crichton that the mist is Drexim, which is Talyn's equivalent of human adrenalin. Crais says that it may have an effect on them all, but it should be manageable. Aeryn enters and says that it's too late for any kind of mask to prevent any effects, as they would already be affected. When Crais leaves, Aeryn and Crichton start gazing at each other. Stark hears the voice in a room that he has never seen before. A woman manifests herself from the mist, calling herself Sierjna. She says that she seeks the Pilot, but realizes that this Leviathan is different to others. Apparently, the room is a pilot's den. She proceeds to tell Stark that she's trapped; after an accident on her Leviathan, everyone but her was killed and she floats around but remains unseen by all on other Leviathans until now. She then proclaims that only Stark can save her. The only way for Talyn to filter out the radiation pulses would also cause the loss of sensors, effectively blinding him. As Aeryn finds some faulty systems, an intruder enters command, saying that he wants to help them. He says his name is Mu-Quillus, and if this ship is a Leviathan then they must leave immediately -- they are in grave danger. He says that 83 Leviathans have already died here -- Talyn will succumb. Crais, Crichton, and Aeryn all remain cagey and as they question his origins, Crichton and Aeryn get close and start touching each other. Mu-Quillus says that he tries to warn Leviathans, but they always perish. Crais doesn't buy it, and orders him to leave the ship. When he doesn't, Crais and Talyn fire on him. Sierjna tells Stark that he must get her away from the sun quickly -- Mu-Quillus found her and kept her from dying and now keeps her here. Apparently, he murdered her ship and all its passengers. He is luring Leviathans to their doom with this siren star, under contract from other builders whose sales are diminished by the sale of Leviathans. Sierjna tells Stark that she wants her life back, but he says that she has already passed beyond life. She perished with her shipmates -- Mu-Quillus trapped her soul between realms. She doesn't believe that she is dead, but he offers to help her cross over, saying that he can only release her. Aeryn and Crichton continue repairs and realize that they can't be near each other and concentrate; they must focus on repairs or they will get distracted. Rygel is eating in his quarters, when Stark brings Sierjna to see him, but Rygel can't see her. He thinks that Stark is going crazy, and Stark explains that only he can see her. He takes her out of the room, when Mu-Quillus comes to take her home. He says that she can't stay here because the ship is doomed and tells her that Stark can't help her. Sierjna tells him that she will stay on the ship, after which Stark says that he can free her. Aeryn rushes to finish her repairs so that she and Crichton can make out. As he props her up against the wall, Talyn starts to rumble. Apparently, the pulses have changed and Sierjna tells Stark that Mu-Quillus is luring the ship back in. Crais can't change the course and Aeryn can't block the pulses out. When Stark goes to the pilot's station to try and guide Talyn away, he is caught by tendrils. Crais' neural transponder dies and all systems go down. Stark has bonded with Talyn and guides him away, then tells everyone that they're saved. He soon notices that Sierjna has vanished because they've gone too far away and so he goes back to get her. He tells everyone that he is now Talyn's pilot. Crais tells Crichton and Aeryn that Talyn must have developed a rudimentary pilot's den, saying that Leviathan physiology is complex and some genes must not have been filtered out. Crichton goes and shoots Talyn's guidance system, so Stark can't maneuver. Stark gets a DRD to shoot at Crichton and Aeryn, but she manages to take it out first. Crais goes to the den, but finds the door locked and so he tries to persuade Talyn that he's trying to help. Crichton and Aeryn are guarding the conduit and decide that they have time to make out. Sierjna comes back, telling Stark that he's risking everything by returning. He tries to cross her over but it doesn't work. Rygel continues to eat, when Crais comes to him. Rygel begs Crais to shoot him because he can't stop eating. Crais says that he needs Rygel's help; Stark is a mutineer and has taken Talyn. He needs Rygel to try and slip through a ventilation duct. Rygel says that he's not slipping through anything when his stomachs are that size, but Crais tells him that he is captain and is giving Rygel a direct order. Rygel tells him to get close and bites his ear. Mu-Quillus appears and tells Stark that he is stopping Sierjna from crossing over. Sierjna says that if she goes back then Mu-Quillus can let Talyn go, but Mu-Quillus says that it's out of his hands. She then leaves with him against Stark's wishes. Talyn has apparently gotten too close and Stark tells everyone that he can't fight it and apologizes for failing them. Aeryn and Crichton realize that they never give up and separate after proclaiming their love for each other. Aeryn goes to the den, where Crais starts giving her orders. He pulls his gun on her when she refuses to help and she laughs and runs off. Crichton is on command and tries to get Stark to give him control of Talyn's cannon to destroy the lure. Stark starts going over all of his failures, when Crichton calls Aeryn his Zhaan and says that he would do anything for her, even die for her, but Stark is killing his Zhaan. Stark gets emotional and returns some controls. Aeryn arrives on command and says that they only have one chance and she will prime the cannon. She convinces Stark to fire the cannon by saying that Zhaan is speaking through her and it is her wish. Sierjna appears to stop Stark and Mu-Quillus arrives on command to strike a deal to release them. They refuse his demands and Talyn fires. Mu-Quillus turns to dust and Stark crosses Sierjna over. Crais is cutting Stark free from Talyn, and says that Talyn is now off limits to him. Stark says that he knows how Talyn feels and what he thinks about everything, including Crais. Crais tells him that he knows nothing and threatens him with a knife. Meanwhile, Crichton joins Aeryn on command, where she tells him that Talyn is better. Since everyone else is busy, he says that they have about an arn and they close the door. + +Ka D'Argo and John Crichton are in D'Argo's new ship since D'Argo has roughly figured out how to use it. A major malfunction occurs and D'Argo blames Crichton for touching something that broke it. He says that he has nothing; the ship is all he has. Crichton protests his innocence but to no avail, as D'Argo, in the midst of one of his hyper-rages, pushes him against a pile of crates, which fall on Crichton knocking him unconscious. At the same time, the ship's shields fluctuate and a beam heads for D'Argo. Jool is tending to Crichton, who is in a coma. The ship is interfering with Moya's systems; D'Argo thinks that Crichton's interference triggered a security self-destruct sequence and he doesn't know if he can fix it. Moya's hangar doors won't open, so they can't escape and Chiana has a go at D'Argo for trying to kill Crichton. In a temper and possibly out of guilt, D'Argo throws his Qualta Blade to the bottom of Pilot's chamber. Pilot tells them to reactivate the DRDs so that they can rewire Moya. Chiana goes to work and sends Jool, who is tending to Crichton, to help D'Argo. Inside Crichton's mind, Harvey shows up asking Crichton his reasons to live. He asks for the Letterman list, which Crichton says is: Earth, dad, pizza, sex, cold beer, fast cars, sex, Aeryn, and love. Harvey says that none of that will help restore John to consciousness, but revenge will. He mentions Aeryn's love for the other Crichton, saying that revenge is the strongest emotion -- he has to even the score with D'Argo. He tells Crichton that he can't get rid of him -- his mind's not strong enough. Crichton takes that as a challenge and turns Harvey into a cartoon. He wonders how John turned him into a cartoon, but hits his head, and sighs to think that it's Looney Toons! Harvey turns himself back and talks about revenge some more. Crichton refuses to go that way, and turns him back into a cartoon, asking if he really wants revenge. When Harvey says yes, Crichton drops a 1,000 ton weight on his head! Jool joins D'Argo in the hangar and D'Argo says that this is the first time that he's had problems with the ship since he's been out alone four times, so it's Crichton's fault. Back inside John's comatose mind, Pilot tells Crichton to rise above D'Argo's behavior, saying that he and Moya find it advantageous to avoid confrontation. By running the pursuer will eventually tire. D'Argo comes along and the chase is on. Crichton gets in his module and takes off. Into toon land we go, as D'Argo chases Crichton with a rocket pack on his back. A number of scenes ensue with D'Argo chasing Crichton, much like Wile E. Coyote chases Road Runner. Eventually, as Crichton brags to Harvey that Pilot was right, he and his module is caught in a web, and spider-D'Argo gets him when he screams in terror. Real Harvey tries again to convince Crichton that revenge is the way to go. Pilot tells Jool that the ship will explode in just under an arn and tells her that they can take food and supplies to a pressure hatchway, where they can survive for a few days if he jettisons it. Jool gets upset at the thought of leaving him. Chiana goes to D'Argo, who says he doesn't like to lose. She asks then why did he lose her until he hurls some Luxan verbiage that his grandfather used to say at her. The ship responds to it and brings up some words and speaks in Ancient Luxan. D'Argo gets Pilot to provide some temporary translator microbes via a DRD. Jool and Chiana are moving Crichton and Jool can't believe that D'Argo doesn't know his ancient tongue. Jool then confesses to Chiana that she thinks she was the one who'd messed up D'Argo's ship. A shouting match ensues, until D'Argo interrupts. Crichton is now on the floor because the girls dropped him during their argument. Chiana then tells Jool never to tell D'Argo what she had done. In his mind, Crichton asks Jool what he should do and she says that he can reason with D'Argo. Back in the real world, Jool joins D'Argo on the ship, and tells him that it may have been her, but D'Argo knows already because he found some of her shed hair in the control. D'Argo is mad and asks what she was doing in here. She says that she knows she can be difficult and that no one wants to spend time with her, but he is someone she likes and since his problems with Chiana and his son, he spends a lot of time alone in here. She thought that if she learned a little about it they might have something to talk about. D'Argo calms down and thanks her for making the effort. Back in John's neverland, Crichton walks past a room where a cartoon Aeryn is standing, wearing skimpy lingerie. She's not happy that her clothes are gone, so Crichton erases and redraws her as Jessica Rabbit. After playing along for a moment, Aeryn takes matters into her own hands and starts changing herself, becoming versions of Marilyn Monroe, a Baywatch lifeguard, Madonna, and even Nancy Reagan before finally ending in a toon version of her usual outfit. She asks what he will do about D'Argo, who appears round the corner and chases Crichton, prompting the shout, "Run Forrest! Run!" The cartoon D'Argo again tries to catch Crichton and refuses to talk when Crichton asks. John tells D'Argo he knows Dr. Chuck Jones, who wrote the book on the examples. Eventually D'Argo catches him, so Jool was wrong. Harvey, in a surgeon's outfit, revives Crichton, again saying that revenge is needed. Back in reality, the DRDs are ready with limited microbes for Ancient Luxan. The ship repeats how to stop the self-destruct sequence -- one of three ancient Luxan artifacts must be presented: ancient freedom text, an Orican's prayer amulet, or a Qualta Blade. This means that the three have to begin searching the bottom of Pilot's chamber for the blade. In his mind, Crichton asks Chiana what to do. She initially agrees with Harvey's idea of seeking revenge on D'Argo, and proceeds to come on to John. Meanwhile, Jool is searching through sludge at the bottom level. Chiana tells her to watch out for falling metal. Moments later, metal falls, just missing her, apparently dropped accidentally by D'Argo. Back in John's head, Chiana suggests to Crichton that he outsmart D'Argo, so after more Road Runner action, Crichton blows the cartoon D'Argo up. Jool hears noises and asks Pilot if anything else besides them live in Moya. Pilot confirms that, among other things, a colony of bats lives in Moya. Jool, already getting a bad feeling about what the answer is, asks if they leave droppings, and Pilot states that these droppings help seal microscopic cracks and its these droppings that Jool is currently wading through. She responds by letting out an ear-piercing scream that makes everyone wince.. Again, the cartoon Crichton outsmarts D'Argo, but in the end Crichton tries to go through a wormhole that D'Argo painted on rock and his ship is destroyed. The real D'Argo arises from the flames and tells Crichton that he can't hide behind cartoons forever. Harvey gives a eulogy for Crichton by his gravestone, as Crichton's death is his too. Crichton appears and says that he loves Aeryn and that that should be enough. Harvey says it won't get the job done, that Crichton should get D'Argo, if only in his own mind. Crichton doesn't want to, but Harvey says that he can take him. The real D'Argo tries to get Crichton, who's in a swivel chair, but when he turns him around, Crichton drops him down a trapdoor. Jool falls over in the sludge and stumbles across the Qualta Blade. D'Argo and Chiana run to the ship and D'Argo slots it in, stopping the self-destruct. In Crichton's mind, D'Argo again goes after him, but in the chair is an exploding stuffed patchwork. Crichton has achieved his revenge and Harvey wants thanks for saving his life. Crichton tells Harvey that he was wrong - for him, revenge is not the answer. He tells Harvey never to distract him from what he feels -- he loves Aeryn - though he unexpectedly tells Harvey, amiably, that he appreciated the clone's help. In the real world Crichton comes back to life. In the ship, D'Argo is forced to identify himself and the ship hands over its controls. As he and Chiana celebrate, Crichton appears in the doorway, says hi, and falls over. Jool can't get the gunge off her arms and Pilot thanks her for her sacrifice to find the blade. Chiana tells her not to frell with everything and Jool says that she and D'Argo have sorted it -- she gets the first ride on his ship. Chiana mutters to herself, Kids, as Jool leaves. Crichton is spacewalking outside Moya and D'Argo is on command, asking Crichton to listen. He says that sorry doesn't cut it, he has so much rage and sometimes he doesn't know how to control it. Crichton says that he needs to learn now that he has the baby ship. D'Argo says that Luxan code says aggression against an ally entitles retribution. Crichton tells D'Argo to look at him and says that there's nothing that would ever make him take revenge on him. They touch hands with the window in between and D'Argo thanks him. He asks Crichton what went through his mind, what he saw when he was dead. Crichton tells him that it would be impossible to explain to him as he turns to glimpse one last view of his animated world. + +Aeryn Sun and Ka D'Argo are moving the remaining Interion cryo-chamber and D'Argo is still hurting from finding out about Ka Jothee and Chiana, but doesn't want to discuss it. Aeryn tells him they were just rebelling like children and offers to listen to him. Stark is watching Zhaan in her quarters, as her condition is getting much worse. John Crichton complains to Pilot that Stark says Zhaan needs to be put in soil soon, to which Pilot says a planet meeting requirements is less than an arn away. Crichton wants to go immediately but Pilot says he thought Crichton might like to see this first it's a wormhole Crichton tells Pilot to take readings, but Pilot says that a ship is approaching fast, and it collides with Moya. When Crichton gets up, the two ships appear to have some how merged. Pilot and Moya are in a bad state, when an alien steps out calling for Neeyala. Crichton pulls his gun on him and everyone panics in a standoff. Stark and D'Argo go to tend to Pilot as the alien comments to Neeyala that they seem to communicate in different tongues and yet all understand each other. A DRD injects her with translator microbes and she introduces herself to the crew as Pathfinder Neeyala. D'Argo and Stark are with Pilot, who vomits everywhere, saying that he cannot function here. He tells them to disconnect him from Moya's neural nexus and then vomits again. The merged ships are still stuck in the wormhole, as Neeyala explains that her ship was regaining dimensionality when the ships collided. They are trying to bring online a generator that will hopefully help separate them. The alien man, Kreetago, attempts to join in the discussion only to be rebuked by Aeryn because for not being injected with the translator microbes, however she must show him around the ship to help familiarize himself with the ship. Neeyala says that they can escape the wormhole through a small gap that they pass every third of an arn. They have ricocheted into the turbulent zone of the wormhole -- the distorted region dividing a wormhole from normal space-time. In her quarters, Zhaan sees an image of an Earth-like planet through her window before an image of a serpent flies past. Stark enters and Zhaan tells him that the Goddess has chosen her harbinger. Stark tells her of the planet that is near, but she says a serpent lies between which Stark says is a hallucination. She tells him that he's so afraid to let go and he tells her he has a darkness that frightens lovers away; when he assists the dying he involuntarily absorbs a tiny part of their existence. Over the cycles he's accumulated a vast reservoir of evil. He says that he can't bear to lose the one thing that mitigates the twisted core of his existence. Crichton explains to D'Argo and Stark that they need to wake Pilot to get starburst when they get to the gap. Everyone goes to seal all the vents while they have time. When Chiana arrives to assist D'Argo, he's less than friendly. He's still cold with regard to their relationship. In the cargo bay, Rygel has accidentally triggered the remaining cryo-chamber to open. The woman inside suddenly wakes up, asks who Crichton is, and says his time is up. She thinks he's Sebacean and when asked she clearly hasn't heard of Earth. Crichton asks her name, to which she replies Joolushko Tunai Fenta Hovalis, but it's so long he shortens it to Jool. When Rygel tells her that she was in the chamber for 22 cycles she lets out a terrible scream which melts nearby metal. Moya starbursts, but it only causes more damage instead of setting them free. Zhaan tries to heal one of Neeyala's injured crew, but since Neeyala is the only one with translator microbes she cannot communicate with it. Neeyala believes that the generator can be repaired before they're all incapacitated, but she needs vital information about their position within the wormhole and asks Crichton to get it. Stark tells Crichton that stopping starburst took everything out of Pilot, so Aeryn goes to help. She has a private word with Crichton first where she brings up how suicidal the plan is. She's worried that the wormhole's getting him a little too excited. Meanwhile, Zhaan says she couldn't save Cresto and Neeyala gives Crichton a position recorder and says that she appreciates the risk he's taking. As Aeryn opens the hangar doors, Stark, rather disturbingly, notices how pretty she is. She says that she's not Zhaan and they'll get her out of here and put her in the soil that she needs to heal. Meanwhile, a young Pathfinder named Shreena tells Kreetago that the generator is leaking and she doesn't want to die, but Kreetago says that the information on the ship must be saved no matter the cost. Jool asks Rygel how her cousins died and as he's about to say Chiana enters and stops him from blabbing. Jool asks what they're not telling her, but Chiana says they're in a crisis so to either shut up, help, or go back to sleep. Jool says that she won't be spoken to like that by some alley whore when Crichton comes in to take Rygel with him. They leave in Farscape-1 and begin to take readings. Aeryn goes to D'Argo telling him Pilot's been unconscious for an arn and he should stop ripping out the wiring. D'Argo's angry with himself, though, because he almost forgave Chiana. He asks how he could trust Chiana again and then asks if Aeryn can trust Crichton. She says that he trusts the aliens and that wormholes seem to blind him. Suddenly a serpent shoots past and it's definitely real. Rygel asks what he and Crichton are doing here since they're just recording images. He wants to escape the wormhole, but Crichton tells him he's being selfish. Rygel reminds him how they all came together against their will and all want to go home. Zhaan is with Pilot and Stark says how masterful she is with him. Zhaan says that he must replace her and minister to these souls. Stark says he loves her and Zhaan asks if she didn't feel the same and more how could she ask this sacrifice of him? Rygel attempts to take over the module, escaping from the wormhole, but Crichton whacks him and goes back in, where they get caught in the docking web. Rygel swears that Crichton has attacked him for the last time. Aeryn and Zhaan have Neeyala in command and are questioning her about the serpent. She says that she could have killed them all, but didn't and instead worked with them, proving her intentions. She explains that the serpent only exists in wormholes and is only visible when shifts in the phase are present. Jool and Chiana run in having been scared by the serpent, when it comes into command. D'Argo and Stark meet in the corridor saying that systems are failing everywhere. D'Argo blames Pilot, but Stark says the stress on Moya is frying junctions everywhere -- the wormhole is killing her. Meanwhile, Zhaan visits Rygel who is preparing to kill Crichton, but talks him out of it. He tells her he appreciates her counsel and she says that by him accepting it she knows so. Crichton is watching the images captured from the wormhole, only he's watching them in his mind with Harvey, sitting on his car at a drive-thru. Harvey resents being called there at Crichton's whim and when asked says he thinks Scorpius is alive and that the wormhole technology is the center of a new research facility. Crichton tells him that only one ship can survive and Harvey says he knows; it's a shame about Moya. He asks if Crichton called him to talk him out of his guilt, which Crichton refutes saying he still hasn't decided. Harvey tells Crichton that he knows he's already made the decision to abandon Moya in favor of the wormhole technology and is simply trying to justify the decision to himself. Reminding him that if Moya and Pilot are to die anyway he needs to take advantage of the huge prize that has dropped upon him and call it a day. Later, the crew are debating which ship to use, with Zhaan, Stark, Aeryn, and D'Argo objecting to leaving Moya while Crichton, Jool and Neeyala are in favor. Neeyala explains that after separation one vessel slides into the portal maintaining a chance of surviving, the other will tumble through the wall to normal space. While Zhaan continues to object, Rygel and Crichton say they have to leave Moya and Zhaan comments on how desperate Crichton must be for the wormhole technology. D'Argo adds that he places his obsession above the lives of his friends. After everyone leaves, Rygel tells Jool what really happened to her cousins. Zhaan meets Chiana in a corridor and Chiana says that she feels guilty as she loves Pilot and Moya, but doesn't want to die here, so Zhaan comforts her. Aeryn tells Crichton in a cargo bay that everything is blown. After Aeryn leaves, Jool enters and attempts to kill Crichton, but is unsuccessful and D'Argo tongues her. D'Argo notices that the gap in the force field of the ship he brought aboard is the key to its access, then tells Crichton to lock Jool up. Neeyala tells Shreena that she does not enjoy sending the youngling to her death, but plays a guilt trip about her family and says the crew of Moya must not know her true mission. Meanwhile, Chiana checks a panel, but before she closes it, it shorts out. She tells the others that there's no way they can repair all the damage. A big shake occurs and Aeryn says that settles it -- they will abandon Moya. As everyone reflects on the decision, D'Argo sees Chiana and says that he can't leave her alone in pain. Once again, Crichton watches the pictures from the wormhole in Pilot's den, and tells Pilot he's so sorry. He notices one of the pictures is a familiar black and white scene. It's the Three Stooges. Suddenly, the serpent attacks and he's left hanging on the edge of the walkway, with a long drop below. + +Confronted by the serpent, John Crichton manages to reach for his pulse pistol and scare it off. The recording device is damaged, but when Aeryn Sun and Zhaan join him he says that he saw a picture of a TV transmission from Earth: The Three Stooges. He says it means that some part of the wormhole is 40 light years a most from Earth -- he could get home when Zhaan points out the selfishness of this in the current situation. She asks where Neeyala's injured crewmember is, since their blood is on the floor. They realize that the phaztillon generator, which could alter the phase of an object, could have made them invisible. Kreetago tells Neeyala that he continues to grow weak. She says that they must continue to make the crew believe that Moya grows weak; the remotest hope will make them rally to her, then Kreetago makes himself invisible! Neeyala tells him to sabotage the ship, to make them see that they must abandon the Leviathan. Chiana, Crichton, and Rygel are discussing whether or not to go on Neeyala's ship if the aliens are lying, as the rest of the crew is also convening saying they cannot trust Crichton's judgement and Aeryn says she is sure Crichton is still talking to Scorpius. They describe their plan to discover Neeyala, but it's exactly the same as the others' plan. Rygel agrees to search below Pilot's den. Aeryn coughs something up and Stark notes that she sheds -- referring to a tied up and gagged Jool. Crichton meets Ka D'Argo in the new ship and they both ask each other what they're doing here. D'Argo fiddles about with the controls which worries Crichton and D'Argo says that being on Moya has changed him. He says that he neglected Chiana, but what troubles him the most is that he did his very best and it wasn't enough and as a result he lost her and Jothee. Crichton says that his grandmother once told him that life is like a great wheel, in that sometimes it grinds you low while other times it lifts you high. The point is, most times you get a second chance with it -- you just have to wait for the wheel. Rygel finds Shreena's body, apparently bitten by a serpent. He takes a sample of her needles for Aeryn as she says she likes to know her enemy. In command, Zhaan begins to lose control to her illness and snarls that Neeyala's betrayal must be punished before she regains control of her. Aeryn states that being revived in exchange for Zhaan giving up her health was a bad trade, but Zhaan tells her not to underestimate herself. Zhaan gently tells Aeryn that despite how it looks they're actually a lot alike; both with violent pasts but changed for the better aboard Moya and Zhaan feels that her life is growing short, she knows Aeryn has a life full of possibilities ahead of her. Jool is upset about her current situation - being captured on a ship after 22 cycles asleep by a group of prisoners. Stark snaps at her in his madness and says he'll show her something to make her cry forever, causing her to scream and a panel to short out. Stark tells the others that it was offline -- someone invisible was here. Neeyala tells the crew that her mission is guaranteed by their families, who will be executed if they fail. She says what's left in their situation is wormhole technology, garnered at great cost with extreme power and asks Crichton to compare it with the life of a Leviathan and its Pilot who are doomed anyway. Aeryn tells her to stop Kreetago, but Neeyala says that he has no communication device and will continue his mission. D'Argo and Chiana find Kreetago with the help of DRDs, but Chiana gets shot by one of his needles. Zhaan gets Rygel's samples to make an antidote and tells Neeyala that if Chiana dies she will kill her. The generator has reached optimal phase and will gauge one last time when it's activated, then when it releases they'll find out if the ships are destined to separate. With Aeryn and Crichton's permission, she activates it, giving them an arn or so. D'Argo gets Stark and Rygel to help him reconnect Pilot to give him a chance of survival. If they're not done in time, they'll race to the other ship. Meanwhile, Crichton and Aeryn are preparing for starburst, with Crichton saying that he really blew this one. They hear Jool scream and go to scare the serpent away from her. Zhaan manages to heal Chiana thanks to Rygel. She tells D'Argo of how she wanted him to kill her when she first came aboard Moya so she wouldn't stay imprisoned. He says a planet is out there to heal her, but she says it is now in the hands of the goddess. Rygel says to Stark that it's too bad about Pilot -- he liked him. Stark says that Pilot liked Rygel to; he told him so. Meanwhile Crichton unlocks Jool and tells her to call them back when she thinks the generator will blow. Moya begins decompressing when Crichton and Aeryn encounter the serpent again. Crichton says that he has a plan, but she says that they never work. He says that they always do, but she says they never do. They climb into the new ship and turn on its force field which the serpent runs into and dies. Crichton finishes off his tier and Aeryn eventually gets to hers. Zhaan prays to the goddess to see her path when Aeryn enters Pilot's den. Zhaan asks the goddess to save Moya and Pilot and to ask anything in return when Aeryn says that the seal held and the air is thin, but breathable. Aeryn gets Moya's adrenal secretions pumping to attempt to revive Pilot. Jool asks Crichton why Moya is so important to him and he says she's like a parent -- she raised them. Crichton is visited by Harvey, who says that he's free -- no more dumpster. He says that Crichton will do anything to save his ship, so why assume less of Neeyala? He runs to Jool, who's been hit in the head. Aeryn has managed to wake Pilot as Crichton confronts Neeyala, who says that she should have killed them when she had the chance. She has gassed the room so that if Crichton uses his pistol it will cause an explosion. She's attached a beacon to Moya so her race will come and seek her out if Moya survives. She begins to shoot needles when Crichton runs into Jool. Neeyala shoots at them to kill but Jool's scream melts the tips before they hit. Crichton kicks Neeyala and she falls onto the generator and is vaporised. Crichton and Jool get to the generator's control, but Aeryn says that Pilot needs more time for the calculations. Zhaan enters and tells Crichton the controls, as Aeryn is on her way. The others won't make it, so they say they have voted to stay together no matter what. Pilot has to initiate starburst seven microts after the generator is unleashed and Aeryn tells Crichton they don't have to be as close as he thinks, since Moya's weight gives an advantage with the gravitational pull of the wormhole. Pilot gives Crichton manual control and Crichton wants Aeryn to take over. She's reluctant when Zhaan says to Crichton "John, no!" He says he's got this and Aeryn asks what's going on. Jool says that someone has to actually trigger the generator., meaning they will be stuck on Neeyala's ship when it is destroyed. Aeryn wants to, but Crichton says this is his fault so he will. Zhaan interjects and says that in this instance they are both wrong. She is willing to sacrifice herself to save the others as her illness is frighteningly efficient and it is likely too late for the planet to save her. Stark yells "no!" but is stuck in another room. Zhaan says she has chosen this path while she still can. D'Argo says that she's needed aboard Moya, but she says at one time she was and now a family has been born. He says that she birthed it and Chiana says they love her. Crichton says he can do it easily, but she says if it's so easy then to allow her to. Aeryn objects, but Zhaan says that if she's so valued and so wise, they will honor her words; they will obey her. She says that she knows she's worthy to meet the goddess now. Zhaan tells them that there is no blame, only what is meant to be. She tells them to grow through their mistakes, and redemption will find them. Crichton says to wait for the wheel, and she thanks him, and then gives them a goodbye. Stark screams, when Zhaan touches him mentally, asking him to guide her to the place of rest, so she can share her last moments with the man she loves. She initiates the sequence and the ships separate. She can be seen on it one last time as the crew cry out for her before the ship is destroyed. Crichton helps Aeryn to the control and they manage to steer Moya out. With Moya still damaged, Rygel is with Pilot who says that Rygel has never paid this much attention to him before. Rygel says that he just hasn't noticed and that he likes Pilot, a lot, and knows Zhaan did, too. He says it's a shame that he didn't get to say goodbye, but Pilot says when he was unconscious she came to him in his mind. He already misses her. Jool is after Chiana, giving her a hard time about some shoes. Chiana says that she has just lost one of her very best friends, so she is nothing but nerves right now. If she wants someone to like her, she should invest in a mirror. Aeryn is with Stark who says she doesn't have to hover over him. Aeryn says she expected him to be more upset, but he says Zhaan was not resistant. She was so at peace, so certain what was next was better, she doesn't want them upset, but wants them to be positive in her spirit. Crichton sits alone in Zhann's destroyed quarters, knowing that it was his obsession with the wormhole that cost his friend her life. In his head, he's watching a memory of the Three Stooges at a Drive-In with Harvey, who asks him why it is always the gentle ones who pay the price for someone else's ambition. Crichton, knowing the words to be true, throws his beer bottle away in a rage. + +The two John Crichtons argue over who is the clone. Aeryn Sun gives one a green t-shirt so as to distinguish them; we have John-black and John-green. Ka D'Argo, Chiana, and Rygel are on the planet Moya is orbiting, Kanvia, attempting to get a hold of some chromextin -- a stimulant required to heal Talyn. Aeryn sends John-green to watch Crais and sends John-black to Talyn to help Stark. Rygel comes close to securing a deal, but because they require such a large quantity the dealer says it needs the security officer's approval. A man enters the refreshment house and comes on to Chiana as if she's some sex slave, which D'Argo takes exception to. Cue a fight, in which D'Argo unsurprisingly overcomes his foe, but the dealer walks out wishing Rygel luck -- D'Argo just attacked the security officer. Over on Talyn, Stark tells John-black that everything, even Talyn's DRDs, are offline. Crais' neural link may be the only thing keeping Talyn alive. Back on Moya, John-green goes to Jool, who is healing Crais, and persuades her to test him to prove that he's real and John-black is the clone. John leaves and Crais suddenly grabs Jool, an unfamiliar face, by the throat. She manages to stab his hand and let out a scream, causing John-green to return after calling Aeryn. Crais is shocked at the sight of Aeryn since he left Moya before her resurrection. He tells everyone that Talyn was attacked by Peacekeepers -- they want Talyn back. Rygel is talking with Kanvia's sovereign, Rinic Pralanoth, father of the security officer, Rinic Tolven. Tolven's sister, Rinic Sarova, appears to be on Rygel's side, but Tolven believes that they're hiding gunships to attack. Pralanoth tells Rygel that there will be no sale and gives Rygel one arn to leave the planet. Crais explains that Talyn destroyed a Prowler, but this was a diversion; he was surprised by a Vigilante with an immobilizer pulse. They barely managed to break free and starburst, but that used all of Talyn's remaining energy. Aeryn notes that Talyn was attacked by a Peacekeeper Retrieval Squad. Crais says that they won't be afraid to take Moya to get to Talyn and says that he will leave to allow Moya to flee, but the others say they will not abandon Talyn. As Rygel attempts to leave the planet, D'Argo and Chiana are at the refreshment house, trying to find another source. Crais awakes from unconsciousness and tells Aeryn that Talyn was designed with intelligence gathering facilities. He and Crais accessed Peacekeeper database, including Aeryn's personnel file, where he found what is on the chip. Aeryn watches the recording -- it's of the time that her mother, Xhalax, came to tell her, as a child, that she was conceived in love, not to fill the ranks, and she says that it makes Aeryn special. She and Aeryn's father, Talyn, wanted her and love her. Crais says that it was on both Aeryn and Xhalax's files, but he found no information on Talyn. Xhalax's last notes on her file detail a promotion -- the Retrieval Squad is under the command of Senior Officer Xhalax Sun. Tolven is told that the ships have not left and orders the missiles to be fired. Moya and Talyn are shook by the missile fire and Moya's sensors are disrupted. John-black has a plan and Moya and Talyn descend into the bonosphere, where Talyn targets his main cannon as John threatens Pralanoth. Tolven is ready to continue firing, but Pralanoth objects and orders the missiles to stand down before asking to speak with John face-to-face. On the planet, John-black asks what Pralanoth's problem is and Tolven objects, while Sarova is again apologetic. Tolven's men grab John and a lobster-like creature is attached to his face -- it is a Stranit and will kill him with one blow if he lies. They ask him if he is here to disrupt and cause them problems, but John is adamant that they just want Chromextin. Meanwhile, Crais and Aeryn are on Talyn and Crais again asks Aeryn to come with him and Talyn, hoping she can persuade her mother to stop pursuit and be more, like he and Aeryn. John-black, D'Argo, and Chiana are talking in the bar when John gets a call from Sarova. She wants to meet John alone to discuss the Chromextin. She takes him inside her refreshment house and tells him that Tolven will not allow the transaction, despite Pralanoth's order. As John and Sarova talk of how she and Tolven will jointly rule, but she wants to do so alone because she believes Tolven is stupid. She says that she believes he will continue to try to stop the transaction, when a putty bomb explodes. The others take an injured John back to Moya, and Sarova is left behind as she tells them that no-one must know the two of them met. After the crew have left, Sarova is approached by an ominous figure.  Jool tends to John and announces he will need a blood transplant due to a cut artery, so John-green volunteers. Later, Jool tells John-black that he and John-green are both perfect copies of the original. John-green asks to be filled in on what happened on the planet as he plans to pay them a visit. Tolven tries to tell Pralanoth that Sarova was with John, when the unscathed John-green enters, acting as though nothing happened. Tolven says that he has witnesses and that John was probably conspiring to take power. John goes and gets the stranit and announces that he did not meet with Sarova and was not present at any explosion which is technically the truth. Pralanoth tells Tolven to give John what he wants. Meanwhile, Aeryn sees John-black and tells him that Crais is preparing to leave and this time she believes that Crais is telling the truth. The others spread Chromextin on Talyn, when Crais starts screaming; the Chromextin is poisoned. Jool's analysis shows that it was mixed with clorium -- a substance that numbs Leviathans. Jool and Chiana have to use Moya to filter the clorium out, as Aeryn and John-black head to Talyn. Aeryn says that the Retrieval Squad must be near and if they're here then Talyn will have to starburst and won't be able to go back. John-green and D'Argo pay Tolven a visit and stick the stranit on his head. John asks if he poisoned the Chromextin, but he says no and the stranit does nothing. Pralanoth says that in rare instances disciplined minds have been able to fool it, but he says that Tolven is not a liar. Tolven appears to tell the truth until John asks if he is a good and loyal son. When Pralanoth forces him to answer, he says that he doesn't intend to dishonor the family, but is killed for his lie. Pralanoth tells John and D'Argo to leave. Sarova tries to avenge Tolven's death by having missiles fired, but Pralanoth says no, he caused his own death. Sarova pulls his breathing tube out and kills his guard before ordering the missile attacks to resume. Talyn has awoken, but cannot take the pressure, so he is forced to release the umbilicals and ascend. They sense a Peacekeeper scan and Talyn is forced to starburst immediately with John-black, Aeryn, Rygel and Stark still aboard. Moya then escapes herself, as the Peacekeeper ship arrives. Sarova appears to be possessed, and turns into some sort of creature, later named as a Colarta, which kills a passer-by. The Colarta is met by Xhalax Sun, being part of the Retrieval Squad, and it is revealed that it was the one who placed the bomb and poisoned the Chromextin before killing Sarova after the bombing and disguising itself as her. The Colarta reports that Talyn only got a third of the needed Chromextin, and Xhalax states that Talyn will therefore be weak for some time. It's just a case of finding them. On Moya, John-green tells D'Argo that John-black took Winona and his notebook. He says that the other one set it up just so he could be on Talyn with Aeryn and says that he had better be taking care of her. On Talyn, Rygel is angry that there will be no contact with Moya until the threat of the Retrieval Squad is over. Crais says that food will be rationed and Stark and Rygel will have to share a room. Meanwhile, Aeryn tells John-black that her mother commands the Retrieval Squad and she doesn't think that it's a coincidence. She says that she will not let the Peacekeepers capture Talyn, even if it means she has to kill her mother. + +John Crichton is in his module, huge beard in full swing and conversing with a Pilot who rescued him a long time ago, saying that he's almost out of fuel so he needs a little help. He apologises, admitting that he now accepts his friends aren't coming back from the wormhole, and says he can't leave them and asks to be let back in. He shouts, awaking a female Pilot who says she must've dozed off. John goes back aboard the ageing Leviathan, and Pilot tells him that, since what they have won't work in his module unless purified and reduced, there's nothing aboard that can facilitate his escape before they die. She says that she and Elack promised each other they'd die in this sacred burial ground when they were joined over 350 cycles ago. John says that he would've died a long time ago without them, and that he's almost cracked "wormholes for dummies". Crichton has gone down to the maintenance bay when Pilot tells him there's a small craft approaching, and it's out of control. The ship flies into the bay and crashes into a load of crates before coming to a halt among flames. Out steps an enchanting redhead, who is met by Winona, John's pulse pistol. She is Sikozu Shanti Sugaysi Shanu, and suggests he aims his gun behind him as the creatures following her execute on sight, and then she asks what he is now going to do for her. Sikozu tells John that there shouldn't be anyone aboard a dying ship, but he cuts her off with, "Who? What? When? Where? Why? And How?" She informs him that her brain can't tolerate translator microbes and she must learn his language by hearing it. She points to various things around the bay and Crichton tells her what they're called, then at her prompt recites the alphabet in his typical lyrical fashion. Pilot tells John that another vessel approaches, one much larger than before. Sikozu asks if Elack can Starburst, prompting John to point out that she speaks Pilot. Sikozu tells him to make sentences, nouns, verbs, so he tells her that once upon a time he was happy here, a little on the lonely side, but that was OK as Winona only had to start cooking fires. His module's out of fuel and he's not going anywhere and he's "working like a MoFo", with everything finally coming together on the crates until she smashes through, pissing him off just a little bit; the only thing he had going for him she just destroyed. Sikozu says that the Grudeks will shock the hull, incapacitating most functions. Not Pilot, though - they need her alive to harvest the toubray tissue. Suddenly, they hear people boarding, so Sikozu quickly tells John they need to find an enclosed space, as the Grudeks are about to fumigate. The two are in John's module, where he asks who the Grudeks are, to which she replies "toubray hunters", toubray being Leviathan neural cluster tissue consumed by many cultures to enhance higher brain functions. She was with them until she fled for her life. The organization she works for was hired to find Leviathans, so she was given half a cycle to become an expert on their functions and habits. She worked hard to find the sacred place because toubray is richer with age and so the Grudeks are happy. Her reasoning is that harvesting this Leviathan is better than killing a young one along with everyone aboard. In John's mind, on a beautiful beach, he and Harvey are running along the shore. Harvey asks him how many men have a challenge, a goal, a destiny clear as his, and tells him to stay focused on the riddle of the wormhole, affect the things he can. A familiar voice, a lady sunbathing in a scant bikini, tells John that Harvey is right. It's Aeryn Sun, and John asks her to tell him again why she left. She rolls over revealing that she is pregnant, and says she's not right for him, she was just the best of limited choices. He says that's his kid, Crichton's kid, but she says this is her child. "Whatever." The Russian sounding Grudeks arrive on board to begin the hunt. John is trying to bring Pilot back to consciousness, but she has virtually no systems at her disposal, so she recommends they save themselves; maybe in passing she and Elack can save some others. John wants to fight for them, and asks for any DRDs that remain with weapons. He asks Sikozu if they can negotiate. She says it's not their way. He says that it's time for a show of force, and shouts some Klingon at them. One of the Grudeks shouts back that they have no quarrel with him, so remain clear and he may live. But John says not if they destroy his ship, so the Grudek tells them to flee, and John replies to flip that around -- they have sixty microts but the Grudeks open fire. John fires back, adding that a show of force is the only thing Klingons understand. Sikozu tells him to make them think he's dead, but he decides to fire again instead, prompting them to release the Brindz hound; a blood hunter. Sikozu expects to find a hatchway in a certain place, but it's not where she expects, prompting John to mention that every Leviathan grows to accommodate its passengers, and he realises that Sikozu's never actually been on one before. As they run to where the hatchway is, the hound jumps past them, then circles back as John opens fire. Sikozu runs up a wall and calls for him to hurry up and shift his gravity centre. He shoots and runs into a small space, just as the hound bites his leg. Sikozu fixes up John, commenting how his vein needs to be smaller to accommodate shifting his gravity centre. He asks why she ran from the Grudeks, and she replies that she was too good; by finding the sacred burial space with mature toubray she sabotaged herself, breaching her contract so the Grudeks don't even have to pay her organization. The Grudeks continue to hunt, and Sikozu knows they haven't found what they're looking for yet as the lights in the area are still active. John is preparing to ambush the Grudeks when he gets a comm from Chiana and Rygel who are wondering why he's here, and they're in the maintenance bay. The Grudeks find John and Sikozu, and their leader Ilkog says it's certain Sikozu won't tell anyone about this place, when she's dead. John gets up and aims at Ilkog, saying that he'll take their earlier run away offer. The Grudeks fire but are held off by DRD "1812". As John and Sikozu run along, the hound catches up and bites off Sikozu's hand. Fade to John shaving, as Chiana berates Sikozu, and Rygel asks if John has seen Moya. Their pod isn't going anywhere -- they were lucky to get this far. John asks what's wrong with Chiana, so she asks Rygel to tell him what's the matter. Rygel asks why he's shaving now, and Chiana tells John he is what's he matter with her. It's him, always him. She shows a wanted beacon with Commandant Grayza offering huge rewards for the capture of any of Moya's crew dead or alive, with five million currency pledges resting on the Nebari Chiana's shoulders. Worse still, the beacons are everywhere -- every port, bar and ship that can fly. All because of him. She goes over and kisses him as Rygel adds that he is worth seven million. Chiana asks why he's shaving now and he answers that he's finally figured out wormholes. Rygel is surprised, as Crichton reminds them who better to save a Leviathan than them. Sikozu reminds them to fetch her hand, as she can re-bond with her flesh. John tells Rygel to get it and goes off with Chiana. She tells John not to confuse her and Sikozu, prompting him to pin her up against the wall to talk about "it", whatever "it" is. She says her visions have evolved. There's a cheat-proof game in the casinos, and she won seven times in a row, and they arrested her, had a little fun, tortured her, nothing new. She doesn't see the future, rather the present -- it slows down, but it leaves her with blinding headaches, as if it uses up her eyes so she can't see. Each time it happens the effect lasts longer. John says that they'll find a way to fix it when they get out of there, but to screw the dog they'll need rope, a rabbit and a membrane. Chiana decides to get the rope and leave the rest for him. Meanwhile, Rygel gets as close as he can to the Grudeks, telling John they're still down there. John is back on the beach with Aeryn, feeling the baby kick. He says that it's a boy but Aeryn says girls kick harder. John retorts that maybe it's not his, and she says he just won't let that rest, and after suggesting other possible fathers they feel the kicks some more. Rygel finds John in a corridor and mentions that he sees he is still obsessed, and John asks if Aeryn said anything to him before he left. "Goodbye, good luck, good riddance," he replies, but John says that's what Rygel said and he is not obsessed. He asks again, and Rygel tells him for once to listen; when your lover leaves you repeatedly, take the hint! John replies that was the plan, but Rygel knows how his plans go. Chiana finds Sikozu striking a bargain with a Grudek and shoots him. She and Sikozu get into a fight before John and Rygel arrive to pull them apart. Chiana tells them that Sikozu tried to make a deal with the Grudeks, and points to the currency, which Rygel recognises as Scarran. Sikozu wonders; with a Nebari, Hynerian and John, all from the Peacekeeper realm, what kind of currency do they have? She explains that she's Kalish, and they hate the Scarrans but she did grow up in their territory. John asks what her plan was; she bought them a ship which the Grudek would leave behind so they could live. She then notices a shake and tells the others that the Grudeks have found what they're looking for, so they will be dead soon. The group are all near an open hatch when Rygel asks why they've not been sucked out; Pilot is holding it closed with an electrostatic membrane, but one hit and it's busted. This is how they plan to get rid of the Brindz hound. Sikozu realises that the toubray harvesting has begun, so she and Chiana go to find the slaughterhouse, despite the Nebari's objections, while Rygel will be the rabbit to the hound. On the way Chiana and Sikozu argue, with Sikozu climbing a wall to show Chiana that she can go places Chiana can't. Rygel soon runs into the hound, as John finishes preparations and then lures it out with his butt, but the hound doesn't hit the door. Third attempt is a charm and it's sucked out, with John only staying on board thanks to the rope around his waist. Meanwhile, Ilkog walks up behind Sikozu and says that he's been expecting her. Sikozu tells him that her contract prevents her from revealing the sacred ground's location and, while John is highly ineffective, he will fight. Ilkog says that his worries are now through, and Sikozu sarcastically hopes she isn't one of them. He says he'll honor her contribution and take her with them if she'll divert John and the others, and she thanks him offering her blessings. John grabs Sikozu as she leaves and takes her to Pilot's den, where Pilot says she had six children, leading to John calling Sikozu a mummy killer. Sikozu says she simply follows her orders and tells him not to moralise with his narrow perspective. Chiana plays back a transmission that Pilot intercepted in which the Grudeks say no other suitable Leviathans were found and Sikozu's employers have been made aware that, through her own error, she lost her life. Sikozu says that it's not fair or right, but John adds that she has limited options -- in short, help them or die. Sikozu reminds John not to shoot, and John tells Chiana that she doesn't have to do it if she doesn't want to, but she confirms her agreement. A pulley system is set up at the top of Pilot's Den, and the plan is that, with Chiana starting at the top and John at the bottom. Chiana will use her time-slowing powers to get a good look at the hoses the Grudeks are using, so Sikozu can inform John how to use the hoses to kill the Grudeks. Then, a heavy bucket will be used to propel John back up and he will shoot the pipes and hopefully get rid of the Grudeks. "Let's fly," Chiana says to get the plan underway. Crichton swings down on a pulley, going past the Grudeks. Chiana is on the other end and ends up in front of the Grudeks who shoot, but as they do she slows things down and as their shots miss she spots the three hoses that John must shoot. She's then pulled up to the top but is blinded. She informs Sikozu of the hoses, and with her description Sikozu tells John to shoot the right pipe first which will release a volatile gas, then left which will release a substance to stop the explosion from destroying Elack, and finally center to trigger the explosion itself "No deviation". As usual, the plan starts to go wrong as Chiana can't get hold of Sikozu's hand and as she's swinging down she accidentally pulls it off again, causing Sikozu to grab at her and the pair of them fall, pulling John up in the process. With 1812 providing covering fire, John manages to shoot the hoses in order, causing an explosion that kills the Grudeks. However, the combined weight of Chiana and Sikozu breaks the pulley before John reaches the top, sending him into a freefall. Sikozu reminds Chiana not to drop her hand as the two land safely, and Rygel tries to catch John but he falls straight past and lands in right in the pool of bat droppings that inhabits the bottom of every Pilot's Den. With the threat gone, John lets Sikozu know that she might not want to go with them, as they're not the best travelling companions. She replies, "I'm going to get my life back, I'm not going to end up like you." John then tells Pilot that he hates that she and Elack have left the sacred place, but she responds that the returning Grudek ship would've killed them before they left, so the two of them wanted to repay their debt before they passed. John says that they don't owe them, but Pilot says nevertheless they should soon arrive at the planet John thinks his friends are on, and even though it was her and Elack's dream to die in that sacred place, no dreams are guaranteed. The grace of age is that they learn to accept. John walks a corridor and returns to the beach, telling a now non-pregnant Aeryn that he's not coming here anymore, because it doesn't change anything and makes him sad. What's left is wormholes, as he must now rebuild the equations after "new girl" smashed them up. Aeryn says that new is good. "Not always" is his reply. A man walks over, handing Aeryn a drink and asking who John is. As she ponders, John says "No one" and walks away. On Elack, 1812 joins John and breaks off something for him to write with, and the overture plays as John begins working on the wormhole equations once more. + +John is floating in a spacesuit outside Moya, waiting for a wormhole to appear. Inside Moya, Aeryn Sun is sitting on command continuing to learn English. Chiana comes in and asks how the English is going. "Oh, they start small, they grow, then they change. I don't know, 26 symbols - it should be easy," Aeryn says in reply. "Well they can barely escape their own gravity," Chiana jokes, as both laugh. She mentions that John's been out there a long time, and Aeryn says he seems to like this particular wormhole for some reason. "You should learn to speak the language of wormholes," Chiana suggests, "If you wanna get him back, that's not the language you need to learn." Ka D'Argo calls John on a secure comm line, telling him he caught Noranti replacing drugs in his quarters, and she says they help him forget Aeryn. "They just dull the pain," John tells him. D'Argo asks if they work. "When I double the dose, yeah." D'Argo asks how much perspective he's lost, since if you take anything this witch gives you, you know you halve the dose. He tells D'Argo it's none of his business, and Noranti says she can make something that will help D'Argo remember, but he pushes her away "Soulless Luxan!" she says before walking away. "John," D'Argo says, "Oh John, you have to let her go." "It's more complicated than that," John says, closing the comm. In his den, Rygel asks Pilot how Moya's doing. Pilot says she's doing much better thanks to the upgrade. Rygel says that the only other thing Pilot needs to do is get over his fear of wormholes, as defying all logic Crichton could actually get them away from the Peacekeepers forever. Pilot says John often leaps to conclusions, but Rygel says he's a Dominar, he knows how to recognize things before they happen. Pilot points out that Rygel was deposed in a coup led by his own cousin, which silences the Hynerian. Sikozu visits Scorpius, saying that none of them seem to take his warnings very seriously. "Why should they?" he says, "They have only anecdotal evidence of what the Scarrans intend. Unlike you and I." Sikozu asks, if she is to accept his proposal to be allies, what assurances she has that he will watch her back. "Apart from the pleasantness of the task, you instantly become the most important one to me." "Most important save Crichton" adds Sikozu. "Always save Crichton" Scorpius whispers. "Agreed," responds Sikozu. John counts down the opening of another wormhole, but it starts to look a bit strange. He tells Pilot that it's about time to break out the docking web, but Pilot doesn't answer. Aeryn calls for Pilot too, while Aeryn calls D'Argo to get the ship ready, as John is sucked through the wormhole, which vanishes. "Kansas in the winter," John says as he wakes up on what looks like a small iceberg surrounded by water. He calls for the others, but gets no answer. As he calls out to see where he is, the water around him ripples and an old man appears behind him. John comments on his clothes, and how they help to humanize him, so that John might sympathize with his problems. "Time," the man says. John doesn't answer, so he repeats himself. "Is up," John replies. "Time," the man says again. "Flies." "Time." "Bandits." "Time." "Wounds all heal." "Time." "Rosemary and thyme," John sings as he fires his Peacekeeper laser knife, but the man stops the blast in mid-air. "Time," he repeats. "Either stop pointing guns at people or get a bigger gun," John comments. "Time is?" the man asks now. "Infinite," John replies, "Relative." "You are quite a simple organism to possess the knowledge you do," the man says. He says that time is meaningless, and yet it is all that exists. John goes to say his name, but the man already knows, and says his own name is unimportant to their encounter, so John names him "Einstein". John asks plainly why they are here. "You are present to perish, I am present to affect that outcome," he answers, moving towards John. John backs away, but ends up falling through the ripples and taking what looks to be a very short trip through the/a wormhole. He's back on Moya, in his IASA uniform. He strolls on to command to find D'Argo and Zhaan at the consoles. "Oh my God! Day one," he remarks, as D'Argo turns towards him. He introduces himself, but D'Argo lifts him up by one hand. He's injected with translator microbes by the DRD, which makes sense of Zhaan's rumbling. She tells him to answer quickly, as he knows how Luxans can be. D'Argo asks what kind his ship is, so John relays some technical specs. D'Argo throws him down as the Peacekeepers continue to attack, and D'Argo tells Pilot he demands maneuverability now. Pilot can't do that while the control collar is still in place. Knowing how things went, John suggests D'Argo try ripping out the control panel. Sure enough, D'Argo does, as Rygel enters. He tells John he'll protect him, if he looks after him later, and while John retorts he knows when Rygel's going to spit and ducks it. John gets up and shoves past Rygel, in order to "move this along." "What is the matter with you people?" he asks, before pointing to his neck and saying "tongue." As expected, D'Argo tongues him and he falls unconscious. John awakes back on the iceberg, without his helmet. "This atmosphere will sustain you," Einstein says. He says that space and time are fused, and a coordinate of each is required to locate a specific event. "Everything happens at a time, in a place; relativity," John says. Einstein says that movement through space at speed becomes movement through time, and wormholes bridge space-time creating a unique ability to navigate. "Yeah, wormholes, been there, done that," John says. "Many times it seems." Einstein then comments on John being able to position himself in front of them prior to them opening. He asks how John possesses such knowledge, and John replies that it was bad luck, and is a long story. We see flashbacks to Jack giving John the knowledge in "A Human Reaction". "Get out of my head!" John shouts. "Time," Einstein repeats, "Ancients?" We then see comments from a series of people against a black backdrop. An ex-girlfriend saying she never met a man who was more in touch with his own feelings; a female teacher saying he was a real hell-raiser, and you couldn't help but love him; and old sports teacher saying he was a man who'd finish a game with a broken leg; DK saying John rescued him out of nowhere and dropped him in the middle of a dream job; a scientist saying Stephen Hawking is a genius, and John is more toward that end of the spectrum than the rest of them; a reverend saying he'd share whatever he had with others; the girlfriend again, saying she can't bear to be without him; DK getting upset and apologizing; and the girlfriend saying he was sooo good in bed. "Wormholes are the one feature that traverse our realms," Einstein comments. He says they join but never intersect, and an aggressive perforation of one would allow an unacceptable incursion from John's existence into theirs. The biologics of John's realm are infinitely more aggressive than his. John says to table that discussion and tell him about the Ancients. Einstein says they're members of his species substantially modified to live in John's realm. They're there to catalogue, report, and influence. When they disappeared Einstein's people decided to investigate the knowledge of wormholes in his realm. "You hauled Moya's ass down a wormhole?" John asks. "I was surprised to discover a Leviathan, the expectation was a Pathfinder vessel," Einstein replies. He says that those he questioned knew nothing of wormholes, but they did mention John repeatedly, and we see flashes of Noranti and Pilot saying Crichton knows, and that wormholes are his obsession. "You set them free to find me," he says. "Your knowledge is quite extraordinary for one of your realm," Einstein says, "and your many travels inside wormholes, troubling." He says that having glimpsed John's mind he's aware this knowledge has made him a target of more aggressive species, a liability that must be dealt with. "You stay the hell away from me!" John says, running again. Another short trip through a wormhole, and back on Moya again, this time badly damaged. He hears a female voice call out, "Crichton." "Pip?" he asks, "Aeryn?" "It's you," she says. He asks what's going on here, and she says it's frelled; a great plan he came up with. It's Chiana, only being played by Aeryn. John asks about the others, but she says they're dead: the Sheyangs got them. She says that they're next, while John shouts out that it's not funny anymore. He decides to play along, and asks about his module. She says it's in the maintenance bay, but that's a furnace; this is the only tier that's not filled with toxic gas. They fall over, with her on top of him, and she says they're about to die, and she just wants to do something fun, something that makes her feel good. She is about to go down on him, but he's pulled out. "Spectacular," John says, "I've got to hand it to you, you give a great illusion." Einstein tells him what he experienced was real. "Well, it felt real," John says. "Real," Einstein says. "Real like the waters not wet? Real like you see with no eyes?" John asks. Einstein points to John's hand, and he's holding some of Chiana/Aeryn's hair from when he grabbed her just before, as she was about to venture down below. John looks in amazement, as Einstein says time, wormholes, the knowledge to unravel events, for that alone he should kill John. We see more comments on John, this time Zhaan saying, "As a Pa'u, I'm generally the teacher, but with John I, I learned as much as I gave"; Jool says, "Whenever he touched me there was an almost, oh, electric caring"; Bialar Crais adding, "John Crichton made me a better captain"; and Stark saying, "I sense purity of spirit"; "A better leader," Crais says; "Purity of soul," Stark adds; "A better man," Crais finishes. "And I'm just supposed to take your word for it?" John asks, adding that the hair could be as fake as this iceberg, Einstein. "That hair represents a possible outcome, an unrealized reality," Einstein says. More comments, this time the girlfriend saying that when John came round, she'd have to cover up all the mirrors so he'd spend some time looking at her; an unseen woman saying her dad and John's mom were brother and sister; the sports teacher saying John blew a key tackle, his three year old niece could've tripped the guy up; the woman, apparently John's cousin, saying it hurt her dad because he loved family, but they were forbidden to hang out with John after he was about 15; DK saying he's dead because he was pigheaded; the scientist saying John made a couple of passes at her; DK saying they weren't ready for space travel, not really; the scientist saying like she's going to sleep with a guy who's only got one graduate degree; the girlfriend saying he was a cheap date, a lousy drunk, and a redneck; the reverend saying he was blasphemous, not in his attitudes towards God, but his attitude towards life; the girlfriend saying he was lousy in the sack, and making a gesture that he's rather small down below. "Damn, I always knew Reverend Miller didn't like me, but Caroline, that's a bit of a shock," John says. Einstein says that John lingered so long around this wormhole that he was able to locate him, and asks John to describe this fascination. John says something just struck him, and Einstein says it's part of an extensive system, one of untold number which permeate the space and time of John's realm. John asks Einstein to tell him about unrealized realities. Another short trip, and John wakes up in a cell on Moya, only this time he's not naked. He spots Aeryn, and recites her name, rank, and regiment. He says they have a lot to catch up on, and extends his hand. She grabs him and goes to strike, but he's ready. She punches, but he blocks. "Pretty good huh?" John says, "I learned from the best. You." She asks why he's out of uniform, what his rank and regiment is, and after she's thrown him on the floor and mounted him, she asks how he knows her name. "What you should really ask is how I know you've got a birthmark on the sweet spot of your hip," he says, so she snaps his neck. John is pulled back again, and Einstein says every wormhole system has millions of exits, each to a distinct time and place. He says travel from A to B, and now attempt to travel back, and you could arrive at point A immediately after you left, or a cycle later or a cycle earlier or ten or ten thousand; there are millions of permutations. "The secret is understanding time," John says. "Not so much understanding, as accounting for," is Einstein's reply. He says that unskilled wanderings create unrealized realities. "So what you showed me wasn't real?" John asks. "If I had not pulled you back, wherever it was you went would've become your reality from then on." "Does not compute," John says, "Are you saying that there's millions of me running around with millions of pathetic lives?" "One of you, with millions of potential realities, depending on where and when you emerge from this system. If you do," Einstein replies. "Time. Going forward's not a problem, is it? Going backward, that screws the pooch." Einstein says that should a traveller appear earlier in the timeline of his own existence, he would be but as a pebble cast upon still water. The ripples he creates would, over time, radiate to far distant shores, geometrically altering events in its path. "And your Ancients gave me just enough knowledge to be dangerous," John comments. Einstein says that without such input, the odds of anyone else actually appearing at a place they previously occupied is so remote as to be mathematically disharmonious. John asks why he's not dead already, and Einstein says he trusts the one who entrusted John, but he needs to understand why he bestowed the ability on John. John says he's not afraid of this knowledge, and John is thrown into another unrealized reality. John is in Peacekeeper uniform, and Lieutenant Braca approaches, asking, "Shall we go sir?" He leads John into a room, where they've captured the Scarran spy -- Sikozu. John says to release her, and when questioned he insists, so Braca releases her. He tells Braca to watch and learn, and he walks up to Sikozu saying, "Be cool, and no one will get hurt." "What if there is already hurt?" Sikozu asks. "Someone, some time has to end the madness," John says, but she turns and says she'll never tell him what he wants to know. John says he doesn't give a damn, he's just trying to keep her alive. Sikozu strokes his face and says "thank you," then runs and starts shooting all the guards. She runs up onto the window, and massacres everyone, jumping from pane to pane as the glass she's on shatters. She kills Braca, and looks John in the eyes, vehemently saying "Weak species." As she's about to shoot, John draws his gun and repeatedly shoots the glass she's standing on, causing her to fall to the floor. John is pulled back, and tells Einstein that wasn't him, but Einstein says it would be him, could be him, which is why their vigilance is so high, why the knowledge of wormholes must be suppressed and why he troubles them. John tells him if he doesn't want him to have the knowledge, to take it out of his head, and kicks him. Einstein hits the floor and looks up at John, who says he's surprised that worked. He apologizes, saying that's not him either. The iceberg rumbles, and as John helps him up, Einstein says his ability to maintain this environment is weakening. John tells him to just take back what the Ancients put in his head, but he says that's impossible and impractical. He asks what John desires with wormholes. John says, "For starters, to go home." "Your place of origin is where you can do the most damage!" Einstein warns him. Interspersed with flashes of Earth, some new and some from "A Human Reaction", we hear more comments. The scientist says he's never faithful to his girlfriends; the girlfriend says he made it perfectly clear that his work was a greater priority than she was; the reverend calls him womanizing, and says about his drinking and drugs. John says he got the point. "The point yes, but the risk," Einstein says, "People you don't recognize; a world changed irrevocably by the toss of a pebble." John tells Einstein to just shove him back down the wormhole, but that's impossible without propulsion -- John is the first to be brought here without a vehicle. John asks how he's supposed to get off this rock. "Through the wormhole." John asks with what propulsion, but Einstein says John possesses the knowledge. The iceberg shakes more, and Einstein says he has little time. He says that from the moment the Ancients implanted that knowledge, he exists to serve a larger purpose, but is cut off by Crichton. "No! No. That's what you want. My name is John Crichton, I'm not your pawn." "Then let us proceed," Einstein says. The iceberg really rumbles, and Einstein falls to the floor. More comments, this time Zhaan calls John arrogant; Crais says he's impulsive; Zhaan says he's self-absorbed; Crais calls him insane; Zhaan ignorant; Stark says the guy was an idiot; Zhaan says, "I once shared unity with that oo-man, and the experience still haunts me"; Jool tells them not to go any further, that is John Crichton; Stark adds finally that he's glad John's dead. John asks why they don't grab anyone that goes down a wormhole, but Einstein says simply the effort to capture John was massive; they can no more survive in John's realm than he in theirs. That's why the Ancients were important to them. John tells him to modify more of their people, but Einstein says that's in hand, but requires time for metamorphosis. He asks if John has truly committed to helping prevent aggressive species from acquiring this knowledge. "As a career? No." Einstein says they have little time, but there's much more John needs exposure to. More rumbles, and John asks what is happening. Einstein says he must soon re-enter his realm, and if John has learned enough to survive, he will be reinserted into the wormhole. He tells John to pay attention. He explains, in some parts through the people from John's past, that from every point of entry a wormhole branches into multiple paths, the subdivision continues until at length you're deposited back into space-time. The journey can be random, or with purpose, but destination is the key. Every portal has a distinct space-time signature; the only destinations you can realize by design are those of which you have foreknowledge. The more you travel, the more signatures you will catalogue. The Ancients gave him the ability to recognize these subtle differences. Since every destination is surrounded by similar unrealized realities, the closer you travel, the more you must maintain absolute engrossment, and never return to a familiar place prior to the last time you left. John's next journey may lead to a permanent unrealized reality. Einstein then tells John to hurry, "learn, see and feel." In another unrealized reality, he meets his father, and both of them have the skull-shapes of human-Scarran hybrids. Jack says he was hoping they could have a talk, and John asks what he wanted to talk about. "You, a talk we should've had years ago." "I don't think I'm still a virgin, Dad," John replies. Jack lifts up his arm to reveal some kind of restraining cuff, and tells John he can't beat this, it's impossible. "You remember what we were like centuries before the Scarrans conquered us," he continues, "weak genes, disease, death, I think our health and longevity outweigh some personal freedoms, don't you son?" John says no, and his father says he never changes. He says that John is young, and when he was young, he dreamed of flying in space, but it wasn't to be, and it won't be for John either. "I can't accept this," John says. As the iceberg continues to disintegrate, John is pulled back. He asks Einstein not to make him go again, and to put him back where he found him. Einstein says, through the others, that John can do that himself. John says he doesn't understand any of this. Einstein says he doesn't have to understand, it's not a science, it's an art. He asks how he gets back to Moya, and he's told to focus on the space-time signature where he entered the wormhole, and that every wormhole system is like a maze that loops back upon itself. John asks what if he gets back to Moya before he left, and he's told that if he gets back before he left, the pebble that drops will be close to him. He should ignore the ripples, fix the first thing that goes ape, since the elasticity of time allows for unrealized realities to remain so. If events are matched closely enough to course, they have a way of restructuring themselves to familiar outcomes. John suddenly remembers Harvey once saying exactly the same thing to him and screams "Harvey knew!" at the top of his voice, then "Scorpius knew!" He asks how, but is flung through the wormhole again. Back to more comments, as DK says he likes John. Jool calls him insolent; the scientist selfish; DK says competitive; the girlfriend says obsessive; the cousin obnoxious; Zhaan calls him unbearable. In another unrealized reality, John is back on Moya. Chiana, again played by Aeryn, says she thinks they should run, and asks if he wants to. D'Argo/Rygel calls her, asking what she found, and she hands over a few barely charged weapons. "Gone!" screams Stark, played by Sikozu, and starts rambling about "my love, your love, our loves" being gone, and says it's suicide. D'Argo/Rygel asks Stark/Sikozu what she's doing, and tells Stark/Sikozu to plot his course. Noranti comes in with some food, saying he should eat something before he dies. Suddenly, more comments come, as Zhaan, Stark, DK, the girlfriend, the cousin, the scientist, Jool, and the sports teacher all wonder who Crichton is or say they barely know him. John then has flashes of Einstein explaining, with the help of the others, about wormholes, reiterating again that destination is the key. D'Argo/Rygel calls Pilot, demanding he give them starburst now, when Chiana/Aeryn says that Zhaan and Aeryn are out there under a flag of truce. "No, cannot leave my lady! My love! My life!" Stark/Sikozu says. Rygel, played by Noranti, comes onto command and says there are transports loaded with supplies but the Marauders will shoot them down -- they can't escape. Jool, played by D'Argo, is worried that they're trapped. John has more flashes, remembering the wormhole explanation about how the closer you travel, the more you must maintain absolute engrossment. D'Argo/Rygel again calls Pilot, who appears on a clamshell, much more agitated than the Pilot we are used to. He says that right now Moya couldn't starburst more than the length of D'Argo/Rygel's stubby little arms. "Why doesn't anything work?" Chiana/Aeryn asks. "Because slutty tralk, of all the frelling modifications for his wormhole experiments." As Pilot continues rambling, John recalls more of what he was told, this time about never returning to a familiar place prior to the last time you left. Jool/D'Argo asks why John won't help them, and he says because like everyone else here, he doesn't want to be there. Chiana/Aeryn tells him he has to fix what he's done, but he refuses. Noranti/Chiana calls him destructive, and offers him something for his betrothed. John says she's not on his mind anymore. "So big. So beautiful. So blue," Noranti/Chiana says, as Stark/Sikozu screams for Aeryn to come back to him. Jool/D'Argo and D'Argo/Rygel try and get John to fix it, but they're hit by another Peacekeeper shot, and when Jool/D'Argo screams, she's told to shut up. The Peacekeepers have boarded, and as Chiana/Aeryn tries to go off, D'Argo/Rygel tells her to remain at her post. When she refuses, he tongues her. He asks John to fix starburst, and Jool/D'Argo tells them that Chiana/Aeryn's having a fit -- she's dying. John pushes Stark/Sikozu to send her to a better place. The chaos continues, and Stark/Sikozu tells John to shoot her, so John does, just as Stark/Sikozu clearly says "Katratzi". As Jool/D'Argo runs, she's shot in the back by Peacekeepers, then Crais, who's leading them, kills Rygel/Noranti. Crais comes over, and after a long pause, hugs him saying "Well done, comrade." John remembers being told that his next journey may lead to a permanent unrealized reality. John is pulled back by Einstein, who says he could almost not retrieve him, and says next time, it'll be his reality forever. John says next time just leave him. "To die?" Einstein asks, "Why?" John says it's too risky, it's best to just leave him. Einstein asks if he's suddenly becoming afraid, and John says, "Yes, of the damage I could do. Yes." "Fear, fear is the correct answer," Einstein says. John is suited back up, not sure if he can do this. He starts concentrating, saying, "Moya, after, home." Einstein says the space-time signature will be familiar, and fear is his providence. He tells him to adjust, and maintain focus. "When this is over," John says, "You're gonna take this crap outta my head." "Some day, should you survive," Einstein says, and then asks, "Do you now know what it is?" "Time" he says, and he travels back through the wormhole. On exiting, he opens his eyes and is back floating in space. He calls for D'Argo, then Pilot, but no answer. Instead he sees what looks like a moon in front of him, and sure enough, when he turns around, he sees Earth floating far beneath him. At first he smiles broadly, happy to see his long lost home and stretches out his hand as if to touch it. But the pleasure is short lived as it quickly dawns on him the predicament he's in. + +Scorpius is telling John that his infantile obsession with betrayal is misplaced. Aeryn Sun asks him if Scorpius actually said that, and John replies that he did, as he continues to recount Scorpius' words. "Look past my actions, towards my goal. Our common goal," Scorpius said. John says that he led Braca and the command carrier here, and yet he says that John has an infantile obsession with betrayal. Braca is seen telling the crew that should they initiate starburst, the ship will be crippled. If Scorpius is harmed in any way, the Leviathan will be destroyed. John tells Aeryn that they have Braca sitting on their doorstep, issuing threats with one hand, and Scarran messages with the other, and yet it's not a betrayal. "Do you believe them?" Aeryn asks. John doesn't know, and Aeryn says that it is possible, as crazy as it sounds, that the message was intercepted from the decimated Scarran base on Katratzi, as Braca had said. The message showed Pennoch telling Emperor Staleek that they'd set course for the wormhole that leads to Crichton's home planet, and Staleek telling him to begin subduing their defenses upon arrival. John asks Aeryn to tell him the Scarrans don't know where Earth is. "They'll go," she replies. Flashback to John telling Staleek and Ahkna that their Crystherium Utilia grows on Earth. John tells Aeryn that they'll go because he told them the flowers were there. Aeryn says that, with that being the case, maybe they should listen to what Scorpius is proposing. "No, absolutely not, no," John says with finality, "He's manipulated us, Aeryn. He manipulates everything." He adds that from the moment they met, Scorpius has done nothing but lie to them. "I know, but what if the Scarrans are heading to Earth?" she asks. What if they really are?" She asks what else Scorpius said, and he told John that he had nothing to do with this, but "reality presents opportunity," and if John allies himself with the Peacekeepers, Scorpius will see to it that their entire might will be thrown into defending Earth. Aeryn tells him that is something he has to consider, but he disagrees. He says that he can destroy the wormhole and seal up Earth. Aeryn asks him if he can do that, but he's unsure -- the knowledge is there it's just not in the correct order. Aeryn asks what happens if the Scarrans beat him there, to his family, and everyone. John recalls Scorpius telling him that he has nothing to fear from this commitment. John tells Aeryn that either one is a big commitment. "So you're afraid? Of commitment." Aeryn asks. Ka D'Argo asks John, who is telling him what happened, if she really hesitated or if it was just him doing it now. D'Argo says that if she hesitated like that, she knows John was talking about her. "You said what?!?" Chiana asks Aeryn. "What I said," she replies, since she is recounting the conversation for Chiana. "Like you said?" Chiana asks. Aeryn asks if it matters, and Chiana explains that if she said it like she just did to her, then John knows that she knows. Back to the conversation. "Now is not the time to be talking commitment with the Peacekeepers," John says, "Earth is not ready." "Will they ever be?" Aeryn asks. John says maybe, one day. D'Argo asks if he got out of it, but John walks away, saying he doesn't want to talk about it. Aeryn asks what they do. "We hope that I can figure out how to destroy the wormhole," John says, "Otherwise all the bad things happen. And it'll be my fault." "Well, I'm with you," Aeryn says. Chiana tells Aeryn that's good. "Always position yourself so they have to come to you." Aeryn says it isn't about them. "Sure," Chiana answers. John and D'Argo join them in the corridor, and Aeryn asks John if he's ready. He says yes, and Aeryn opens the airlock. Scorpius and Sikozu are inside, in spacesuits. "We are natural allies, John. The Scarrans will ravage your planet and I can prevent it," Scorpius tells him. Sikozu tells John that a Stryker is following, which will mean a swift attack. Utilizing starburst, it may beat Moya to the wormhole. However, Braca and his Command Carrier will get there first. John asks for Scorpius' plan for saving Earth. "By a simple declaration of alliance. Even infuriated, Emperor Staleek would be forced to stay his attack, or by its inception, incur a war that he is still afraid of losing." John tells Scorpius his timing is terrible; it's too late. He connects a nuclear bomb to Scorpius, who tells him to see reason. John says he is no longer a chess-piece. Sikozu tells John that Scorpius is not wrong - John must trust him. John tells her it's not a good choice. D'Argo tells Chiana to lock down the maintenance bay, and comms Braca. He explains that they've attached a bomb to Scorpius and are leaving. If they follow, the bomb explodes, but once they've gone the bomb will shut down. He tells Braca not to respond -- they're not listening. Scorpius asks John to explain the logic of resisting the Scarrans without allies, but John doesn't answer. Aeryn seals the bay. "I see," Scorpius says, "Reason has fled them all." He tells John that there's so much he misunderstands about him, and his actions put his world at risk. John says he did this, and he'll fix it. Either way, he'll live with it. He signals Aeryn, who opens the bay, and Sikozu and Scorpius are sucked out towards the command carrier. As they're adrift, Sikozu shouts, "Weak species!" Scorpius shouts at John to reconsider, otherwise he dooms Earth to destruction. Moya promptly starbursts. On the ruined base at Katratzi, Ahkna asks why Staleek would send a strike force to Earth, for revenge against Crichton, or to separate her from her lover? Staleek says they're political enemies, but both Scarrans, and asks if she has the fortitude to ally herself for a greater good than her own advancement. "You destroyed my father. Your political office, the bounty of your rank were stolen," Ahkna says. "Just as he took from his predecessor." Staleek tells her she must put that aside, but she says it doesn't matter; the Hierarchy will judge them both harshly. The Crystherium Matriarch is gone, and this region of space denied to them. Staleek offers her a flower, and a partnership. He says that Pennoch travels to Earth because these flowers grow there. John is in the maintenance bay, working out how to destroy a wormhole, while D'Argo tells him that it's not too late to call Scorpius, but once they starburst, it will be. D'Argo thinks he should concentrate on his training with Katoya. "Katoya was a frelling fruit loop," John replies. He says it's here, and Chiana suggests sex. "With you or with him?" John asks. "Whatever," she answers. When she leaves, D'Argo tells John that, while it's hard for him to say, not all the Peacekeepers are represented by Grayza's betrayal. He believes that if they made a pact with Scorpius, he would honor it, and not enslave Earth. "Thanks," John replies. D'Argo leaves, and John suddenly makes a realization. It's not a 12. He picks up a flame-thrower and burns some writing he had hanging up. John calls Pilot, and asks why they haven't starburst yet. Since Strykers have a unique propulsion system that allows them to cover great distances, Moya needs three additional starbursts to cover the distance. So Pilot and Moya have elected to employ an extended starburst technique to get there ahead of the Stryker. Everyone is thrown about by the impact of this. Noranti sits in a room with John, explaining that Rygel is continuously vomiting and Stark has passed out. John asks her to leave him alone, but first she wants to give him some drug. Aeryn appears at the door, and stands with her arms folded. Noranti attempts small talk, but Aeryn asks her to leave, and drags her out. She tells John she was looking for him in the maintenance bay and liked his solution. She sits down, sighs, and looks at him. He tells her he's going to fail. He's close, there's just not enough time. "It's always about time," she replies. "Yeah. Time. Timing," he says, "Timing." He gets up, kisses her and says he loves her, and to not ever change. John is in Pilot's den, asking if he can help confirm his theory. He says that a wormhole is a disturbance in space-time. Immediately before it opens, a pressure bubble forms. You can't see it, but it's there. "I can see it," Pilot says. John says he can smell it. The bubble starts tiny and expands outwards, when the bubble bursts, the wormhole opens. His theory is that he travels down the wormhole to Earth, it closes behind him and he waits. Before the wormhole opens, he dives in at the last moment, piercing the bubble. That collapses the wormhole around him over and over, all the way back to here, and the wormhole is sealed forever. "That is brilliant Commander!" Pilot says. It all lines up perfectly. But the timing required to puncture the bubble at its maximum radius, thereby beginning the chain reaction he described is in the mili-microts. John's eye-limb coordination is lacking, so he can't do it. John says he's not going to ask Pilot another favor, so he's just going to beg, but Pilot apologizes and says there's nothing he can do. Moya exits starburst at the wormhole, and D'Argo congratulates Pilot and Moya for their performance. In the maintenance bay, John is preparing his module. "I'm coming with you," Aeryn tells him. He says they have one shot at the wormhole, but Aeryn says Pilot explained the maneuver to her, and he's not optimistic. John tells her if it doesn't work, they could be stuck on Earth. "There are worse places," she replies. "Not if the Scarrans get there." Aeryn says they'll have to do the best they can. John gets closer to her, and asks what she imagined for her life. "Service, promotion, retirement, death. You?" "This is exactly what I imagined," John replies, "And a couple of kids." In Pilot's den, Rygel tells him that he should do it. "Would you?" Pilot asks. "No, but I'm not you." On the Command Carrier, Braca, Sikozu, and Scorpius are in a large room, sitting to eat at a table. Braca comments on how pleased he is to have Scorpius back on board. Scorpius asks if Grayza will be joining them. Braca informs him that she is having difficulty adjusting to her confinement, and is under sedation. Scorpius tells Braca that next time they encounter Crichton, he should see to it that the older cook Noranti is brought aboard unharmed. Scorpius believes that Crichton may soon return of his own volition. John is in his quarters, recording the final message on his tape recorder. "My name is John Crichton. An astronaut. Four years ago, I got shot through a wormhole to a distant part of the galaxy. I ended up on a ship. This living ship, populated by escapee prisoners who became my friends." Harvey interrupts him, the pair of them in bunny outfits. John wrestles him to the floor. John asks Harvey if he wants him to fail. Harvey says it's quite the opposite; he doesn't want to reside in the head that blames itself. He says that he's examined it thoroughly, and he believes that John will fail. John asks how Harvey expects him to trust him. Harvey says that either he believes, and so the bunnies are unnecessary, or he doesn't. In which case, he offers John a chocolate bunny. Believing that he has no other option that to call on the Peacekeepers to protect Earth, John walks on to Command, to contact Scorpius and try and work out some kind of deal. D'Argo asks if he's sure this is what he wants to do. John says he can't risk Earth, but Chiana doesn't understand why he'd sell his own people out. She tries to convince him that he can do it, but he's still doubtful. On the command carrier, Sikozu has a chain, and has her back to Scorpius, who is seated, and is grinding with him. "To victory over Scarran domination," she says. "To you," he replies, "Your bravery." He makes her suck her finger. "For resisting the enemy?" "For not resisting your friends." He sucks her finger, and they continue, as Braca watches on. Aeryn is with Pilot, as he is getting distressed. He tells Aeryn that he and Moya have never been at great odds. They've never disagreed so fiercely. Pilot hasn't been entirely honest about not being able to help John. John catches up with Rygel in the corridor, telling him that Pilot said it was Rygel that turned him around. "Do you want to pay me back?" Rygel asks. "We'll see how it turns out," John says, as he hurries off. Pilot tells the crew that Moya is distressed about what they're about to do. Noranti tells him to ask Moya to be brave. John asks how this will work, and Pilot says that since the transport pod is made of Moya's own elements, he will be able to live in one for up to an arn. But if they're not rejoined, their neurological connections will have no chance of rejoining. John thinks it'll go smoothly, but Pilot says if not, his death is assured, and without Moya, he'll die alone. Stark says that Moya won't be alone, Pilot will return, and he is here. Aeryn says that most life-sustaining systems are on manual bypass. They're as ready as can be. Rygel tells them to do it, and D'Argo says he needs to hear it from Pilot. Pilot remands the ship to D'Argo's control, and tells him to cut him free from Moya. Pilot screams in agony, and Noranti soon runs down to D'Argo and Chiana, telling them that it's not working, "he" can't take it anymore. Not Pilot, but Stark. Stark is screaming and shouting, and Chiana goes and hits him. He tells her it's too much, too fast. Pilot tells Chiana that while he's gone, command sequences must be performed, or else most regulatory systems will fail. Chiana confirms that Stark flew Talyn, but he says Pilot has four arms, and it's all too fast. Chiana tells Pilot to slow it down, and uses her powers to watch Pilot's controls in slow motion. "Your eyes," Stark says, since they're all white. Chiana is now blind, and Pilot thanks her. Rygel tells Noranti that they're putting Pilot in the transport pod, but he doesn't look well. Noranti says that she's fortified him, but she fears it'll be wholly inadequate. She is also keeping the neural circuits moist, for when they are rejoined. "Don't hold your breath," Rygel tells her, "This isn't even one you could get odds on." On the transport, Aeryn is keeping Pilot's ganglia moist. John lets her know that the wormhole is about to open, so to grab onto something, while D'Argo informs them that the Scarrans are less than an arn away. The transport enters the wormhole, and disappears from Moya's view. The transport is landed on the moon. John is outside, at the American flag pitched in the ground. He finds a picture of his family, left by his dad, clipped to the flag. Aeryn, on the pod, tries to wake Pilot up. On Earth, Jack is on his phone, telling the person on the line that there's no way 500 scientists are going to space with handguns strapped to their uniforms. His phone is ringing in doors, and he answers. "Hey Dad," it's John, from the moon. "Where are you?" Jack asks. John says he's on Serenity Base, on the moon, and Jack asks why he didn't make Earth orbit. "Murphy, Dad. We've got a little problem." He tells Jack that the Scarrans have located Earth, and are on their way. "What can we do?" Jack asks. "Nothing. I've got to do it." Jack asks what the hell that means, and why he has to do it, because he's already done enough. "I'm going to seal up the wormhole," John says. It'll isolate Earth but it should protect it. Jack asks how they get into deep space, and John tells him the old-fashioned way; build a rocket. John says he's left technology and navigation information at their flagpole. "How long do we have?" Jack asks his son. "Not long." Jack tells John to take him, to take them all with him. 500 of the world's best -- they can help. John says there's no time. "What do you mean there's no time?" Jack asks, saying that Moya could get from the moon to Earth in seconds. "We're down to minutes, Dad. How do you wanna spend them?" John asks. Jack tells John that Earth is starting to come together, just like John wanted. "That's good. Keep that up," John says. "I was looking forward to going with you, boy." "Well, sometimes things don't happen quite the way you imagine," John replies. After a long pause, John tells Jack to give his love to Susan and Liv, and says he'll contact him if he can. "You tell my grandkids about me," Jack says. "Ha, that's a no-brainer. They gotta know who my hero is." Jack says, "You're going to find, when you have your own, you want them to surpass you. Be better. Climb higher. I guess if that's the measure, I'm the greatest dad on Earth." "I love you, Dad." "You're the heart and soul of my life, son. I love you." "Goodbye." As Jack looks up toward the moon, the phone call ends. The Scarrans are looming ever closer, and Stark tells D'Argo that Moya is too dazed to respond to anyone but Pilot for navigation. D'Argo says the Scarrans will be here momentarily, causing Stark to freak out. Chiana screams at him, and he says, "I think I'm OK now." Pennoch tells Staleek that the wormhole has reappeared, and Crichton's Leviathan sits nearby, making no attempt to flee or defend itself. Staleek tells him to ignore them, and continue to Earth to fulfill his mission. Pennoch's ship fires at Moya, crippling her, then enters the wormhole. John and Aeryn wake Pilot, and remind him what he has to do. As John and Aeryn prepare, John tells her that from the moment he laid eyes on her, he could never see the end. "What scares me, is I always could." Pilot sees the bubble forming, and begins acceleration. John counts down to the wormhole and Pilot succeeds in piercing the bubble beginning the chain reaction. The pod races through the wormhole outrunning the collapse, when John and Aeryn then spot the Scarran Stryker flying at full-speed directly towards them. Pennoch tells his crew to disengage but its too late and the two ships run into each other, only inside of colliding they actually pass through the other and remain intact. While John and Aeryn and relieved, its too late for Pennoch and the other Scarrans as they run into the wormhole, only just managing to report this to a furious Staleek and Ahkna before the Stryker is destroyed. Meanwhile, the pod exits the wormhole which closes forever behind them. Moya is resting, floating half submerged, in a large calm sea. Stark is stroking Pilot's hand, telling him he did a good thing today. "Float on memories, and time will heal your wounds," he says. He adds that he was Pilot's worthy successor, and starts to get hyperactive, so Noranti sprays him with her calming concoction, the same she'd used on Pilot before. "Troubled Stykera," she says, "Float on memories, and perhaps time will heal your wounds." Pilot wants the pumps discharged, and Noranti tells him that D'Argo has already released them, and to let the minerals in Qujaga's sea soothe Moya. Rygel is asking Chiana how many fingers he's holding up, and she irritated, bites them. Her blindness hasn't gone, and she worries she's going to be blind forever. D'Argo says that the Diagnosan they found near here will be the first stop they make, when this is over. Rygel is looking out the large viewer window. "Simpletons," he says, adding that Crichton has Aeryn in a boat. Outside, on the small boat, John holds up a coin, saying that a year ago, they let a coin make their decisions for them. "Not again," Aeryn says. But John tells her to call it, and flips the coin. She doesn't, and lets it drop in the water. "Aeryn I have a question." "Can I go first?" "Yeah." "When I was on the command carrier, I went to see a surgeon. I was really worried about what the Scarrans did to me. The fetus has been released from its stasis. So I'm having a baby." "You OK?" She nods. "And the baby?" "It's yours." She pauses. "I just wanted to tell you. I hope it doesn't change anything." "Um Well, it changes everything." He stands up in the boat, shouting euphorically "We're going to have a baby!" at the top of his voice. On Moya, D'Argo tells Chiana that John seems very, very angry. Aeryn tells John to sit down, and asks, "Are you alright?" "Yeah." "Are you happy?" "Yeah!" "What was your question?" "Oh, God. Um." D'Argo tells Chiana John's gone down on his knees. She asks why. "I think he's hurt himself," Rygel surmises. "Will you marry me?" John asks. Aeryn smiles and nods. "Yes." John laughs, and they hug tightly. Chiana asks what he's doing. "Err, the boat's sinking," says Rygel. John tells Aeryn to wait, reaches into his pocket and pulls out his mother's engagement ring, then slips it gently onto her finger. D'Argo tells Chiana what he's doing. "A ring?" she asks. She laughs, and asks if neither of them watched any of those Earth movies. "Crichton just proposed!" "Hmm? Proposed what?" Rygel asks. "Marriage," she says. "Marriage? Idiot!" Rygel says, muttering "urgh" under his breath as he floats off unimpressed. On the row boat, as John and Aeryn happily share their first engaged kiss, overhead a flying vessel suddenly appears out of nowhere, aiming straight towards them. D'Argo, in a slight panic from not recognising the unidentified airship, calls for them to get back inside. "Give me a break," John shouts, "We're in a boat!" On the alien vessel, the alien - a spiky pitch-black mullet-haired somewhat Ziggy Stardust-looking Qujagan Eidelon alien - speaks to a voice. "Tracker scouts were correct. One Leviathan, partially submerged. Two invaders have exited their ship. Request orders." Chiana, still unable to see, asks if they're going to make it, as D'Argo frets about helplessly. "Do you have target acquisition?" the alien voice asks. "Positive. I scan no armaments," the alien replies. Suddenly, his head splits open, bisecting down centre of nose, each side of the face moving apart, revealing within another set of internal eyes beneath, and between, a centrally protruding short phallic-looking proboscis, with yet another eyeball on it's end. As this peculiar appendage scans left to right, the same voice from before, now seemingly coming from inside, orders him to neutralize invaders for analysis. D'Argo shouts for them to hurry up. On the boat, knowing they have no time to do anything, Aeryn cups John's face in her hands, and says "You and your timing." He smiles. "I love you," he says, and they kiss passionately as they are fired upon by the alien ship. John and Aeryn are briefly frozen in their last kiss, as if forever encased in amber when they shatter, breaking apart into thousands of small pieces, which fall showering down into heaps at the bottom of the boat, and overboard into the sea below. D'Argo, hardly believing his eyes on witnessing his friends destruction, breaks down into a chain of heartrending wails, the anguish clear in his tearing eyes, as Chiana embraces him tightly, they both fall to their knees in disbelief and sorrow, their hearts slowly breaking. We see a final image, the mound of their remains on the boat, now nothing more than a mass of crystalline shards, each small piece the look of uncut gem. At the tip of the mound, as if it were the last piece to fall, their last sad remnant - the engagement ring - sits upright, half buried amongst their crystallized remains. The diamond scintillating, as if reflecting their very last spark of life. + +Before Jack can answer the question, "Was it a bass, or a trout?", Sikozu steps out and tells John that they are not impostors -- DRD scans confirm that they are humans. "It's me, son. It's all right, you're home," Jack says reassuringly. "You're alive. And if that wasn't miracle enough, this ship is actually a living organism?" "Yes, she is," John replies. Jack then points to Sikozu as being another alien life form. John asks how they got up to Moya, and Jack tells him they sent a shuttle to open communications, and everyone at IASA had a coronary when Sikozu answered, in English. "She's too smart," John says of Sikozu, when T.R. Holt introduces himself as Special Advisor to the President. He congratulates John on first contact with extraterrestrial life. John chuckles, and calls out the others. As they step off the ship, John warns him, "just don't make any sudden moves." The American officials look on in utter amazement. Sikozu tells John that Moya arrived in orbit 42 days ago, and John tells her that some time dilation may have occurred. John asks where Scorpius is. She tells him he is in a pod at the far end of this wormhole, transmitting a signal so that they can get back. John tells her that she can stop pimping for him any time, prompting her to ask what is wrong with him. "These are your people," she points out, "Or do you think they pose us a threat?" "No, it's the other way around." John is sitting on a pier back home in America, writing in his diary. He realizes he's finally back home, and thinks that seeing his friends and family again is so normal. We see him meeting DK and wife Laura, DK saying he finally won her over, geek and all. He figured Earth would freak out, and sure enough, it delivered on time in 30 minutes or less. The crew is being contained at a waterfront mansion with full security teams standing by; it's a cage, but at least a gilded one. "Of course, the suits are more interested in the technology. No surprise there." So they let them look, but they just can't comprehend it, not yet. Some VIPs have accepted translator microbes, but even they won't help some people listen, not that you can blame them. But the alien life's not been going too crazy; his family's been helping out. His sister Olivia is hanging with them, and his cousin Bobby is totally fascinated by the ETs. We see Bobby filming Chiana and Sikozu as they sit in the garden, Chiana wanting to go out and "make friends". Meanwhile, Rygel and Noranti are trying out the pop corn and are the happiest. T.R. Holt is not happy. John is trying to convince them that a trip on a spaceship with 500 of Earth's best would be a good idea. T.R. gives the line that the Farscape Project was and is an American initiative and so they should reap the first benefits of it, a line uttered by John's father. John is adamant that it must be shared, or no deal. T.R. tells him that Jack has been made IASA's Project Director for Extraterrestrial Studies, it's dynamite PR, and he tells John not to screw it up for his father. "That's a nice suit. Do you have to buy that or does it come standard issue?" John asks. This brings him to his Dad. Jack's world is upside down, so he's trying to make it right side up by putting up Christmas decorations, even though it's Florida and the whole block is cordoned off by security. "Family traditions. They're supposed to bring us together, and to make everything normal." "So you do this every cycle?" Aeryn asks. "Year! Every year," John corrects her. Jack says it's always been their favorite holiday. John recalls that he loved that Christmas where Jack lit the fireplace and the smoke came down because Mr. Jingles, their cat, was in the flue. "A cat?" Aeryn asks, looking at its picture. "Yeah, it's a pet," John replies. "Does he talk?" John nods and reminisces that it took months for his hair to grow back; Aeryn's puzzled but smiles on amused by it all. Jack brings out a decoration that John's mother used to love, that John made when he was five, prompting John to ask if they'll break out the bare-assed baby pictures next. Olivia and Jack surmise that's not a bad idea, and even Aeryn is up for seeing them. John pouts, but is quickly distracted by the doorbell. He answers, and it's Caroline with a special delivery from Christmas past. She gives him a lingering kiss, and welcomes him back to terra firma. "Hey, um Caroline's here," John announces, as Aeryn watches on in dismay. John realizes that things have changed; you don't get to close your eyes and pretend they haven't. Everyone's telling him how different he is, and they're right, but they don't have a clue why. And they can't know what he's done, seen, or what's been done to him. They can't know what's out there waiting, and he can't tell them because they wouldn't believe him. Caroline joins him on the pier. It's supposed to be his weekend off, but he's doing homework. He reluctantly submits to another lingering kiss. At the Crichton home, John is sitting on a couch with popcorn, watching a television report about the panic the aliens have created. His Dad joins him, saying Holt says it's bad on the political front. Every nation is demanding equal information from the aliens. John thinks this is inevitable, but Jack doesn't see why they should be given access. He thinks John is being naive, and the safest thing to do would be keep it in America. "Space travel was your dream to unite mankind. When did that change?" John asks. "September 11th," Jack replies sternly, "This isn't the same world you left four years ago, son. People don't dream like they used to. It's about survival now." "Whose survival?" "Olivia's survival. And Susan and Frank and Bobby's. Imagine them blown up by a suicide bomb or coughing up blood from a poison gas attack. This country is under siege. You just don't understand the global situation." John asks if that's because he's been out of town, or 'cause Daddy's always right. Jack says that's not fair. Jack says John doesn't want to argue with anyone, just insist that he's right. He accuses John of being the most stubborn in the family, to which John strongly disagrees; so Jack concedes they should probably split the title. John tells him that he's going into space tomorrow, and invites him along - unless he's too stubborn. On Moya, Grayza's 'mantis-like' hunter, Skreeth, lurks in the darkness. Meanwhile, John, Bobby, Jack, D'Argo, and Aeryn return. John introduces Bobby to DRD 1812, as his and Jack's tour guide, and they go to see Pilot. D'Argo asks John if he can check wormhole stability from Command, or if he needs to go back outside. "No, Command will be fine," he says, having had enough EVA to last a lifetime. Aeryn tells D'Argo that the Prowler's systems all check out normal, and says she appreciates his keeping the scientists from damaging it. After a brief silence, D'Argo leaves the pair alone, saying he'll meet John on Command. John tells Aeryn that if she has a problem with the IASA boys poking around her Prowler, she should just leave it behind, as they have enough to look at. "Would it be better if I stayed here as well?" she asks. "Why would you want to do that?" John replies. "I'm clearly not fitting in." "You're fitting in as well as any of us are. Whatever, it's up to you." "It's up to me?" she asks. "Yeah. Yeah, it's up to you." She says that she doesn't mind his scientists poking around her Prowler, and she can even field strip a cannon. "No, don't do that. Thank you, but don't do that -- they've seen enough," John tells her. He asks her if she wants a hand with what she's doing, but she refuses. On the command carrier, Braca asks Grayza what the device she has in her hand is. She says it doesn't matter, as he wouldn't remember anyway, then slaps it on his forehead. It's a communication device/creature - she calls Skreeth for its report, and it answers, essentially talking through Braca. Skreeth tells her they're orbiting Crichton's home planet, and got there through a wormhole. She tells Skreeth not to kill Crichton yet, but to learn all it can about the planet, its defenses and its location first. Skreeth wants to interrogate John, but Grayza tells him that he's proved resistant thus far to many different forms of interrogation, and orders him to remain hidden for now. She disconnects Braca, who remembers nothing when he comes around and is thoroughly puzzled. "We took a short break for recreation," Grayza tells him, grasping his face and stroking his chest suggestively. "I see," he says, surprised. She quickly changes to duty, and orders him to ready the ship to destroy a planet. On Moya, John tells D'Argo that Moya is almost ready to leave, and D'Argo says that Pilot and Moya are looking forward to giving humans their first trip to the stars. He realizes they're not going, and asks why John even offered them 'tickets'. "To give them something, otherwise they'd try and take it," he replies. John holds some of the lakah drug, and when D'Argo looks, John tells him not to look at him that way. He says D'Argo knows how paranoid his planet is. "Yeah, they don't like aliens," D'Argo says. "They don't like anybody," John says. "Glad to see you're taking a positive approach." John says they're giving them a few hints, then getting the hell out of there and hoping Earth will get its act together before the real space monsters show up. Jack catches up with Aeryn, looking for John. She offers him a lift in her Prowler, and John joins them and tells his Dad to join her, as she's the finest pilot he's ever come accross. Aeryn takes Jack to Saturn, and he savors the moment commenting in awe that he is farther from earth than any human has ever been. Aeryn smiles and corrects him that actually he isn't, and Jack concedes that "I guesses John does have a few miles on me." Aeryn comments that John must be happy to be back on Earth. "I don't know. He's having a tough time readjusting," Jack tells her. He hasn't talked much about what he's been through. "Not even about his shipmates?" Aeryn asks. Jack says that he's talked about their societies and customs; and Aeryn says John thinks that her species and humans may be linked. Jack says he wouldn't be surprised, and would think she was human if he didn't know better. "Well I'm not," Aeryn replies. "Do you wish you were?" he replies. "Why do you ask?" she says. Jack says she has feelings for John, and Aeryn asks if that shocks him. He says no; it might if he thought of her as an alien life form, but that he doesn't. He says that John hasn't actually said anything, but he believes John has feelings for her. "He did," Aeryn replies, "Now." Jack says that now, he's home, and that is one of the things he'll have to figure out, to just give him some time. In the mansion, Sikozu is having a spat on the phone, not wanting to have an x-ray. Rygel tells her to eat something; she'll feel better. She says she wants to go back to Moya, and Chiana gives her a present to give to Pilot. Noranti starts singing a Christmas carol, badly reading off a musical card, an amusingly butchered version of Hark the Herald Angles Sing, with Chiana joining in enthusiastically. Sikozu grabs the book from her and throws it aside in frustration. Jack tells John how amazing his trip was, and it was the best Christmas present he got except for the tie-rack John gave him when he was in junior high school. This leads John to Holt, who is still fighting him on the explorer selection plan and the tech issues. "I could use a little support," he tells Jack. Jack says he's always supported John as much as he could, but right now he's not looking at the bigger picture. "You don't see the big picture," John insists, "You can't conceive of it." He says that Earth has to work together on this, but Jack says he's asking the impossible. "Impossible!? Impossible is not in our vocabulary. Who said that? - You! You did," John says, "Four days before you set foot on the moon. You taught me to believe that. That belief kept me alive. Please tell me you still believe it." Looking a little distressed, Jack replies, "I'm not sure what I believe anymore." DK and Laura talk to John about all this crap he's tacked on to his module, saying it's theoretically impossible and can't work. John says that theory is wrong, but he can't tell them how it works because he didn't design it, only installed it; that's for them to figure out. Laura tells him they need something, but John reaffirms his position that he can't tell them what he doesn't know. DK asks why the brought the ships then, and Laura asks what he's on the track of, having asked for a metallurgic analysis of the ships. "It's just a riddle," John says, "Why do Prowler pilots turn to goo?" He then leaves to get some coffee. As DK and Laura leave with a security escort, DK tells her that something's going on. Laura is sure he's holding out on them, while DK speculates that he just wants all the glory for himself, again. As they're about to get in the car, Skreeth exits his invisibility camouflage and attacks them, kills their escort, shoves him into the trunk of the car, and interrogates Laura and DK. Meanwhile, it tells Grayza through Braca that it can guarantee that not all of Crichton's species have his ability to withstand interrogation, and also that John has yet to share the wormhole knowledge with anyone. Skreeth says the knowledge can die with Crichton. "Not until I have that knowledge," Grayza insists. Skreeth is confident that John can be captured, but doubts he can bring Crichton to her. Grayza says she can't get to Skreeth either, since the journey to Earth is obviously impractical without wormhole travel. "Then our best alternative is to seize him, learn what we can from him, then execute him," Skreeth tells Grayza. She is forced to agree, and when she says she needs nothing more from the captives - DK and Laura are summarily executed. John is at home, looking through a photo album, when Olivia comes home from her shopping trip with aliens. She asks him what's wrong, as he looks subdued, but he says nothing. "Do you want to go live in the past?" she asks. "No thank you, I've been there." "Well, where do you want to live?" she asks. "I don't know. You tell me. Where do I belong?" He says he looks at these pictures and recognizes the faces, some of the places, but it's not his life anymore. He points to his mother and says he really misses her. He points to Olivia and says he misses her. He then points to his dad and says the same, but he's changed. "What, he's changed so much that you can't talk to him?" Olivia asks. She says he's saying the same thing about you, that you've changed so much. John agrees he has indeed changed, and he can't tell him why. "Why not?" John says it's because he works for Extraterrestrial Studies and what he hears, the government hears. She asks if John means that Dad can't keep a confidence. "I mean, there was a mistake," John replies, "It was an accident. And it shouldn't have happened. And there are things that the government cannot hear." She asks if it's bad, which John denies, and then he lays a pointed finger on her forehead and mimics E.T's voice. They both giggle playfully, enjoying each other's company. Aeryn brings some presents to the mansion, ensuring Crichton isn't there, since they're gifts for him. D'Argo says no, but his cousin is outside interviewing Caroline Wallace. Chiana helps with the presents, saying they're for John, but D'Argo says it won't get him back. Chiana says Aeryn will sooner or later, since some males can actually forgive, and accidentally knocks a present into D'Argo. Bobby is filming Caroline, and asks how long she's known John. "I met him six years ago." Bobby then asks how long she's been his girlfriend, but when she spots Aeryn walking over, she tells Bobby to cut it. Aeryn tells her not to stop on her behalf; she's interested in the answer. Caroline asks if she'll tell her why she wants to know. "That's fair," Aeryn replies, "John and I were in a relationship." Caroline asks what kind. "It was complicated," she says. Caroline says she and John had a much simpler one -- just casual times. But that was before. "And now?" Aeryn asks. She says that he doesn't even want that much. "But he's been spending time with you," Aeryn comments. Caroline says she thinks he's been testing himself, working out what he really wants, and it isn't her. "I'm sorry," Aeryn says. "No you're not," Caroline replies. She asks if Aeryn still wants him. "Yes, but it doesn't matter. He doesn't want me either." Caroline begs to differ, she thinks he does. When she asked about Aeryn, he said there was nothing going on. Aeryn says that's a bad thing, but Caroline says she has a lot to understand about humans. Sometimes when we repeat something so much it's because we're trying to convince ourselves of the truth. And that is that John still loves Aeryn, very much. The other side of the wormhole, Sikozu has joined Scorpius in another transport pod. Her head is bruised, because the journey was turbulent. Following his guidance signal was a great help. She soon realizes that he is trying to turn the pod into a bomb. He tells her that the wormhole is traversable, therefore they can't have Grayza finding it. Sikozu asks if he thinks her Carrier will return, and he says his spy aboard has been unable to discern Grayza's current strategies. But should she return he will detonate the pod inside the mouth of the wormhole, which should destabilize it. "But how would you survive it?" Sikozu asks. He replies, "I wouldn't survive it." She says he would have a better chance of destabilization with two pods, and he grabs her, asking if she would like to observe the sequence. Down on Earth, D'Argo tells John that Sikozu went back through the wormhole, but said she's not going to return to Earth. John says that's good, but no comms. Meanwhile, Holt is trying to persuade Jack to make John bend, because he's getting an earful. The joint chiefs want to classify the technology as a national security risk and impound it, but Jack says John won't allow that; he'd rather take it away instead. Holt says all he's asking for is a compromise, and urges Jack to convince his son. Chiana is drinking champagne, and tells John this isn't a very fun party. Jack calls everyone to attention, and gives a speech. "I once told my son that he'd get the chance to become his own kind of hero. Well, he got it. And he made the most of it. I also taught him to stick to his guns when he thought he was right, so I can't fault him when he does. I've heard it said that he should accept our judgement over his, because he owes us. I've even said it myself. Well, we are wrong. Look at the friends he discovered, the miracles he's brought and then ask yourself what he owes us as compared to what we owe him. Now, John insists that we share these wonders with the rest of the world. But some people are afraid of what that means, of what will happen if we do. John's afraid of what'll happen if we don't - and I'll go with that. So as IASA's Project Director for Extraterrestrial Studies, I hereby invite all nations to participate in the ongoing Farscape mission." The room applauds, as the official scowls at him from the crowd, disapprovingly. After, a surprised John asks what made him change his mind, and Jack tells him because he believes in John. John tells him that means a lot, and there are a lot of things they should talk about. Jack says it's Christmas Eve, so John says it'll keep. They get into a car, but the camouflaged Skreeth holds on to the back of the car and follows them home. Aeryn arrives at John's house, and tells Olivia that she knows she's preparing a private dinner so she won't stay long. She asks if John's here yet, and Olivia says no. Aeryn returns the clothes Olivia lent her with thanks and an apology, saying she's just more comfortable in her regular attire. She also brought back the books she borrowed, and tells Olivia she really appreciates it -- everything. Olivia asks if she's leaving, and Aeryn says possibly. Olivia confirms that Aeryn will at least be here in the morning with the rest of them to open presents. "I may not be," Aeryn replies. She says nothing bad happened, she's just needed on Moya for a while. The conversation is interrupted by the oven's timer, and Olivia goes to see to it. Meanwhile, Chiana, who's a little tipsy, is flirting with one of the older officials. D'Argo apologises on her behalf and drags her to the parking area, and says "Don't you know all humans are bigots? They fight even amongst their own species." Chiana suggests that may be why, they've barely left their own planet. Suddenly D'Argo smells something bad, follows his nose and spots the dead bodies of Laura and DK, shoved in the backseat of a parked car. John and Jack arrive back home, and Aeryn apologizes to John for being here, she just had to return something to Olivia. "Do you want me to go back to Moya?" she asks. "We've already talked about this," he replies, "It's entirely up to you." "Fine, I'll go with what you prefer," she replies, "Look I'm not trying to pressure you, John. I'm actually trying to take the pressure off. Would you be happier if I wasn't here on Earth? You don't have to justify it or explain it. Just give me an honest yes or no." As she gets teary-eyed, Jack asks her if she'll join them for dinner. Aeryn says she couldn't impose, but Jack interjects and tells her there's always room for one more. She says it's a traditional family thing, but Jack says they'll start a new tradition; it's up to her but they'd love to have her. John asks for some eggnog, to try and get some more time alone. As John goes towards Aeryn, almost as if they're about to kiss, the Skreeth bursts through the door and attacks Olivia and Jack. The escort shoots, but his gun has no effect. John tries to rush the creature, but Skreeth throws him into the dining room table Aeryn pulls out her pulse pistol and sustains fire, but Skreeth is too fast, camouflaging again. Skreeth comes up behind her and bites down on Aeryn's pistol. John makes the save with the lakah drug, blowing it in its face, and as the combat continues Aeryn tells John to go upstairs and get Winona before she is slammed onto a glass table. As John he climbs the staircase Skreeth grabs his leg, and on the Command Carrier Grayza is excited when Skreeth reports it has him. Skreeth vanishes again once John has grabbed Winona. Skreeth reappears behind him and knocks John off balance, they both fall over the banister. Aeryn comes round in the other room, and warns John to get clear, shooting the chandelier so it falls on Skreeth's face, apparently killing it. John and Aeryn check on Jack and Olivia, who are both shaken but mostly unharmed. Olivia asks what the hell that was, and Aeryn says she has no idea. Just then a low rumbling is heard, as D'Argo arrives in Lo'La and hovers outside the patio doors. Suddenly Skreeth gets back up, ready to attack again. Before it can, D'Argo fires Lo'La's cannon, which blows through the glass doors into the room and completely vaporizes the creature. On the Carrier Braca, still connected to Skreeth, falls to the floor unconcious. Aeryn gets up. "Well, merry frelling Christmas," she says. "Amen!" John replies. Grayza quickly removes the now-useless interface, tears open Braca's uniform, and resumes her charade of having 'recreated' with Braca, telling him that was the best ever; and he utterly bewildered, says he's pleased he could serve her. He composes himself, buttons up his uniform, and asks if that will be all, then leaves her alone where she sits, defeated once again. The crew, minus John, return to Moya. Rygel wants all the food to go to his quarters, and Chiana asks if the presents should go to John's. Aeryn says it's not the right time, while D'Argo helps, saying they'll leave as soon as John is back on board. Aeryn, holding some lakah, catches up with Noranti and asks what it is. Noranti says she doesn't know, but Aeryn says she thinks she made it. She is insistent. Noranti relents and tells her, "It is to help him move on. Surmount his feelings and forget." "Who?" Aeryn asks, while Noranti just stares at her then turns away. John is holding a ring in a ringbox. Olivia tells him she was going to give it to him for Christmas. John immediately recognises it was their mother's. She had left it to Olivia, but she says she wants him to have it, sure Mum would've loved John to have it. She begs him not to go, but he says he has to. They hug, and he kisses her, telling her to take care. Jack comes over, and tells him, "Stay." He says they'll guard the wormhole; make sure nothing gets through. John says, "I have a job to do." Jack replies, "I don't want to lose you, son. I can't shake this feeling that you're not coming back." "Oh, I'll be back. That's a promise. You take care of my home," John replies. Jack says, "That's a promise." They hug, and John kisses him. As all of them are upset, John turns, puts his sunglasses on, and walks away. + +Most of the crew are sitting, eating on Moya. Noranti comments that it's highly abnormal when Sikozu goes for her fifth helping. Apparently it's an advantage of only eating ten times a cycle. Suddenly, D'Argo and Noranti get a visible purple flush in their faces.Pilot comms Ka D'Argo, ready to relay a message from Moya, but D'Argo cuts him off having heard it before, saying they know he thinks this planet is a pit, an outpost of nothing. "Their food's overcooked, undercooked and not worth cooking! Makes Noranti's food seem edible," Rygel comments. Rygel and Aeryn get a green flush in their faces. Pilot tells Aeryn Sun on request that without filtration the electrostatic impulses from surrounding radiation sources will drive Moya mad. Moya hasn't had a peaceful rest since they entered Tormented Space. D'Argo adds that this is the only planet they've found whose mechanics are aware of Leviathans; they can get the job done. Pilot asks when, and Sikozu answers, "When their doctor can certify that none of us have space madness." The doctor, Tumii, is preparing some device, when John brings in Scorpius. Tumii says that Scorpius has already certified free of the dementia, but his Scarran ancestry disqualifies him from visiting the planet. John asks if Tumii is sure Pilot told them Moya's hull protects from radiation. The doctor tells him that it's so feared that there are no exceptions -- everyone is tested. He carries out the test, as he sticks an implement up John's nose, promises it won't hurt a bit, yet John screams out in pain, he's whole skull lighting up from within like a Jack-o'-lantern. Chiana comments that all the food is dren, and even Rygel agrees. John walks in and D'Argo tells him if he'd held his scream off one more microt he'd have won the pool. "Anything edible?" John asks, and receives a no from Chiana and Aeryn in unison. Sikozu and John both eat some spaghetti-like yellow food, and both have a visible flush of yellow through their faces. D'Argo then sneezes and, almost immediately, so does Noranti, again with a pink flush. Tumii comes in and says it was a pleasure meeting them all, and on the mention of food says that perhaps they'll find better nourishment down on the planet. D'Argo says they won't be visiting the planet -- as soon as the mechanic fixes the ship they'll be leaving. D'Argo sneezes again, and similarly Noranti does the same. "I risk to differ, Captain," Tumii says, "Oh, did I forget to mention not to share the Qatal mollusks? They're to be eaten whole. Should the flesh be divided among different stomachs, the food poisoning that results is fatal." Everyone gags and spits out what they can on the spot; and D'Argo, Aeryn, and John whip out their guns. "What did you do?" Aeryn asks. "Initiated the first half of our business arrangement. Bring one quarter million currency pledges, each, to my office, and I will cure you." D'Argo suggests just shooting Tumii, but while it sounds like a good idea, Tumii reminds him he is the only one who can cure them. He then adds that their weapons will only cause the mechanics to resist making the modifications Moya requires. When Rygel suggests telling the mechanic what he did, Tumii lets him know that the mechanic will not believe them, and he will double his price. "Care to call my bluff?" he asks. The crew put their weapons away, and Tumii tells them not to delay payment, as their symptoms will eventually looks similar to those of space madness, a disease they shoot on site for! The mechanic and a guard enter, the latter smirks at everyone and asks the doctor for his report. Tumii states that they're all free from effective illness - at the moment! D'Argo and Noranti sneeze again, Rygel farts and Aeryn feels it, and John's stomach plays up and Sikozu feels it, but Chiana is fine. She greets the guard, saying they're all a little excited by it all. D'Argo takes her aside and asks if she ate any mollusks, which she didn't, so he tells her to put the mechanic to work but stay with him at all times. She leads them away, and Aeryn asks the others what's going on here. "Every time Rygel vents, I vent," she says, looking like she's in some pain. As Sikozu is digesting her meal, John is feeling it too. Noranti says that she and D'Argo both ate the purple mollusks, and every time he sneezes she feels it. Rygel and Aeryn both had the green one. D'Argo says they'll go down to the planet and have a chat with the doctor. He tells Noranti to analyze the food and comm them if she finds a cure, so she needs bodily samples. Chiana asks the mechanic how long the job will take. "A couple of arns at the most." Chiana stares at the mechanic, who notices. When asked why, Chiana says, "Maybe I think you're cute." She says she just wants to see that the mechanic doesn't hurt Moya. Chiana calls Pilot to cut off power to this cluster, and Sikozu attempts to help him. "I do not need your help," Pilot insists angrily. John, D'Argo, and Aeryn take a transport pod down to the planet. They sit and wait, while the receptionist tells them Tumii will be back shortly. John complains about the heat, wondering where Sikozu is, while Aeryn is suffering from the effects of Rygel's three over-filled stomachs. Noranti's doing her 'experiments', drinks something that resembles urine, and starts to hiccup, causing D'Argo to retch and do the same. Tumii comes out of his room, and tells the receptionist that's it for the day, and invites the crew into his room. Again the guns come out, and Tumii points out that killing him kills them. He asks to speak, but John responds, "No. Cure first, speak later." Tumii adds that he can't be forced to cure them, and that he devised it, so they won't find a cure elsewhere. He explains that each mollusk contains one colony of neurally linked bacteria, and each colony acts as a single organism. So if the mollusk is halved, each half transmits each of its sensations to the other half. "Who cares?" D'Argo asks. "Just take the money, cure us," John says. The doctor continues, saying that now the bacteria has colonized their bodies, they're communicating their emotional states to force them to merge, the problem is they're not mollusks, and can never merge, so their symptoms worsen and the strain eventually kills them. D'Argo threatens to break Tumii's neck if he doesn't cure them now, but the doctor explains that he is down to his last mollusk, and the cure requires the same type ingested. More are being delivered, but for now he can only cure whoever ate the purple mollusk. "I hate you!" John and Aeryn say to D'Argo in unison, since it was he and Noranti who ate the purple variety. On Moya, Noranti drinks some more, and dances around, then gets somewhat aroused. Tumii explains that they must orally ingest the urine of the person they're linked with, "Imbibe, digest, urinate, imbibe" he chants impishly. D'Argo's disgusted protest is cut off by his arousal. Noranti, and so D'Argo, orgasms - so D'Argo goes and headbutts something to knock her out. Tumii continues to explain the cure, and says that after ingesting the other's urine you and the linked one must touch bare flesh, so the bacteria can migrate. D'Argo is not impressed and asks how much bare flesh exactly, he's relieved hands will suffice. "One more word of techno-babble and I'm gonna cut your tongue out!" John interrupts. D'Argo leaves to go and try out the cure, while Aeryn assures Tumii that if it doesn't work, he's dead. The guard is with Scorpius, asking how he can travel in something alive, filthy with all the bacteria. Scorpius says that Moya is self-disinfectant; while the guard is surprised that Moya is female. Scorpius assures him she is controlled by Pilot - a male, of course. Scorpius says that there has never been a case of space madness on this ship, while the guard says they're lucky, they had three cases in the last six months alone. Back on the planet, the mollusks have just arrived, but as Tumii goes outside to pick them up, he is shot at by what appears to be a mysterious figure cloaked all in black. Aeryn didn't catch the face of the shooter but is pretty certain she was female. Lying injured on the floor, the doctor wonders about his assassin, then says "Oh dear, I believe we're all in serious difficulty" then, "I'm afraid, I can't cure you." On hearing this the crew all start loosing their cool, then demand some explanations. Noranti pees in a bucket, and scoops up a full cup of urine, handing it to D'Argo. He hesitates with a snarl, but when Rygel prods him he reminds Noranti they have to be touching too. She prepares to take her top off, but he stops her ensuring less skin -- hands -- is just fine. They gulp down each other's urine, and both of their faces have a purple flush. "Did it work?" Sikozu asks, "Test it!" D'Argo complies, and punches Noranti, not feeling anything himself. In response, Noranti pinches him down below, but just gets a fright; she too didn't feel anything. D'Argo lets John know that the cure is working, and the doctor tells him to ensure they maintain contact until they feel an oily sensation, to signal that all the bacteria have precipitated out; it should only take a few arns. If they break contact however, the bacteria will re-colonize in their bodies and the symptoms recur, eventually they will die. Aeryn tells Rygel and Sikozu to get down to the planet quickly. As they leave an excited Noranti begins, "Do you know, I've been looking for this opportunity for so long, I've wanted to get you alone. There are so many things I don't know about you." Tumii tells Aeryn and John that to cure them he needs more Qatal Mollusks, and he can no longer get them. On this planet, females are oppressed, and there is a resistance movement planning a coup to seize power. "Girl power, so what?" John asks. Tumii explains that they possess the only Qatal Mollusks on this planet; they employ them to eliminate certain males in power. They use them for secrecy, as the symptoms are not known on this planet, they are mistaken for space madness. During an autopsy on one of the victims he discovered the real cause of death and who had caused it, and made a deal -- his silence for some of the mollusks. He assumes their takeover attempt must be imminent, and that's why they're after him; they're perhaps afraid he'll expose them. He says he'll refund two thirds of their money, but Aeryn disagrees. He will tell her where the females are. On Moya, Chiana grabs the mechanic up against the wall, and realizes what she suspected -- the mechanic is a female disguised as a man. She tells Chiana not to tell the guard or he'll kill her. Chiana gets violent, saying she thinks the mechanic is here to spy on them and ensure they eat the mollusks. The mechanic doesn't know what she's talking about, and insists she's here to help by fixing their Leviathan. She explains that women on her world aren't allowed to do this sort of work, and convinces Chiana she's telling the truth. Meanwhile, Noranti has fallen asleep against D'Argo, who wants a drink that is just out of reach. Tumii tells Aeryn and John that the club the females run is popular among the highly placed officials, and while they're there the mollusks are served. "Instant coup!" Sikozu and Rygel bring currency, while Aeryn tells Sikozu to come, as they have a mission to do. "I'm happy to go," John points out. "Jirl power," Aeryn replies. "Girl! Girl power. Would you quit speakin' English!" John adds. John ties up and gags Tumii, when a man enters looking for Doctor Tumii. "He's tied up right now," John says, telling him to take a seat. Rygel comes out posing as the doctor, with his contraption on his head, asking "What seems to be the problem?" He tells the man to take off his clothes, here, for some preventive bloodletting. Shaking an odd instrument as him. "Everyone can benefit from the removal of one excess bodily fluid or another," Rygel mentions. Rygel goes to take a closer look, and the man walks away somewhat suspiciously. Sikozu and Aeryn enter the club, where they're met by a woman who asks if they're looking for work. "We'd like to talk to Selva," Aeryn says. "Who?" the woman asks. "Your boss." Sikozu says they don't know her, but they have heard she's trying to improve conditions on this planet for females, and they think it's a worthy cause. But, it's a cause that requires much funding. So we'd like to discuss a business deal, says Aeryn. The woman says they're not interested, as more women arrive and surround them. When Aeryn says they'd rather hear the answer from Selva, they are attacked from behind. Rygel and John feel the pain and are equally knocked about. "I think the girls are in trouble!" Rygel exclaims. Sikozu and Aeryn are tied up back-to-back, and they speak to Selva. After agreeing that they are not friends, Aeryn says that she and Sikozu are here to buy something at whatever the price. Selva and another woman discuss whether they're telling the truth, but either way they agree Sikozu and Aeryn must die, but killing them will only cure who they're linked with, but if they keep them alive their partners will be drawn here, where they can all be killed or die at once. Rygel has a plan and brings John a purple dress and tells him to put it on, but John's not impressed and doesn't want to wear it. "The elite male clientele are all known, and know one another. Therefore, we can't go as males," Rygel points out. John then objects to the color of the dress, because it's not a slimming color. "If it were black, then maybe" adds John. "I wear that color all the time!" Rygel says, disgruntled. He tells John he can stay here and die from the mollusks then; he'll just go alone. John and Rygel enter the club; both dressed as women. John in the slinky purple velvet number he objected to, and a brunette shoulder length wig waved over one eye seductively. In full make-up, he looks surprisingly more convincing than expected, if a little too staunch. Flaunting a frilly pouffey matronly thing, Grand Dame Rygella is a floating vision in white, with a bejewelled crown and flowing veil, beard and all. Said veil hardly hiding his chin whiskers, amusingly. Rygel reminds John they need to blend in, then they strengthen their resolve and attempt to mingle. As John struts in a man immediately comes over and caresses his behind. John turns to him, "You put your hand on my ass once again, and I will kill you," he says with authority. As Scorpius and the guard walk through Moya, below deck just beneath them, they overhear Chiana and the mechanic talk about how difficult it is to pretend to be a man. It looks as though Scorpius might've lead the guard there on purpose, to expose the mechanic's deception. But she's confident that sooner or later women will take power and defeat their oppressors. The guard steps down a ladder and confronts them, then orders the mechanic to strip or he'll shoot. Chiana stands in front of her and tells him to leave her alone. Suddenly Scorpius slides down the ladder, wraps his legs around the guard's shoulders and breaks his neck. So, it seems Scorpy's objective was a sycophantic one, to play the hero as an attempt to winning over the crew. A man approaches John in the club, wanting to dance. "Well, darling, I don't dance," John says, playing shy. "Well, I do," the man replies, and drags him to the dance floor. Pilot tells Scorpius John's comms isn't responding; it may be turned off. Scorpius says he could be incapacitated by the mollusks, and Pilot suggests maybe contacting the planet's authorities. Scorpius says no, so reluctantly Pilot asks him what he thinks they should do? Scorpius smugly retorts "You, Pilot, can do nothing." As Rygel sneaks around looking for the mollusks, a woman asks Selva if their partners have arrived. She says they can't tell, so to give her 50 microts then cut off one of their fingers, that should give their partners away. John dances with the pawing man, who flirts in his ear that with the right partner he could do it all night. John desperately tries to convince him he's not that right partner for him. Rygel finds a room that looks promising, and indeed it's the room with the mollusks. The woman picks Aeryn's hand, but Sikozu shouts "Not her!" Aeryn kicks the knife out of the woman's hand, but they are soon suppressed. John feels the pain as he dances, arousing the suspicions of the man he's with. Sikozu says she volunteers, and despite Aeryn's vocal objections, the woman cuts off Sikozu's finger. Despite John feeling the immense pain, he grabs on to the man more tightly as they dance and manages not to be noticed by the females scanning the dance floor. John says he could use a drink, so the man takes him to the bar. The women reports that it either didn't work or they're not there yet; and while the man gets the drinks, John comms Rygel, who tells him he has the mollusks but can't find the girls. He says he's leaving, as he's overwhelmed with dread -- the mollusks are also taking their toll. A woman suggests trying Aeryn's finger, but another says she's in the final stages, and she and her partner will soon die. Rygel leaves the rest to John, manages to escape, and rushes back to the doctor. Scorpius has the mollusks and is thinking of an alternative, while Pilot tells him consuming the mollusks is a risky plan. Scorpius is quite confident that once he's consumed the mollusks and joined with the others he can endure their deterioration. Pilot says he's tried contacting them one last time, but again got no response. Meanwhile, Noranti is still lying asleep on a still thirsty D'Argo, who with chin pressed to her forehead is attempting to reach for a cup nearby, cursing under his breath. The mechanic finishes repairing Moya, and Pilot restores power, adding that it feels much more quiet -- the filter works perfectly. Pilot is most impressed and thanks the mechanic. Chiana asks her if she'll be OK, and she says she'll get a name and identity change, and she'll be all right. The man tells John he thinks his face is beautiful, and has from the moment he saw him in the doctor's office. John attempts to say he lost a bet, but the man says there's no need to lie; if John does what he wants he might not even arrest him. "So what, dressing up is not a crime" John shrugs, but the man insists that dressing up is a crime, and impersonating a doctor is even worse. He asks who John's off-world friend is, and where he is. Tumii tells Rygel the cure won't help without his linked partner, so why doesn't Rygel just set him free. "Shut up!" Rygel responds, and continues to menace him. The man pins John to the couch and tells him that there's one thing he likes even better than dancing -- interrogations! "Looong, HARD, interrogations" he adds suggestively. "Eeew,God." squirms John, and attempts to move from under him. On Moya, Scorpius is on his knees, concentrating, eating both green & yellow mollusks, as Sikozu and Aeryn continue to worsen. As Scorpius, riddled with pain, begins to withstand the effects of the mollusks, everyone feels it and slowly improve. Tumii tries to take advantage of the distraction by grabbing a nearby sharp implement, but before he can do anything Rygel recovers enough to pounce on him, then bites his nose right off. Meanwhile everyone else seems to recover and regain their strength. The man, still groping John on the couch, tells him not to be shy; but John now having had quite enough, slaps him - then knocks him out cold. As the women check to see whether Aeryn and Sikozu are actually dead, the two lure them in close and then strike, knocking them out. Aeryn asks why Sikozu volunteered her finger. "Do your appendages reattach?" Sikozu asks in reply. Selva orders her guards to tell her of anything suspicious at all. Aeryn, Sikozu and John group together, and John says they need to get out of here. Aeryn, puzzled but amused at the state of 'Johnette', says the exits are all guarded; so to distract them John climbs atop a table and provocatively starts rolling up his skirt, shouting "Excuse me ladies, do any one of you have one of these under your skirt?" Suddenly, in a flash of suspender belts, he reaches under, pulls out his pulse pistol and starts firing. "Yeah, girl power!" he shouts as he shoots his way out. Back on Moya Rygel is gleefully torturing a gagging doctor, force feeding him a huge bowl of mollusk, and threatening to leave the rest in the garbage for anything to come along and eat. Tumii begs for mercy, terrified at what he might be sharing his last moments of pain with - a multitude of vermin?! Back on Moya, Noranti and D'Argo have purple gunk all over their hands and D'Argo tells the others that the cure works. Noranti is fascinated with the goo and rushes off to go analyse it. John asks how long it took after they've all swigged each other's urine. D'Argo says forever, while Noranti says not long at all -- only three arns. Rygel wants to eat, but Aeryn unhappy to be stuck holding his hand assures him he won't be eating anything until they're cured. Rygel brings up that Scorpius ate the mollusks, and Sikozu adds it was to temporarily link with them to override their symptoms, without him they'd be dead by now. Scorpius is seen up in his quarters convulsing and vomiting up multicoloured mollusk mush. + +Aeryn is in a dark room, alone, knelt on the floor. "There was one guard. I don't remember her face. She never told me her name. She told me a legend about how Sebaceans once had a god called Djancaz-Bru. Six worlds prayed to her. They built her temples, conquered planets. And yet one day she still rose up and destroyed all six worlds. And when the last warrior was dying, he said, We gave you everything, why did you destroy us? And she looked down upon him and she whispered, Because I can." On Moya, Scorpius and John are walking to Command. Scorpius tells John that Aeryn could be dead, but John is sure he'll find her before the Scarrans can mind-rape her until she has no allegiance to him. Scorpius asks what John's plan is. He tells Scorpius that when he met Einstein, he blipped to bizarro Moya. It was the same Leviathan, but different, and the Stark there uttered "Katratzi." He thought it was gobbledy-gook, but then Sikozu heard the same word before Aeryn was kidnapped. Since Scorpius doesn't know the location, he figures that if Bizarro Stark knows its name, he may know where it is. He says that's his idea, but he's open to anything better. "If I help with this insanity," Scorpius says, "and we do get Aeryn back, you will tell me all you know about wormholes. Every equation. Every formula." "Everything," John replies. Scorpius cuts John's finger and then his own, dripping the blood. He says it's a Scarran blood vow. "You hate everything Scarran," John asserts. Scorpius responds by sucking the blood on his finger. Aeryn is in chains, in a cell on a Scarran ship. Knowing that she's not the sort of person to ask such a thing, she asks Djancaz-Bru to send her a sign that he is coming for her. A Scarran enters with a Sebacean nurse, asking if she's ready to answer her questions. She says something in Scarran, presumably derogatory, and he lashes out with his heat projection, asking her where Crichton is. She persists that she doesn't know, but he tells her to stop resisting, and asks again. Aeryn tells the Scarran that John is on Moya. He asks what she knows about Crichton's wormhole research. "I don't know anything. He didn't tell me anything," she responds, in pain. His nurse tells him to stop and he asks what the problem with this one is -- is she weak or is she faking? The nurse assures him she is not faking, and he tells the nurse to convince her to tell him what she knows, when she wakes up, if she wants to live, or he will start again. "You're going to go to the variant Moya?" Ka D'Argo asks. Chiana says that he could end up on Earth again and mess up everything, but he is sure that he won't -- he has a hum in his head, like a whale. D'Argo says he thinks John should have rest, but John says that he has a hum in his head and he will follow it. Einstein told him that he can get back to the places he's been to before; it's like a homing beacon, he can make it. Chiana tells him that he can't go with Scorpius, he'll screw John then betray him. She asks Scorpius why he is going and he replies that he and John have an agreement. D'Argo asks what, but Scorpius says the details are confidential. John tells them that he knows what he's doing and he knows it's stupid but it's out of his hands. "Just get us close to the wormhole. If we don't come back, right," he says. The nurse enters Aeryn's cell, where she's strapped into a chair. "Feeling better?" the nurse asks. Aeryn says critical heat delirium. The nurse tells her that she almost couldn't reduce Aeryn's temperature in time, but she thought that Peacekeepers were supposed to be battle-strengthened, and asks why his heat probe almost killed her. Aeryn says she's tired, and tells her to go away. "I wish I could," she whispers, telling Aeryn that the Scarran will kill her unless she gives him reason not to. "I've seen it happen. You'll be just another DIT -- Died in Transit," she says, adding that she's just trying to save Aeryn's life. Aeryn asks if she's really Sebacean, and asks if it makes it easier to make the others do her dirty work while she takes the coward's choice. The nurse says she's heard all that before, but she's not chained up in a cell. She realized a long time ago that with Peacekeepers and Scarrans, who rules doesn't matter -- it wouldn't be her. She is going to survive, and suggests Aeryn do the same. She lets Aeryn know that she will tell Captain Jenek that Aeryn is ready for another interrogation. John and Scorpius are in his pod, and Pilot tells John that Moya senses the wormhole is destabilizing. Scorpius says that he was just musing that if John misses his intended target, they could change the future, or the past. "Create a world devoid of Peacekeepers and Scarrans. Would you like that, John?" John ignores him and focuses, saying goodbye to Moya. Chiana wishes him luck, and he enters the wormhole. John navigates, saying the directions and concentrating. They exit the wormhole, and Scorpius asks, "Where exactly is 'here'?" Jenek tells the nurse that the signal from Aeryn's bioloid stopped before they could detect the Leviathan. The first question he will ask her is how they detected it so quickly. The nurse tells him that there is something about her, since her reaction to his heat probe was so severe, but he tells her that he doesn't care if she dies. The nurse tells him to give her one arn, as she has an idea of how Aeryn still might be useful to them. Jenek tells her she has one arn, then Aeryn answers or dies. The nurse tells Aeryn she has something to make her sleep and goes to inject her. Aeryn's struggle is futile, but realizes that the nurse isn't giving her something; she's taking. "What have you done?" she asks, distressed. John tells Scorpius, as they're spinning in his module, that some kind of crap has frozen up the fluid drives. John asks, for the record, what John would have done with information and the ability to control wormholes. "Taken over as much of the universe as possible, found your home planet, and destroyed it," he replies. John says that's not funny and Scorpius then goes on to say he would use wormholes as a deterrent against any future Scarran attack. John tells him to strap himself in and gets the module back in operation, re-entering the wormhole. John navigates and they come out again. "Is that the Moya we're looking for?" Scorpius asks of a Leviathan in the distance. "Better be -- my head's ringing like a fire bell." Jenek is interrogating Aeryn with more heat probing. He asks how she knew they planned to kidnap Grayza. After more prodding, she says it was an accident. The nurse rushes in and tells him to stop. He persists, but she insists, "She's with child. Scarran heat probe will kill a pregnant Sebacean." Jenek makes the connection that Aeryn was close to Crichton. Sikozu tells D'Argo that he should have stopped John, and that Aeryn is dead. She knows Scarrans -- she is dead by now. Furthermore, Grayza knows the location of this wormhole. Rygel agrees with Sikozu, saying Grayza knows John would come back here. D'Argo tells them they're staying for another arn and tells Pilot to have Moya make constant scans and to let him know the moment she senses anything. Jenek asks the nurse if she can retrieve incumbent knowledge from the fetal DNA. While she can't do it here, she says the med labs on Katratzi may be able to. Aeryn hears and asks what they've done. Jenek says that if this is Crichton's child, they could learn all he knows about wormholes from his fetal DNA. Aeryn screams at them to get her out. Aeryn is back in her cell, asking Djancaz-Bru again because she doesn't think she heard her the first time. "Just get a message to him. Let him know where I am so that he can find me." One of her cellmates says that she didn't think Peacekeepers had gods. She thought they believed in the Warrior Code. Another prisoner asks if there's a Peacekeeper here and if she can help them, but the other prisoner says Aeryn can't even help herself; she's praying. The nurse comes in and asks Aeryn whose child it is, saying that Captain Jenek will force it from her. He believes that if he can find the human's child, the Scarrans will reward him. "Right now he's dreaming of palaces and virgins." "I'm very happy for him," Aeryn retorts. The nurse warns Aeryn that unless she tells Jenek what he wants, he'll make her wish she were dead. Aeryn says she has dozens of embryos in side her, but the nurse refutes her claim, "Just one. Whose is it?" "No, really," Aeryn says, "'PK Tralk Girl,' that's what they used to call me." The nurse tells her to talk to the other women, adding that they can keep her drugged, asleep. Or they can make things hard and ugly -- worse than she can imagine. On bizarro Moya, John tells Scorpius, "Every wormhole has millions of exits to different times and places which are complete and unending." He tells Scorpius that it's like everyone went into a blender. "Why?" Scorpius asks. John tells him that with wormholes, anything is possible. They look in to the galley, as John tells him they better hurry before Crais comes in and slaughters everybody. Scorpius catches his first glimpse Sikozu-Stark, and Noranti-Rygel. One of the prisoners is telling Aeryn about how the Scarrans find something interesting about them and then see if they can produce an offspring that they can use. They bred her six times, and three died before term, the other three are far away. Her "speciality" is that the organic food on her planet grows a metal skin that she can dissolve with saliva. Aeryn tells her to dissolve the restraints, but she can't, as the metal is too thick. "Right," Aeryn says and is suspect that she just happens to be awake to talk to her. The prisoner says that she palms the stuff the give her to sleep and she's saved up enough so she can kill herself whenever she wants. She realizes that Aeryn thinks she's working for the nurse, but says the Scarrans don't need her; you can't beat them. They travel prisoners around on freighters so that no one ever knows their exact location -- no one can save them and they can't escape. She says she tried for cycles, then gave up. She recognizes that Aeryn still thinks someone is coming, but says that in here you should talk to all you've got. On bizarro Moya, John brings Sikozu-Stark to a maintenance bay, telling him he heard her say the word "Katratzi". Sikozu-Stark persists that she doesn't know, but John tells her she said it when Chiana was killed. Scorpius offers to take over the interrogation, but is quickly told to shut up. John tells Sikozu-Stark that he heard her say a Scarran word, "Katratzi," and he thinks it's a military base. He asks if she knows the location, but she persists that she doesn't know. He tells her she said it when she was crossing someone over, in the trance state, but she tells him that she has no recollection of what she says when she's doing so. Scorpius asks how she could say something in Scarran, and Sikozu-Stark indicates that she must have crossed over a Scarran at one time. She says that only when in the trance does the knowledge come flooding back. Scorpius leaves, telling John to keep her here, because he'll be right back. The nurse is showing Jenek a display of Aeryn's reproductive structure. The Sebacean egg is fertilized, it splits with life, splits again, then stops. The ovum secretes a fluid that jeeps the pregnancy in stasis, literally freezing life, and the proto-fetus can be stored for up to seven cycles before triggering gestation. The nurse prepares some type of serum, but Aeryn tells her not to use it, as she'll tell her what she wants to know. "You wouldn't lie to me?" the nurse asks, then injects her. Aeryn then tells her that of course she'd lie, before she can restrain herself. She tells them that she doesn't know whose child it is. She tells him that there was another man -- Velorek, but he's dead now. He was executed for treason because she betrayed him. Jenek does not believe her and orders the nurse to use more serum. Following another injection, she admits that Velorek is not the father and she lapses out of consciousness. The nurse tells Jenek that she can't wake Aeryn up until more of the serum wears off. He gives the nurse a heat probe and she ensures him that she's working for him. Jenek turns his attention to the prisoner and the nurse reports that her DNA scans show no enhancements to the embryo. As Aeryn suddenly opens her eyes, while the prisoner objects saying it's too early to tell, Jenek destroys her child with a heat probe, adding that unless he gets what he wants, Aeryn will be next. Scorpius brings Noranti-Rygel to the bay and reaffirms that Sikozu-Stark can channel past memories when she crosses a soul over. She says yes, so Scorpius grabs John's pulse pistol from its holster and shoots Noranti-Rygel. Scorpius tells Sikozu-Stark to cross her over and tells John that they'll all be dead in an arn and they don't have time to negotiate. Sikozu-Stark says she can't cross her over -- she has to love the soul, she has to care about where it goes. John is confused, but Sikozu-Stark says she's always had to love the soul. "Different Stark, different rules," John asserts, asking her what happens if she doesn't love the soul. She says she can't cross them over without love -- they just die, nothing happens. "Whoops," John says to Scorpius. Aeryn asks the prisoner if she's in pain. She says it's the third one they terminated -- she saw it on the scan, it must have been malformed. She says the three that survived were beautiful and healthy. "And you've had six pregnancies?" Aeryn asks, since she earlier said she'd already had three terminated. The prisoner says they'll wait a while, then fertilize her again. She asks if Aeryn's had a child, but Aeryn explains that she vowed never to have a baby in the Peacekeeper's environment. She says that now protecting this child may end her life. The prisoner says there is another way -- she's hoarded enough sleeping pills for them both, but she's never been brave enough to do it herself. Aeryn asks her name. "Morrock." Aeryn says that when someone comes to get her, they can save Morrock, too. Walking through a corridor, Scorpius asks who Stark loves, but John tells him that he cannot just shoot people. Scorpius finds his priorities odd, saying that these deformities are preordained to die soon. "Who does Stark love?" he asks. John cuts him off, saying he has the resolution, but sometimes he does not like the way Scorpius does things. Waiting near the wormhole, Pilot tells the crew that he's been coming John every thirty microts, but the wormhole is destabilizing. Sikozu tells D'Argo that Grayza is no fool and they will die if they stay here much longer. D'Argo says that he doesn't know how long they'll wait and Chiana tells Sikozu to back off. Sikozu tells them they should wake up Noranti and vote because Crichton is safe, but they will die if Grayza finds them here. D'Argo says he is not willing to make that decision, but Pilot says he may have to -- Moya's scan has picked up another vessel coming this way, but he can't tell if it's military yet. Jenek asks the nurse if he has matched the embryo DNA, but it's a pattern the memory banks have never catalogued, so it could be half-human. They don't have a sample of Crichton's DNA. Aeryn offers to tell them, to end her pain. She says that while she was off Moya she was an assassin, and there was a man named Lechna. He was her contact and also her lover. She says she tried to suppress it until now to protect him, but it is most likely his conception. He is from a place called Vendrall, a small planet off most charts. Jenek has heard of it and the nurse crosschecks the DNA with matches from that area. Scorpius has Aeryn-Chiana, but John tells him they'll do it his way, not Scorpius'. D'Argo-Jool comes along with a gun, asking what John is doing with Chiana. "That is Jool," John tells Scorpius. He tells D'Argo-Jool to let them pass, but Scorpius urges John to shoot him. D'Argo-Jool starts firing, forcing John to shoot him. John asks if Scorpius is satisfied, but he says no. "Very messy." Jenek has Aeryn injected and tells her she lied. They found record of Vendrall DNA, and it did not match. "There is no Lechna," he tells her. She persists and Morrock sticks up for her in the background. Jenek orders more and more doses of serum, despite the nurse telling him he will kill the child. Aeryn tells him that she was on Moya watching John and as soon as she left she went straight back to Lechna. "I have never ever loved John Crichton," she says. "You lie. Tell the truth." Aeryn says that when she left Moya, with terminal soldier Lechna she completely forgot about Crichton. We see a flash of her remember kissing John. Pilot tells D'Argo that although it's a way off, the vessel seems to be a command carrier. Sikozu wants a starburst now. Chiana suggests using the engine signature change like before. Rygel says that a Scarran freighter would attract a Peacekeeper attack. Chiana says they won't let them get that close. If they do a long-range scan, they'll move off because they're not Moya. D'Argo says it's worth a shot and so they vote. Sikozu and Rygel vote to starburst, but Chiana, Moya, Pilot, and D'Argo say to stay. Scorpius asks John if he's sure it will work. John says that is how it happened before; Aeryn-Chiana died and Sikozu-Stark channeled the Scarran when crossing her over. John says he will do it, but Aeryn-Chiana asks what John is doing. Sikozu-Stark says that if he kills her, she won't cross him over. John says he will, because in half an arn, they will die anyway and he can't stop it. John pulls out his pistol, and Scorpius assures him it is not Aeryn. "It looks a lot like her," he says. Aeryn-Chiana thinks it's a joke and says John has to stop because he can't kill her. She is right, John can't, but Scorpius can and grabs his hand and pulls the trigger. John hits Scorpius, as Sikozu-Stark screams. Aeryn tells Jenek that she doesn't know if it is Crichton's child. He begins a heat probe, but the nurse objects, saying he'll kill her. "Who is the father?" Jenek asks. Aeryn says that on Vendrall she met a man, but can't hold it up. As she froths at the mouth, she tells Jenek, "There is no Lechna. I made him up. Just Crichton. Only ever Crichton. Just him." Sikozu-Stark enters the trance while crossing over Aeryn-Chiana and says Katratzi. John asks if she knows where it is. "Seat of Scarran power," she says, "Small. Fortified. It's dangerous. Disguises its presence by mirroring the orbit of one of the moons of Trilask." Scorpius says he knows that planet and tells John that they can go now. The pair leave, after John looks closely at Aeryn-Chiana and Sikozu-Stark. Morrock wakes Aeryn up, out of her restraints. She says she watched the codes. She brought Aeryn the pills and they take them together. Morrock thanks her for doing this with her. Aeryn asks what other choice she has. She'd rather be dead than let them have her child. "Is it really his? The man you loved?" Morrock asks. Aeryn asks her if the pills make you tired. "At first, but then." "You know I had such incredible dreams for my child. It's impossible not to. How she was going to change the world, how she was going to look after me when I was old. They were so foolish," Aeryn says. Morrock says they weren't and that she had the same dreams. She asks again if it is Crichton's child. Aeryn draws her closer. "Did you really have a child?" she asks. Morrock says that she had six pregnancies and only three survived. Aeryn grabs her by the throat, "I want the truth. I know that these pills won't kill me. I know that you're their spy, so I want to know the truth. Have you even had one child? Have you ever given birth to one child? The truth." Morrock says no, and Aeryn snaps her neck, saying, "Then I orphan no one." John and Scorpius arrive back at Moya, telling them they know where the base is. Since the command carrier is on the way, they catch John's module in the docking web and starburst immediately. Jenek tells Aeryn that they've set a course for Katratzi. The nurse tells her they've been informed of her condition and there is a surgeon on hand. Aeryn, kneeling on all fours, raises her head as they exit. "Now, Djancaz-Bru, you haven't listened and you haven't helped. And I'm running out of time. So I'm going to forget about you. I am now willing to make a deal with anyone, with anything to save my child. Not because I can but because I have to." + +Scorpius asks Pilot why the traders are still on board; apparently they are being tough in negotiations, but Moya dare not travel through Tormented Space without reliable star charts. Noranti and Rygel negotiate, as the rest of the crew look on. John looks at Aeryn Sun, who's staring at him intently giving him the 'stink-eye'. "What?" he asks. "Nothing's bothering me." "Something I said?" he asks, "Must have been something I said." Noranti barters the price from 10,000 to 7,000, and gets Rygel to pay them. As Rygel is leaving, Scorpius comments that he looks unusually smug, and asks if his deal with the traders was successful. "You have no idea," Rygel answers. He's obviously been up to no good! The traders then bring out a girl to make one more trade. They say they enjoyed her, as they grope her suggestively, so Chiana pulls out her gun, saying if they touch her again they'll die. Everyone reacts by drawing their own weapons, and Ka D'Argo tells Chiana it's not their problem. The trader offers her for 800, and Chiana is adamant they can't leave her, asking D'Argo if he's already forgotten their own prisoner origins. Rygel reminds Chiana that it was her who brought the Vorc on Moya, but Chiana ignores him. She asks her name. "Talikaa," the girl answers shyly. Chiana walks closer and puts her shooter to the girl's head, saying either they take her or she'll take her head off. D'Argo and John force Rygel to pay, swearing under their breathes, and the traders leave. Talikaa tries to run off, but Scorpius stops her. D'Argo tells Chiana to take Talikaa to her room; she's now Chiana's responsibility. "So you're angry with me?" John asks Aeryn. She says she doesn't want to talk and gives him a strong backhanded punch in the face. Aeryn tells John there's nothing to say; he complains that she hit him. "You lied to me," she tells him. "Okay, so I did not tell you about the poppers. You did not tell me about the baby. Does that mean I get to hit you now?" he asks. "I would not advise that," she warns him sternly. He says she doesn't scare him, but when she gives him a look, he steps back and says "well, maybe a little." He says he was taking Granny's drug to forget her, "But you got to admit, it's kind of romantic. I'm just crazy about you." She adds "So it's my fault?", but he says no. She tells him he should've been stronger. He falls down to his knees and tells her to give him a break; he's a human, just a guy, and weak. She walks away and he grabs her, saying they're going to be fine. "No, we're not," she insists angrily, and leaves. He tries to call her back, but then surmises to himself that they'll be fine. Chiana is with Talikaa in her quarters, saying the clothes she's given her make her look sexy. Talikaa asks what "sexy" is, and Chiana tells her that a girl as pretty as her shouldn't have to ask that. She gets close to Talikaa, suggestively, saying it makes you feel good to know men want you. "You like men for sex?" Talikaa asks. Chiana says men are good for other things too, but great for sex. "Just men?" Talikaa asks flirtatiously. As they're about to kiss, Aeryn interrupts, and looks rather unimpressed with Chiana's actions. In the corridor, Aeryn asks if the only reason she brought Talikaa aboard was to make Talikaa her toy. Chiana says they were just talking girl stuff. She says she got feisty. Pushing Aeryn up against the wall, she says she's not like Aeryn; she needs it, and it's not a crime. Aeryn says this is excessive even for Chiana, prompting Chiana to say if Aeryn doesn't want any she can always try Crichton next. "Do what you want," Aeryn says, and leaves. Talikaa visits John in his quarters. He offers her some chocolate, fresh from Earth; she declines. John says they're friends. "For sex?" she asks. John laughs nervously and says that's just for special friends. "Like you and Aeryn?" she adds. John is befuddled, but then realizes Chiana must have told her something. She says she can also see it for herself, "You are hers, and she is yours. Or am I wrong?" "No, you're right. You're absolutely right," John responds with a wide grin. D'Argo and Rygel are on Command, checking the maps. They seem accurate, and D'Argo says that it looks like Noranti did some good for a change. Rygel asks, "Don't I get any credit?" "What for?" He tells D'Argo that he made a tiny unnoticeable modification to the currency, meaning it was basically forged and is only actually a twelfth of its shown value. D'Argo grabs him in a rage, saying the traders control this part of space. John walks in and separates them, asking the problem. D'Argo explains, and John tells Rygel that these are not the guys they need to piss off. D'Argo says that when the traders come, he'll give them Rygel to do with what they will. John says they'll phone these guys and try make it right, and both D'Argo and Rygel leave in anger. D'Argo spots Talikaa in the corridor, and tells her he told her to stay in Chiana's quarters, but Talikaa says she doesn't have to listen to him, as no one else does -- they listen to Crichton, but not him. D'Argo tells her to go back and then storms off. Sikozu is changing Scorpius' cooling rods, and tells him that Noranti thinks everyone's acting strange; they're all different, more emotional than usual. Except Aeryn, who is colder than usual. She wills herself against emotions, like any good soldier," Scorpio replies. Chiana is on top of John on one of the controls, saying she asked Aeryn and she said she didn't care about him anyway. John says she does; they're happy and Aeryn loves him. Scorpius interrupts them and Chiana asks if he wants to watch. John says there's nothing to see and kicks Chiana out. She gets angry, asking if Aeryn "cut 'em off," and storms out. Scorpius asks how John is feeling, and tells him the crew are behaving oddly. John says they're fine, but Scorpius says they're not; their behavior has changed since that girl came aboard. John says they'll go talk to her; she's in Chiana's quarters. Scorpius says that actually she isn't -- she's disappeared and they can't find her. Aeryn and John are searching a tier and spot her. When they approach she flees into the tier three maintenance bay. John and Aeryn follow her in, but are knocked unconscious when she screams an ear piercing screech, and then, in a arachnid-like form, she jumps down and bites then sucks on their faces with an extended appendage. They both awake and Aeryn says she heard a scream, but then the lights went out. She spots some wounds/marks on his face, and she has them on hers too. They're puzzled, but suspect that the loud scream knocked them out. D'Argo, Chiana, and Rygel are searching for Talikaa, when John comms them. He says Talikaa is more dangerous than she looks, and has a screech that knocked them flat. Talikaa is in fact stalking them unseen from behind. Sikozu wanders around the corner, as face-sucking Talikaa looks up. She runs, and Talikaa pursues in spider form. Sikozu reaches one of the maintenance bays, but is caught by Talikaa from above. She screams and Scorpius hears, moving to her aid. Sikozu is on the floor, reaching for her arm. Scorpius enters and kneels down, telling Sikozu, "I will kill your attacker. I promise!" Noranti tells him to save her first; get her limbs. On Command, Aeryn tells John she doesn't understand why Talikaa would do this when they tried to help her. John needs a minute to recover, since he's not feeling too good after the attack. Aeryn, in a flurry, asks him not to be useless. D'Argo, Chiana, and Rygel enter; none of them feel too good. "No, we can't be weak. We have to pull ourselves together and we have to fight back," Aeryn says, even more anxiously. Feeling defeated, John replies, "With what? She kicked our asses. Just give it up." Aeryn says they can't, and runs off Command. Chiana asks what's with Aeryn, while D'Argo says they have to find Talikaa to talk to her. Pilot tells him they can't find her, but additionally the trader vessel has changed course and is headed for Moya. John comments that since Rygel screwed the traders, they're likely coming back to screw them. Rygel tells them to give the traders whatever they want, all their currency even, as it's brought them nothing but misery any way. With that odd statement from Rygel Chiana notices something weird; Aeryn is falling apart, Rygel's not greedy at all, John is giving up, and D'Argo isn't even angry. D'Argo says he has no reason to be angry, so Chiana hits him, twice. With no reaction, she kicks his privates, but he's still not angry. "It's like she's taken our strongest trait away," she surmises. John says she's taken nothing from Chiana, so Chiana gets D'Argo to fondle her breasts and kisses him. "No! tingle. No nothing. That tralk has taken away my sex drive!" Noranti tells Scorpius to apply pressure and Sikozu's limbs should re-attach. Meanwhile, Pilot informs the crew that the trade ship is now just drifting, and D'Argo takes that as a sign that they powered down to show they mean no harm. D'Argo tells Pilot to bring the ship aboard and Chiana asks if he's found Talikaa yet. Pilot says that every time they do, she disappears again. In the cargo bay, Aeryn storms in and gets physical with Chiana, blaming her. John and D'Argo break it up, as the hangar doors open. All the traders seem dead, with large pustules and other gruesome deformations to their faces. Talikaa looks on from a distance, while the crew go aboard the trade ship to search. Chiana and Rygel find more bodies and talk doom and gloom, while Aeryn gets anxious and tells them not to say that -- they'll be fine. D'Argo finds a trader partly alive, and asks him what happened. Chiana spots a message playing; it's a Diagnosan, saying the symptoms are caused by a Wolaxian arachnid. This creature's touch infects its victims, and stimulates exaggerated neural functions. It then transforms, harvests the host for energy, stores it in membrane orbs and hides those orbs in an external nest for later consumption. Finding the nest and opening the orbs in close proximity to the victim will allow re-assimilation of the energy and complete recovery. Noranti wakes Sikozu, who starts screaming about her attack. She panics about her arm and leg, but Noranti tells her to focus on healing; her limbs may still be saved. Scorpius is holding her still, as Noranti asks why the creature attacked her; apparently Sikozu is immune to its touch. Scorpius starts choking and Noranti pushes her off. He's infected but not harvested. She tells Sikozu that the Scarran in him is taking him over, and she must stop him to keep him from harming them. Sikozu is adamant that he won't hurt them, saying she knows him. Noranti assures her, "You know only his Sebacean side." Scorpius tells them to kill Talikaa now, as Noranti confronts him, asks forgiveness, then blows some herbs/powder in his face. He reacts with a punch that knocks her to the floor, then falls over unconscious himself, flat on his face. Pilot tells the crew that the DRDs are unable to locate Talikaa's nest. Aeryn suggests that they split up into groups to try and locate her themselves. D'Argo suggests persuading Talikaa to return the energy orbs. Rygel suggests persuasion with a pulse rifle. Aeryn goes to help John, but he says he's just dizzy. He strokes her hair, asking, "You know what the worst part of this is? You and me. We never could get it together. And now we never will." "Don't you ever talk like that," she says, helping him up. Meanwhile, Talikaa enters the cargo bay, and seemingly boards the ship. Pilot tells D'Argo that the vessel has left Moya, so D'Argo calls everyone to Lo'La. John says he can't go and tells Aeryn to just leave him. She goes to grab him. "No. Forget about me and go." She reluctantly runs off. They leave on Lo'La and eventually reach the trade ship. They go to board, leaving Rygel on Lo'La to scan. Chiana, finally feeling guilty, tells everyone this is all her fault and apologizes. There is no movement, nothing but corpses. D'Argo finds that the guidance system is active; the ship is set to fly itself. He comms John to warn him, that it was all a trap to lure them off Moya, and that they're now all very weak and unable to make it back in time anyway. He tells John he needs to find the orbs, that he's their last chance. Noranti pulls John up. "Are you ready to die. Are you ready to watch Aeryn die?" she asks. He tells her they don't know where the orbs are. She gets an idea; since Talikaa is the only one that does know where they are, they can get her to show them where they are. Scorpius is infected but not harvested. Noranti made him unconscious, so maybe Talikaa can't sense how ripe and ready he is. John asks about Sikozu, and Noranti says she's sure Sikozu is strong enough to help. John comms D'Argo to tell him, "We may not be dead yet." Sikozu wakes up Scorpius, but he grabs her by the throat. She tells him he doesn't want to hurt her. "Sikozu" he grumbles, "Arachnid. Kill it?" She says yes and he picks her up and carries her, saying, "Help." John grabs a huge gun, while Talikaa catches Noranti attempting to bate her. She says she doesn't want her as she is too old and bitter for her needs. What she does want from her is to know where Scorpius is, so Noranti leads her. Scorpius is vomiting saliva and convulsing in his quarters, when Talikaa catches him off-guard, sends him to the floor and harvests him. She takes his orb back to her nest, adds it to the other glowing green orbs that hang by silk threads from some overhead pipes; while Sikozu discreetly manages to follow and observe unnoticed. She's in the tier seven cargo bay, she comms John. Sikozu climbs up top and sneaks toward the nest, while John equipped with the huge six-barrelled firearm, enters through the normal way. "I know you can see me," he says, "The bad guys always see me. My plans suck. People die. It's always a mess." She spots him, and tells him she has no remorse; he's food, she needs to eat. She asks if the others are coming to attack now, but he replies it's only him. He says he's tired of all this, and falls to the floor. He tells her to bring it on and kill him now. Fast or slow, it's her choice. "I like it slow," she replies. "I was afraid you'd say that" John replies, as Sikozu calls to John to not let her, before she does any harm. John holds Talikaa off with a couple of shots which hardly make a dent, hurries Sikozu with the collecting of the orbs, then ends up shoving the shooter in her mouth and firing. She explodes! As John, dripping in green spider goo, picks himself up from the blast, he recites in his usual glib way, "Along came a spider, Exploded beside her." Noranti is cooking for Rygel and D'Argo. Rygel thanks her for the best roasted spider soup he's ever eaten. D'Argo says it's the only spider soup he's had, but it's really quite good. She asks if they're feeling their old selves, but Rygel is trying to take some of his food, so they know things are back to normal. Sikozu asks Scorpius which is worse: having them see he's Scarran half, or remembering it himself. "I know what I am, Sikozu. This incident was simply a fortuitous, though troubling, reminder." She responds, "If you want my help, the price is inclusion and honesty." Scorpius grins mischievously. Aeryn sits in a corridor, alone, looking at a piece of Lakah. John approaches. "Do you have any idea what you've done?" she asks. "You won the coin toss." "But we lost, didn't we?" "Aeryn it's over," he replies. She asks if his mind is now so full of this dren that he can't even see straight. "Move on, Aeryn." She tells him she did everything she could to keep them together, she did exactly what he told her to do, and the whole time he's been cheating. "Yeah, I'm a coward. Move on, it's over!" She says that she'll tell him what he will do now, and that is stop sniffing this dren. "Shut up!" he replies. "Don't you tell me to shut up," she says, pointing in his face. He tells Pilot that his comms are buggy, and asks him to test the system. Pilot says that will mean the comms will be offline for about 30 microts. He says that will be fine, then turns to Aeryn. "Shut up and listen to me. Scorpius is here, looking for the key to what is inside my head. The neural chips, Aurora Chair, threatening Earth -- none of it works because he does not understand me." She tells him to stop using Scorpius as an excuse, but he continues. "You're the key. My Achilles. You! If he figures that out, the world and all that's in it is nothing. He will use you and the baby and I will not be able to stop him." She asks if he thinks Scorpius has been using the comms. "Look what it's done to you," she continues, "You're completely paranoid." But just as she finishes, Scorpius suddenly comms in, "Pilot, are we having a problem with the comms?" Pilot tells him he was just checking them, and they appear to be functioning normally now. Aeryn looks shocked, realises John is probably correct after all. "So it's over," she says, playing along, in a raised voice to ensure it makes the comms. "It's over," John replies. "There's nothing more between us then," she continues, grinning. "Nothing," he says, grinning himself. They smile, embrace, and kiss covertly. + +Pilot tells John that Elack senses a planet nearby, but the weather patterns are interfering, while Rygel, Chiana and Sikozu are trying to fix scan to no avail. Pilot asks why they're searching for this planet, as it's uninhabitable. John replies that Jool told them that every few cycles the magnetics drop low enough for the dig team to stay a while. Pilot relays that Elack doesn't sense any lifeforms, but is weak so John tells her to rest as he and Chiana take a trip down to the planet, Arnessk. In some kind of temple, Chiana and John search around with flashlights, then, as they get to a corner, they are met by an Interion pointing his weapon at them. He threatens to kill Chiana if John doesn't drop his weapon, despite them explaining that he's not a Peacekeeper. Jool and D'Argo suddenly come out imploring the Interion, Tarnat, to get back. D'Argo immediately rushes to John and gives him a hug, as Jool does the same with Chiana, despite Tarnat's objections. D'Argo asks John if Aeryn and Rygel are with them, to which John says Rygel yes, but they haven't heard from Aeryn. John asks if she's contacted them, but D'Argo says no, not yet, but she will. Chiana asks Jool if Moya's there, but Pilot and Moya are off looking for Aeryn. John spots some symbols on a wall, and D'Argo goes up to him telling him to cheer up; he has a lot to tell John about his travels. Meanwhile Jool announces that she is extremely happy to be there, alive, with no one trying to kill them. As they leave the room, a creature is seen in the water, listening to them. Jool tells Crichton that this is the most important planet in the Universe, when John asks about Moya getting spat out of the wormhole she was sucked into. Jool doesn't remember but says that D'Argo has gone to find the weird old lady the crew picked up following the destruction of Scorpius's Command Carrier, and she'll explain what happened, since she spoke to Pilot for arns about it. Jool explains to John and Chiana how the sensors work to detect the magnetics, and hence how much habitable time is left, and explains that this temple is the greatest archaeological find for the last one thousand cycles. Chiana, still suffering from the rough time she had away from Moya, breaks an artifact before storming off. John wants to go and find the Old Woman but since D'Argo is already looking for her Jool pleads with him to stay so she can tell him all about this place. Chiana is looking for D'Argo, who approaches her from behind. He tells her he couldn't find the Old Woman outside so he came to look in there, and lets Chiana know that it's good to see her again. Jool tells Crichton that 12000 cycles ago Arnesskan Priests worshiped at this temple and somehow maintained a truce with the Scarrans and the Peacekeepers for five hundred generations. No one knows how they achieved peace as they just vanished one day and no one knows why. A woman, Instructor Vella sneaks in saying that she knows why. First she lets John know that she can see how Tarnat mistook him for a Sebacean: same height, same colour, but smaller brain capacity. She can see that John is not fascinated by the temple, and says that believe it or not this place was once a paradise. She picks up a probe and explains that three of them, which together form the Darnaz Triangle, were launched by enemies of peace, creating magnetic summers that killed the priests and drove everyone away. Jool adds that Vella has found two of the probes, and if she finds the third, legend has it that she can reverse the effects -- reactivating the Darnaz Triangle. D'Argo asks Chiana if Jool is driving her crazy yet, and Chiana replies that she just keeps going on about this place. D'Argo can understand why; it can be like an obsession and they've been working here from dawn till dusk. Chiana is then disturbed to learn that D'Argo and Jool have had a fling, and asks how he always managed to stay so far ahead of the Peacekeepers when they she was always close to being caught. D'Argo reveals his ship, which has the capability to turn invisible, allowing him to remain hidden from the Peacekeepers. John explains to Rygel what is happening, and Rygel says that Moya better hurry because Elack's knackered; they need to get off her soon. External comms are suddenly cut off because systems are starting to shut down; Sikozu is trying to get John's module started in case they might need it. On a Command Carrier, Braca shows Grayza a message that they intercepted; it's from Vella to Moya telling them to retrieve Crichton and the others as soon as possible. Grayza tells Braca that he was right - they did follow the Interion to the planet. She tells him to get them there in five arns, but first to see something. She has Scorpius in the Aurora Chair, where he says he finds her amateur attempts at torture most pleasurable. She says that maybe he can withstand it, maybe not, but the rod she has will make it all the more difficult. Braca inserts a yellow rod into Scorpius' coolant system, and Scorpius pleads with Braca not to do it because "I made you", but Braca retorts, "No, I made you". Grayza is confident that now he will tell her all the secrets about Crichton that he's holding on to because he fears that by revealing them he will then be killed, and he's probably right. Crichton finds the Old Woman, and also the creature, Oo-Nii. She tries to get it to scatter, and then with a bit of prodding she remembers who John is. She tells him to ask Pilot the details of what happened to Moya because she needs to follow Vella. She tells him she is 293 cycles old, and anytime there is goodness it will be destroyed by a cause, or a weapon, and she won't let Vella have it. John says that he might've stopped Aeryn if he'd known about her pregnancy sooner, since she's carrying his child. The Old Woman says that she just wanted him to accept Aeryn's decision. She then spots and snaps up a small one-claw-legged snail-like creature--a Lakah--crawling up the wall nearby, crushes off it's shell and tells John that it's insides contain a substance that, when shoved up the nose, will help him forget Aeryn/everything for some time. She offers him that as an alternative, which after a moment's hesitation he refuses. Then tells him to ask Vella "If all the priests died here, why are there no bones?" Jool and D'Argo are using a Serax carver to uncover symbols on one of the walls, and D'Argo tells her he's really enjoyed being here, so he doesn't know when he'll head off with Crichton. Vella shows up and tells him that the symbol is a prayer wheel found on every wall. She asks why he is using the carver, as in unskilled hands it can be perilous. The process that strips away age, when it hits living flesh, absorbs the molecular signature of whatever it touches, and she proceeds to turn a bug to rock. As Grayza takes a bath, Braca tells her it's impossible for the Command Carrier to land due to the interference, but Marauders, with their less sophisticated technology, can make it through. The dig site will remain habitable for another 40 to 50 arns. She then calls Braca closer, and makes him get on his knees. He tells her the only other ship in the vicinity is a dead Leviathan in decayed orbit, and he's preparing a squad now. Grayza wipes some sort of sweaty fluid off her body and wipes it on his lips, seemingly bringing him under her complete control. He reassures her that he's not bothered by what's happened to Scorpius, and she tells him they will go to the planet with three Marauders and twenty soldiers. She will go herself to see if somehow she can use Crichton; perhaps Scorpius' enemy can be her friend, as Braca continues to try and get closer to kiss her. Jool is with Vella, and Vella asks if Jool will keep studying when they leave the dig, while D'Argo is round the corner listening. Jool says that she will continue if allowed, and when questioned about him she says D'Argo is her friend. Vella states that he's not her equal; intellectually Luxans are an inferior subspecies, and she will be blamed for any of his mistakes, which Jool knows and accepts. John is outside, when Tarnat brings the Old Woman out at gunpoint. He arrested her because she told him what John was planning. She bites Tarnat's arm and runs to safety behind John, continually egging him on to shoot Tarnat, saying they won't use the probes for good. John tries to persuade Tarnat that he's not a threat; he just wants Moya to come so he can leave. Except for one thing, and he punches Tarnat saying "do not point your guns at people!" The Old Woman tries to get John to punch Tarnat again, and shows him how it's done. She says that he has to shoot people because Vella will take the probes and use them as a weapon; that's why she sent the rest of the dig team away. There was once peace here and she thinks that John should see what was lost here, so she blows some herbs in his eyes to make him see the ancient world. He sees priests, a goat-like alien creature and a pyramid shaped children's tile. The woman says that a peaceful threat within us all, it started here. She makes John see the effect of the Darnaz probes, and when the vision ends he tells her what he saw, and she blows more herbs to send him to sleep. He awakes in the water, woken by the creature, Oo-Nii, who he initially runs from. Oo-Nii explains that the Old Woman left him in the river, and that Vella has found the location of the third probe underground and the Old Woman swears she will kill Vella to stop her using it as a weapon, and she took John's gun to use. On Elack, Pilot is chanting when Rygel disturbs her, so he pets her and tells her that no one's here and to carry on. Meanwhile D'Argo asks Jool why she didn't stick up for him with Vella. Jool tells him that most Interions think Luxans are inferior, but on pressing she says she thinks he's "unusual for a Luxan." Rygel calls Sikozu and asks if she's finished with the module, and she gets it started. Back to Arnessk, Jool says that she never believed any of them cared what she thought, but D'Argo does care, and if someone would've criticised her he would've stuck up for her. John is looking for the Old Woman, who herself is trying to find Vella with his gun in tow, to stop her from destroying another world. She is hearing voices saying "don't let them use it." Vella finds something, but someone comes up behind her, and turns her into rock so she's a part of the wall. John spots the shot, and finds Vella only to be met by D'Argo, wearing the Serax carver. He tries to keep John quiet, and when Tarnat comes over D'Argo knocks him out, grabbing Oo-Nii who is trailing behind. As the Old Woman prays for Vella outside, Jool and Chiana join John and D'Argo. John asks why he knocked out Tarnat, and D'Argo replies that if Tarnat had seen him with Vella he would've attacked, and then he would be dead. John wonders if the Old Woman did it, as she's been acting strange. On Elack, Rygel tells Sikozu that if she's leaving on the module then so is he. She says the module won't travel for more than an arn, so no, she's not trying to escape. Suddenly she picks up a coded Peacekeeper transmission, discovering the three Marauders heading for the planet. She tells Rygel to go and hide to shield his life signature, while she goes down to the planet to warn them. John is with Tarnat outside, looking for the Old Woman, when he gets a case of déjà vu, remembering this place from his vision. Using the carver he finds the child's tile he saw in the vision. He recognises one of the symbols as possibly being ancient Egyptian, while Tarnat says one is Interion and another may be early Sebacean. The symbols mean peace and security. D'Argo is trying to contact Chiana from his ship, as he's preparing for a flyover to find the Old Woman, when he gets proximity warnings. John tells Tarnat that there's a link between this world and his. He spots Chiana who whispers "Peacekeepers", and out steps the entourage, killing Tarnat. D'Argo is looking for Chiana when Sikozu appears above him telling him they've already captured, and to stop the comm. Meanwhile John and Chiana are thrown to the floor as Grayza approaches. She tells him she can make things easy for him, and to prove her good will she gets Braca to bring in Scorpius, on a leash and dribbling. She says he'll never bother Crichton again, and gets him to kiss her feet. When she offers him to John, he tells her he can't come up with anything better to do than that. She strokes more fluid off her chest and makes John smell it, saying he might like what she wants. John grabs her, but only to kiss her! She tells him to wait an arn and then they'll meet. Rygel wakes Pilot to try and get her to comm Moya, but Pilot can't do it. Braca tells Grayza that they've captured an Interion, Nebari and an old Traskan, but nothing on the Luxan or the Peacekeeper traitor. They have about twenty arns left on the planet, when Grayza notices Scorpius regaining motor stimulus, so, for all the times he had to say "yes" Braca changes the rod. Meanwhile, Oo-Nii is seen ensuring the two found probes are safe. Locked up, Chiana tells the Old Woman that Crichton found a tile, as Jool is depressed and tells that she stole things from digs before to learn more, but never from here. She dreamt of discovering this temple. The Old Woman gets Chiana to distract a guard by letting her go to the loo. Meanwhile, Grayza uses more fluid to get John under her control, despite his resistance, and they get it on, with John offering her whatever she wants. The Old Woman finds John curled up, telling him that the magnetics must push the visions further -- the suggested becomes real. Grayza doesn't know that John saw the probes, since the Peacekeepers must never have it. He knows where the third probe landed, and she thinks it's her fault. She only wanted to show him peace but somehow she showed what he must not know. She blows more herbs, and tells him that Grayza can never know where the third probe is, so he must die. As she repeats "forgive me", she makes him walk to the edge of the cliff, and as Braca arrives on the scene, John jumps over the edge and into the water below, and the Old Woman says "he'll never tell you now. Never." + +Ka D'Argo, Rygel, John, and Scorpius are back on Moya. Rygel is not eating because he's learning the self-discipline that Katoya taught him. He also has no one to cook for him, D'Argo says he could cook for himself, the mention of which prompts John to say he should cook for the girls, since they're due back. Aeryn, Sikozu, Chiana, and Noranti are on a commerce settlement housed on a Leviathan carcass fused with a planetoid. Aeryn comments that the settlement is unimpressive, but Sikozu says that if they want to camouflage Moya against long-range scans, this is the place. She explains that several outlawed mods are sold there, and the stalls also sell genetic modifications -- species blending, with all the documentation to go with it. They bump into a man, and Sikozu tells him they want to see Rekka. He feigns ignorance, but Sikozu tells him she knows he's Rekka's negotiator and she knows they make deals in this place. They're taken to a private table and brought drinks, where Sikozu says they want sensor distorters. After giving her the run around, Noranti sips one of the drinks and warns them not to drink them as they're drugged. Aeryn places her gun on the table and Sikozu says it's such an old trick. The man apologizes and finally gets Rekka. Sikozu tells Rekka what they need, and that they want to be made to look like an ore freighter. Chiana suggests a pleasure yacht, so Aeryn asks if they could have a choice of several different energy signatures. Rekka tells them he'll need to see their sensor modulator and asks if the ladies know what that looks like. Noranti pulls it out and he recognizes it as partly organic -- Leviathan. He tells them that the distorter will only hide them as long as they can match the movements of the ship they're imitating. He asks if their Pilot is good enough and while Aeryn says yes, Sikozu says no at the same time. Rekka tells them it's their problem, and that Leviathans need custom builds, which will take four arns. The asking price is 19,000 crindars. After much bartering, they pay 16,000 - half up-front. The man tells them to meet them at their pod in four arns. Aeryn says it's too long, but the man reminds them that being their deal, it's their rules. They leave. Chiana asks, "Do we trust them?" "Of course not," Sikozu replies, urging Chiana to follow the men. Aeryn and Sikozu are walking along discussing what to do next, when Aeryn wonders where Noranti has gone. Suddenly they spot Peacekeepers, and hide. "How many?" Sikozu asks. After a quick glance, Aeryn lets her know: "Grayza, Braca, four SSDs". Sikozu is adamant that they couldn't have been followed, and Aeryn agrees, unless someone tipped them off. Meanwhile, Braca asks Grayza, "You are sure they're coming, ma'am?" "Of course I'm sure. Keep searching," she orders. Aeryn attempts to comm Chiana, but the Peacekeepers must be jamming them. Sikozu tells Aeryn they have to stick together, but Aeryn points out that she has one gun, and there are six of them. Noranti has joined them, and Sikozu tells her about the Peacekeepers. Aeryn tells her to find Chiana and warn her. Aeryn then tells Sikozu that they can either follow Grayza and find out what she's up to or stay out of sight. Chiana is following the two men from earlier, but they lose her by changing their appearance. She asks a lady at a counter if she saw them, but the lady is not forthcoming. Chiana asks what is in the room behind. "Services. Expensive services," the woman replies. Chiana puts some currency down and says she doesn't mind paying for services, as long as they're worth it, much to the woman's surprise, which by her demeanour was not expecting Chiana to be able to afford it. Aeryn and Sikozu continue to hide, but they hear the sound of an unusual sonic pattern, double-winged. It sounds like a Stryker -- the fastest ship in the Scarran fleet. "But what the frell is it doing here?" Aeryn asks. Sikozu looks through an image-enhancer and tells Aeryn that Grayza seems to recognize the sound, too. Chiana is getting a kind of alien massage, and says that the reason she is tense is that she was following two Sebacean males and they came this way and she was hoping the masseuse could help her out. The woman puts pressure on Chiana's milla nerve, which paralyzes her from the neck down. When Chiana mentions Rekka, the woman releases. Chiana again asks for help, so the woman asks if Chiana has any idea what they sell here. "Yeah, genetic modification. Shape changes." The woman tells her that whoever buys a transformation kit also buys confidentiality. Chiana realizes that they could have walked straight by her. As Sikozu and Chiana continue to watch over Grayza, a Scarran female walks out, a member of the ruling caste, along with her entourage of one Scarran male and four Charrid escorts. "One commander, one adjutant, and four warriors," Sikozu asserts. Aeryn points out that it's the same as the other side, which Sikozu mentions implies a meeting. Sikozu tells Aeryn that Grayza clearly isn't interested in them, which provides a perfect opportunity for them to leave. Aeryn disagrees and says it's the perfect opportunity to stay. "Does this look like an official conference to you?" she asks. "On a remote planet with no Scarran proconsul? No." "Exactly," Aeryn replies, adding that Grayza is most likely exceeding her authority. If they could make Peacekeeper High Command privy to that, she'd be relieved and it would get her off their backs. While Sikozu remains doubtful, Aeryn asks her if they've been in a more fortuitous situation to try. Noranti visits the service center and finds Chiana. She is done being serviced and Noranti drags her away telling her of Grayza and Braca's presence. Chiana attempts to comm Aeryn, but Noranti tells her they're jammed. As they're about to leave, they spot Peacekeeper commandos at the exit. They return to the service desk and ask to be transformed; well enough to fool a DNA scan. They're told they have to select a species, but they say they're not choosy, and quickly get out of sight. In the former Pilot's chamber on the fused Leviathan, the Scarran commander is confirming the security of the site, despite Braca's assurances. Aeryn and Sikozu sneak up on one of the tiers to look in. Sikozu uses the image enhancer, which also enhances sound. The Scarran woman is War Minister Ahkna -- third in rank in the Scarran fleet. Sikozu continues to listen in, as Grayza reassures Ahkna that she's abided by the terms of the meeting. Grayza tells Ahkna that she'll have to take her word for it, as Ahkna notes that Grayza has been conditioned to resist Scarran mind probing. Grayza asks if she wants to waste any more time testing them. "I dislike wasting time," Ahkna answers, asking why Grayza is here. "As I communicated, I want peace." Ahkna tells her everyone wants piece, and asks what price she is willing to pay to achieve it. "What if I were to offer you the Luxan Territories?" Sikozu relays to Aeryn what she heard, that Grayza is willing to cede all the Luxan worlds to the Scarrans in exchange for peace. "What? She can't mean it. The Peacekeepers and Luxans have a mutual defense pact. Grayza has to be bluffing. She can't fulfill that promise. The Luxans would go to war," Aeryn insists. Sikozu asks how long they would last against the Scarrans without the Peacekeepers. Aeryn says that if that really is Grayza's intention, they have to stop her. "I doubt we could talk her out of it, Aeryn." "I wasn't thinking about talking. I have a gun." "You would assassinate Grayza?" Sikozu asks. Aeryn replies that Grayza would do the same to them. "Do you have any plan of escape?" Sikozu asks. "Run." "Anything more detailed, Aeryn?" "Run quickly." Sikozu asks what they'll do if they run into more opposition than they can handle. "You have the conversation with D'Argo about why his worlds were obliterated," Aeryn retorts. Grayza tells Ahkna that, in return for dominion over the Luxan territories, the Scarrans will relinquish all claims to the disputed sectors of the Uncharted Territories. Ahkna says that it's hardly an equitable exchange, but Grayza is quick to point out that the Luxan worlds are wealthy, yet there's little of value in the Uncharted Territories. This arouses Ahkna's suspicions as to why they'd make such an exchange, if that were the case, especially now, as the Luxans are their allies. Grayza tells her that High Command already regrets that decision -- Luxans are warriors, not diplomats. They are a liability to the Peacekeeper's peace efforts. "So you would just abandon them?" Ahkna asks Grayza. "Yes, for the greater good." Grayza adds that they are aware of how long the Scarrans have coveted the Luxans' resources. Ahkna retorts that they are aware of how long the Peacekeepers have coveted all the room the Uncharted Territories would give them. Grayza tells her that a costly war would be averted, but Ahkna doesn't think Grayza would ever get support from the High Council for such a treaty. Grayza is quick to announce that most of the High Council already supports her; they are ready for a change of leadership. "You would seize power?" Ahkna asks. "For the great good." Grayza adds that the benefits of this treaty will help speed Ahkna's ascent through the Scarran hierarchy, and asks how long it's been since her last promotion. "Too long," Ahkna answers, "But then, I don't resort to the methods you utilize to advance." Grayza asks if she would leave a weapon unused if she had one in her armory, out of squeamish good taste. A commando approaches Braca, and tells him they have word of a Nebari in the settlement, her description matching the escapee Chiana. Braca and the commando go outside and announce that they're looking for a female Nebari. Chiana and Noranti have just been serviced -- Chiana now blue, with sparky red hair and Noranti looking younger, with black hair and no third eye -- and despite standing out of the way, they are noticed by Braca. Chiana tells Noranti that she'll do the talking. She points Braca to a place on Level Three where he'll find any kind of female he could care for. Braca grabs her arm, but Chiana says she's not on the market. She and Noranti snuggle up, while Braca does DNA scans on the pair of them. They both pass and Braca asks Noranti if she's seen the Nebari. She says she wouldn't even know one if she saw one, so Braca describes her. "Grey girl. Thin. Young." "Good looking?" Chiana asks. "Mmm," is Braca's response. Convinced, he leaves and Noranti tells Chiana she thought they did rather well and Chiana bites Noranti's ear in a deeply sensual way. Sikozu tells Aeryn that they're still arguing about how to carve up the Uncharted Territories. Grayza asks if they have an agreement, but Ahkna wants to talk about disarmament. Grayza says she is not prepared to discuss weapons at the moment -- only territory. Ahkna says that is unsatisfactory, since the Peacekeepers claim superiority. "We do more than claim!" Grayza exclaims. "Yet you will not even talk about arms reduction?" Grayza says they are prepared to coexist in peace, but they will not make themselves vulnerable. Ahkna states that there are some in their Scarran Hierarchy that believe the Peacekeepers are already vulnerable, and that their claims are highly exaggerated. She suggests that perhaps the destruction of their Dreadnought was an experiment they have been unable to repeat or perhaps it wasn't they who did it. She asks, "If this is so, why should we settle for peace?" "Because you would lose a war," Grayza retorts. Sikozu tells Aeryn of Ahkna's suspicions. Aeryn says that the fear of wormhole weapons is the only thing stopping the Scarrans from invading Peacekeeper space, and everyone's frelled if they stop thinking Peacekeepers have them. Sikozu looks back and sees Ahkna looking over a document that Grayza is making out. "OK. It's time to intervene," Aeryn says. As she reaches for her gun, they hear a commando searching for intruders. Aeryn and Sikozu are forced to hide in order to take out the commando. Ahkna prepares to sign the treaty and calls Pennoch to bear witness, as Sikozu takes out the commando. Grayza and Ahkna both sign the treaty before Aeryn can return to her position. Sikozu tells Aeryn to kill Grayza anyway as then the Scarrans won't be able to enforce the treaty, but now Aeryn can't get a clear shot. Braca returns and tells Grayza that there was no intruder. She tells him this was an historic day. Ahkna calls on Pennoch, who kills a commando and attacks Braca. Grayza tells Ahkna that this is an act of war and she is a fool. Ahkna retorts that Grayza will not be missed, they merely want to talk in much more detailed terms about their wormhole capabilities. "You already know that you'll learn nothing," Grayza says, but Ahkna tells her not here, their facilities are so much better on Katratzi. Sikozu asks Aeryn what will happen when they learn the truth about wormhole weapons, but Aeryn says they can't let them. Sikozu and Aeryn go outside and are joined by Chiana and Noranti. As Ahkna is taking everyone to their ship, Aeryn signals Sikozu to follow them. Aeryn tells Chiana to get the modulator and meet them back at the pod. She then tells Noranti that they're low on weapons, but Noranti has none. She does have mayla spores, which are very powerful, but has never tried them on either Scarrans or Charrids. Grayza is locked in a pod and tells Ahkna this blunder will cost her dearly. Braca tells her that their wormhole weapons will decimate the Scarrans, but Pennoch is quick to attack him before he can continue. He asks Ahkna if Braca is needed and she says he is. He asks if, when Braca no longer has a use, he can be the one to kill him. Ahkna agrees and tells him to summon the Dreadnought to the rendezvous point. Noranti continues to prepare the spores when Sikozu runs in, telling Aeryn they took Braca and Grayza to Bay Nine, but the ship is still powered down. Two Charrids came out after she did and are heading this way. They duck out of sight and Aeryn draws her gun, but Noranti gets up and tells one of the Charrids she knows who they're looking for. She pretends to sneeze, but blows some spores in his face. She tells him a Peacekeeper is right behind him, but it's actually the other Charrid. They shoot each other, which gives Aeryn and Sikozu the idea of dressing up. Dressed as Charrids, the pair bring in Noranti to Bay Nine and shoot the Charrid that is guarding Grayza and Braca. Meanwhile, Chiana is attacked on the pod by the men who sold them the part. Grayza tells Aeryn she did excellent work, but Aeryn says for the Luxan treaty alone, she will kill them both. "Alive, I can repudiate that treaty," Grayza says. "But you proposed it and you signed it," Aeryn replies. Grayza states that if the Scarrans hadn't betrayed her, she'd have stood by it and they could have lived in peace. She asks Aeryn how they'll get past the command carrier in orbit without her. Aeryn tells Sikozu that if she's not back at the pod in half an arn, to go without her. Sikozu and Noranti escort them away, as Aeryn kills the last Charrid and attacks Pennoch. Grayza and Braca, tied together, tell Sikozu that Aeryn is as good as dead, but Sikozu is insistent that she will survive. Grayza and Braca continue their war of words and when Sikozu looks away, Braca knocks both Noranti and Sikozu unconscious and he and Grayza run to the Marauder. Chiana asks the men why they knocked her out, but they are not convinced it is really her, thinking she's a trespasser. Meanwhile, Sikozu wakes up and gets Noranti. Chiana tells them she was genetically transformed and she kisses the man. He confirms it is her because they didn't transform her tongue. They hand over the modulator, with the sensor distorter installed and tell her to plug it in and their pilot will feel his options. Taking the rest of their payment, they leave, as Sikozu and Noranti return to the pod. Sikozu says they'll wait half an arn for Aeryn, like she said, and if the Scarrans get to the pod first, they'll leave immediately, because Aeryn is as good as dead. Sikozu and Chiana begin to argue, but Aeryn returns. She runs on and sits down and they make haste. Back on Moya, Pilot tells them the transport has signaled its return, but there is a Scarran warship pursuing them. As soon as the pod is docked, they starburst. D'Argo is sniffing Chiana, since changing her genetics changed her scent. He tells her that prefers the "elegant grey." Rygel tells Noranti she paid too much, then begs her took cook for him. John tells Aeryn it's not her fault, but Aeryn is annoyed that they had Grayza and let her go. Aeryn tells him that the Scarrans must be dead set on war, since they didn't go for Grayza's proposal. As they discuss what to lose sleep over, Moya exits starburst. Pilot informs the crew that the Scarran warship is still in pursuit at the edge of Moya's sensors. D'Argo and John surmise that it must be a beacon, but Pilot doesn't detect anything. Chiana has yet to find anything in the pod and Scorpius confirms there is nothing in the distorter. They switch to check from hardware to software, and Aeryn suggests to John that it could be Sikozu, since they were separated. "I did not betray you," Sikozu replies adamantly. A DRD checks all the ladies and detect nothing. Scorpius says a tier-by-tier search would be the next step, but there's no time for that. Moya is unable to starburst again yet and the distorter is not ready yet. Aeryn asks how long they have before the warship can identify them -- perhaps 200 microts. Noranti says that no one is chasing Moya and Pilot, so it might be better to just leave them. John asks Aeryn if they're going to bail, but then asks, "What about the baby?" Aeryn is stumped, so John asks where the beacon is. "We don't know," she says. John pulls his gun on her and asks where the beacon is. He repeats himself, interchanging the words beacon and baby. Aeryn is confused, and John asks her to say "baby," and spell it. Aeryn can't, so John asks, "Where's Aeryn, Aeryn?" She reaches for her gun, so John shoots her in the face, revealing that she is a bioloid: a cross between a robot and a person. Scorpius has temporarily patched the distorter, so Sikozu tells Pilot to imitate a Scarran ore freighter and to mimic its movements. The Scarran warship signals them and Scorpius recognizes it as the mother tongue. Sikozu replies to them and the warship leaves. She tells D'Argo that she told them they saw a Leviathan pass by a moment ago and thanked them for scaring it away. John kneels down before the body of bioloid Aeryn. Sikozu finds the homing device in what's left of its neural processor. She comments that the device confining Grayza was not meant to transport her. "No," Scorpius chimes in, "It replicates living flesh. We've known about it for some time, but never encountered the result." "Effective technique," D'Argo says, "No rescue attempt, while they're at their leisure to torture Grayza." "And now," Chiana adds, "Her duplicate spies on the Peacekeepers." "Then why did they take Aeryn?" Noranti asks. "I got away." Sikozu comments, visibly distressed. "She got caught." "Maybe they thought this creature would bring back Grayza," Noranti suggests. "Or Crichton," Scorpius remarks. "Sikozu," D'Argo says, wanting a moment alone. She leaves Command. "You OK?" he asks John. "No," John answers. "You know, it's not Aeryn." "It was never Aeryn." "We're not going to give up on her, John. Sikozu said the Scarrans are taking Grayza to a place called Katratzi. Maybe that's where Aeryn is now." "She could be anywhere out there." "But we're not going to let her go. I give you my word." With that said, D'Argo leaves John to mull over bioloid Aeryn's body. + +Officer Aeryn Sun. General Ka D'Argo. Sikozu Svala Shanti Sugaysi Shanu. Dominar Rygel XVI. Chiana. Utu-Noranti Pralatong. The Pilot. These are the first extraterrestrials known to have visited the planet. It has now been several months since they left with Commander John Crichton, aboard their ship Moya. And besides their names, what else do we really know about them? Precious little, except the carefully orchestrated appearances allowed by our government. Good evening. I'm your host, R. Wilson Monroe. And tonight, we will pierce the veil of secrecy, showing you these aliens as no one has witnessed them before." John is in his quarters, watching a recording of Mr. Monroe's show, "Alien Visitation". Rygel is with him, and asks how many times John plans on watching it. He tells John that he told Pilot not to tell John that he'd intercepted it. "They never even gave it a chance," John says. Rygel asks what he expected. "It's not what you expect, it's what you hope for." Rygel says that Earth is a backward planet full of xenophobic, superstitious morons. "Nothing makes sense if they didn't think of it first," he continues, "and, even then, it's simplistic drivel." John throws him out, throwing Rygel's popcorn over him to keep him out. John calls for Sikozu over the comms. She has found nothing relating to Katratzi, the place where they believe the Scarrans have taken Aeryn. "As stupid as you must think them," Sikozu says, "the Scarrans have managed to build one of the most extensive empires in the galaxy. In part -- and I shall repeat this because it does not seem to sink in -- by not advertising the location of their secret bases." John asks if she's asking the right people, and in Scarran, which makes Sikozu a little angry. She tells him that if he bothers her one more time, he can come down and do it himself. On TV, Monroe tells viewers that when we come back, we'll meet Aeryn Sun, rumored in many circles to be John Crichton's lover, and she will reveal a side of herself that viewers may find disturbing. Seated on a stage with Monroe, in an interview recorded earlier, Aeryn tells him, "Earth is under no threat from the Peacekeepers." She seems to be struggling a little with her words. She tells him that if Earth was to make a pact with an enemy, then perhaps. "So, the possibility exists that your people one day would attack?" "Why are you so determined to twist this into something it's not?" Aeryn asks, apparently frustrated. "Because, Officer Sun, you are an admitted soldier in, what is to us, an alien army. You look human. Indistinguishable to the naked eye. How are we to know that there aren't thousands of your people roaming our planet, preparing our destruction?" She tells him that John Crichton has explained it all to them already. Monroe says that we need to hear it from her. Aeryn tells him that from what she knows about the Peacekeepers, or anyone else, they couldn't care less about this planet. Earth is not a threat, and technologically speaking, it's not even a potential ally, so, if someone wanted to enslave or destroy Earth, it could be done. Monroe then tells viewers that this interview has not been seen before, because it was held back at the request of their own government and the United Nations Secretary General. He tells viewers that tonight, they'll have the chance to see portions of over 120 hours of previously unseen footage, along with comments from various experts and leaders. Tonight, Monroe is joined by a boy who was in the right place at the right time, with the right connections. Monroe introduces Bobby Coleman, John Crichton's nephew. Monroe asks Bobby how he and that camera managed to get all this remarkable footage. Bobby says that his family flew down to Florida when John got back to Earth and he got to stay on for a couple of weeks, with his grandpa, Aunt Olivia, and the aliens. "And the aliens didn't mind you videotaping them?" Monroe asks. "No. It was pretty cool." Monroe asks how he found them, and Bobby tells him they're normal, "just like you and me." "Normal, yet clearly alien," Monroe comments. Bobby tells him that some are, more than others. Monroe asks if he ever felt threatened in their company, and Bobby assures him that he didn't, and he never sensed that there was a conspiracy between them. Monroe asks why Bobby and his family waited so long to make the tapes public. Bobby says that with all these weird accusations starting to surface, they decided it'd be best to help everyone not be afraid. Footage of D'Argo, filmed by Bobby, is shown. D'Argo says that he's seen many movies and in all of them the aliens are always evil and Earth is always victorious. "You mean we have to learn there are good aliens?" Bobby asks. "No. I mean you have to learn you won't always win." Dr. Garrett Hamilton, Anthropologist at the University of Michigan, says this is a watershed moment in human history. He asks whether we'll bend under the sudden weight of it or respond and flourish. More footage, as Aeryn tells Bobby that humans can't even fully except them, and they're the nice aliens. What about some of the next ones that come down through the wormhole? Dr. Jason Fletcher, President of the International Society of Sociology, says that his biggest fear is that the fabric of society may come under an assault it is not yet prepared to withstand. Sikozu tells Bobby that the political complications that may arise from a simple wormhole floating in Earth's atmosphere will devastate a planet that is still in the throes of intraspecies chaos. Dr. Edith Anderson, Psychologist and author of "What Makes Us Tick: A Study of Evil", says that she is particularly concerned with the effects of another alien visitation on society in general. Since the aliens left there's been a 700% increase in panic and anxiety attacks. Rygel, while stuffing his face full of more food, tells Bobby, "If Earth is remembered at all, it will most likely be for the quality of its manual labor." Back to Monroe, who says that in culling through the footage, there was one alien visitor in particular who never failed to elicit extreme curiosity among staffers at the network -- General Ka D'Argo. More footage, with Bobby and D'Argo on Lo'La. Bobby thinks the ship is cool. D'Argo tells him it's a weapon and it sometimes kills people. "Like monsters and stuff?" Bobby asks. "Yes, sometimes. But sometimes just, er, kills those who are in the wrong place at the wrong time." He lets Bobby look at a recording captured by the targeting array, and Bobby sees the annihilation of the rogue Leviathan. Bobby is a little stunned and asks if Earth could stop them if they attacked. "With your current defenses, no." Major General Stephen Walcott, USMC, says that the most disturbing thing about this Pandora's box they've opened is that he may be right. From what he's heard, D'Argo's ship has their best and brightest utterly perplexed. Dr. Anderson says that by indication that their current defenses could not contain him, General D'Argo is performing an act of psychological terror. John fasts forward the tape, to a point where D'Argo tells Bobby that they're leaving, because there are some powerful people on Earth that don't appreciate what they're doing. On the tape, D'Argo says that it might be a bit dramatic for one Luxan, but he could do enough damage to Earth to change it forever. D'Argo enters John's quarters and puts on a tape of American football that John brought back from Earth. "Katratzi," D'Argo says. "What?" John asks. D'Argo tells him they can't find it and Pilot's searched every frequency. John tells him that the Scarrans have Aeryn in a box. John is adamant that he has heard the name "Katratzi", even before Sikozu overheard it from where they said they were taking Grayza. D'Argo tells John that he's confused, not getting enough sleep and watching too much TV. John is still adamant. "They hate you guys," John says, of humans. "Well, I liked it there." D'Argo replies. "You see the show?" "No," D'Argo says. "Well you should. It's educational. They're not ready." D'Argo tells John that they should move on and inquire at nearby planets, but John says he knows and tells D'Argo to put his tape back in. Olivia Crichton, on the show, says that John is now more thoughtful than he was. He studies everything more keenly before deciding what to do. Bobby is with John, who is sitting on the stairs. He asks John what the worse part of being in space. After jokingly saying the lack of toilet paper, he says that it was missing family. Bobby asks what was most different when he got back and John tells him that Earth is pretty much the same. "Are you different?" Bobby asks. John says he is, in that things that used to bother him don't anymore. The world seems smaller and he keeps waiting for something to happen and when it doesn't, he has to remind himself that is normal. Dr. Anderson says that it's post-traumatic shock syndrome. She says it's hard to tell without examining him, but from the little snippet of tape she's concerned about his constantly waiting for something to happen. This suggests he's been under enormous and continuous stress. On Moya, Chiana catches Sikozu taking a break from searching for Katratzi. Sikozu tells her that no one has heard of it and she's been done for arns. Pilot has double-checked but no one at all has heard of it. "Well, they must be lying," Chiana says. "No Chiana, they're not lying." Chiana asks how Sikozu can tell, adding that Sikozu can't tell when she's lying. "Yes we can. We all can," Sikozu assures her. "How?" Chiana asks. "You open your mouth and words come out of it." Chiana tells Sikozu not to lie to John, so Sikozu gets angry and storms off, telling Chiana to try, because she's done. More footage, as Noranti is making rat poison. Noranti tells Bobby that the rats asked her to make it for them. "Every planet has its indigenous potions just waiting to be blended and discovered. I'm playing," she says. Bobby asks what she thought of South America. "Oh, very verdant," she says, "Uh, green. No green people, though. Now that's a shame." Bobby heard that some people got freaked out by her third eye and she tells him Rygel's going down to sort it all out for her. Dr. Hamilton says that he was in South America when she came through and many of the "miracles" she's credited with have yet to unravel under scrutiny. A "High Level Administrative Source" from the Intelligence Community says, "We're fairly certain we know how she cured the blind boy in Brazil." Dr. Hamilton asks why it is so hard for us to believe that someone from another planet can do things that we find extraordinary, pointing out that she is extraordinary herself just by being here. Noranti tells Bobby that she likes that they humans are always striving to reach higher, hoping for a better tomorrow. She cites that as the quality that first attracted her to John. She adds that humans are so ignorant, but never give up, even in the face of insurmountable odds. Dr. Fletcher encourages us to listen to what Noranti is saying about us -- humans never give up. "Now, for that to become impressed upon an alien mind, this simple fact that we would tend to take for granted ourselves becomes validation that we eventually will fit in. Never give up." Noranti offers to make Bobby something that will make his voice drop. He declines, so she tells him to watch out for the rats, as they go for the young ones first. "She's actually really spiritual," Olivia says, "You should hear her stories about religions of all the worlds she's visited. Really an eye opener. So much cruelty and so much kindness." Noranti now asks Bobby what constitutes a good religion. She then talks about his religion justifying killing. Dr. Fletcher says that Noranti is not wrong about humans having a history and culture of killing, that we continue to wallpaper with justifications and platitudes. He sees nothing wrong with what she's saying. Noranti then says that killing is often a part of life. What's hypocritical is to condemn, then to make allowances when the situation suits. "So it's OK to kill?" Bobby asks. "Absolutely. Sometimes you must." Reverend Nathan Buckley, a National Religious Leader, then comments that if her religion justifies killing, then she's not someone he wants telling them what to believe. Ivan Chanderpaul, of the Federation of American Buddhists, says that there is never an occasion when murder is allowable. "Life is the font of all that we hold with respect." General Harwell Zawicki, of the United Nations Space Command, says, "After she's had to kill somebody, then I'll accept her pronouncements." Bobby asks her if religions hate each other where she comes from. "Oh, good heavens, no," she replies. She says religions are grand, lofty ideals, but religious followers are another story. "Wars?" Bobby asks. "Unspeakable." "So we're not so different," he comments. "Hmm, that's nothing to be proud of," she tells him. Dr. Jayne O'Connor, a Criminal Psychologist from Duke University, says Noranti is a dangerous woman. She twists her simple logic into something that is almost believable, until you look deeper, and it unravels. She says that's not the type of personality you would want running around unchecked. Monroe says that sometimes it's hard to remember that just a few months ago. And John fasts forward. Now, Aeryn is telling Monroe in the interview, that while cultures and civilizations may vary wildly, from socially primitive to hyper-mechanized, there is still uniformity in the way that people conduct their lives. Essentially, wherever you go in the universe, we're all the same. In that way, Earth is no different from other planets. Monroe asks if species from other worlds have relationships, marriage, and children. Aeryn says they do, but there are limits. Genetic patterns would have to support such a union. He asks if a Sebacean such as Aeryn could procreate with a human male. John rewinds the tape, and hears the question again. Aeryn pauses before answering. Monroe prods her. John sees a vision of Aeryn saying that she believes Katratzi to be some sort of base, highly guarded. He rewinds the tape again. Aeryn tells Monroe she was just thinking and says there's no way to be sure, but their physiologies do appear to be very similar. Monroe asks whether Officer Sun's hesitation was an honest moment of introspection, or was it something more? He says these are the issues we face -- how much we trust, how open we become. Do we view an alien commingling of our gene pool as a favorable step towards integration into a larger community, or as a threat? Chanderpaul says that one can only hope that a union between those of Earth and elsewhere is possible. Dr. Anderson points out that if you thought mixed-race children took abuse at the hands of other children, wait until one is born with tentacles. Olivia asks what the big deal is. First, she doesn't believe Aeryn is pregnant with John's baby. More footage, this time Bobby filming through a crack in the door. Olivia asks John if he'll be OK and he says he'll be fine, just never the same. Olivia sees through, knowing he has feelings for Aeryn. He asks what his "tell" is and Olivia says that his lips soften when he sees Aeryn. "She has a word for us," he tells her, "It's called 'yesterday'." Olivia says that Aeryn's tell is her eyes. She's waiting for him. As John continues to watch, standing by his door, Chiana comes along. John tells her she knows this word -- Katratzi. Chiana says no, but John says it wasn't a question. He tells her that she heard it with him. "Only from Sikozu." "No, with me," John insists. On TV, Aeryn is putting Christmas presents under the tree. Chiana asks John when he'll give up, as he has to sometime, but he says he doesn't. Olivia takes over on camera, so she can shoot Bobby and Aeryn together. "Well, where do we find her?" Chiana asks. "We find her," John replies. Chiana says he could go back to Earth, but he says not without Aeryn. On screen, Aeryn explains to Bobby that, in the military, it's better to not have any ties to anyone but your unit. She says she never missed it until she was exposed to it. Chiana tells John they don't like Aeryn on Earth, and they don't like any of them. "You watch too much TV," John says. As Monroe continues, John comments that he bets he wins an Emmy. Monroe says that occasionally on these tapes of footage, despite dissimilarities, they came across a moment that seemingly unites them across the endless chasms of space. Footage of Bobby filming Chiana, who is cuddling a dead rat. She's upset, and says he was her friend, and they just stopped outside the kitchen and he ate something. Olivia says that the more time you spend with Chiana and the others, the more you realize that we're not that dissimilar. Bobby is now filming D'Argo, who says he didn't think he'd like Earth at first, but he does. It reminds him of his planet 10,000 cycles ago -- it was meant to be undisciplined and adventurous. Dr. Fletcher tells viewers to think of how we view ourselves, as a sophisticated culture -- growing, evolving. Then look at how D'Argo views us -- undisciplined and adventurous. He says that as time goes on, he predicts we'll be forced to realign every concept by which we judge ourselves. D'Argo then tells Bobby that there are better things to do with your life than become a warrior. Bobby asks if he's ever killed anyone with his tongue. "Bobby, my tongue contains adaptive venom. The victim takes in only enough to lose consciousness. No one dies." He won't let Bobby see it. Dr. Adrian Walker, a Xenobiologist, says that we see only differences -- tentacles, a tongue with venom. Everything about him screams "alien." But if you close your eyes and listen, D'Argo could be anyone. Bobby tells D'Argo he thought he was great on Letterman, and D'Argo replies that he thought everyone was laughing with him. Monroe says that for every instance where we may be lulled into accepting the alien visitors, as nothing more than peculiar looking versions of people we know on Earth, there comes another moment on these startling videotapes, that seemingly shatters any illusion of potential coexistence. Footage is shown of Bobby following D'Argo down a corridor on Moya. He wants D'Argo to tongue him and D'Argo finally agrees, telling him not to tell anyone and to turn off the camera. Bobby leaves it on and is knocked unconscious. Dr. Anderson says that she would like to see these sorts of encounters prevented from happening outside a research facility. Chanderpaul says that the boy did not die -- he is wiser. Dr. Anderson says that the aliens cannot have the run of our planet until we know more about their psychology. Bobby films Chiana, in a bathroom. She has makeup all over her face and eats some lipstick, asking Bobby about the makeup as she continues to play around with it, and asking why it comes in so many different colours. Chanderpaul says that one must look past the physical and see the spiritual side. He says that Chiana condemns materialism and waste -- a highly evolved outlook. Dr. Edmund Johnston, a Professor of Cognitive Behaviorism at Stanford University, says that Chiana's perspective is consistent and well thought out, and in his view, correct. Chiana is now at the toilet, talking about other water rooms like this she's seen. On Moya, she and Rygel are watching on. Chiana asks Bobby why a person might need a single room with so many different places where water comes out; she tells Bobby that you really only need one, and could even wash up in the toilet if necessary, then reaches in and washes her face in the toilet bowl. She then asks Bobby why he's looking at her "like that". Dr. Anderson says that we're seeing a very young, disturbed, alien girl. Bishop Mervin Vosko says that this woman should not be allowed near any impressionable child. She is clearly dangerous, troubled, and a bad influence. Chiana turns off the TV. Rygel tells her that he's sick of this popcorn and sick of those humans. "I just feel sorry for Crichton," Chiana says. She tells him that Noranti gave her this stuff to help John sleep and asks if she should go find him. "No, give it to me," Rygel says. Chiana blows some in Rygel's faces. "Mmmm. Feel sorry for Aeryn," he says, "He'll get over it." "I don't think he will, Ryg," she replies, "You know, no matter how long it takes, I don't think he'll lose hope." John again sees a vision of Aeryn talking to him through the TV set, and she's talks about Katratzi. "They wouldn't have taken Grayza anywhere less secure," she says. Footage of Bobby filming Rygel, who is watching American football and eating lots of junk food. When asked, he says the best thing about Earth is sugar -- where he comes from, it's used as a poison, but here, you can get it everywhere. Dr. Fletcher says that Rygel seems to understand human culture better than we're willing to admit. "As an outsider, his views are a prismatic tool for us to perhaps examine ourselves." Bobby asks if he could live here. "As long as I get to keep my slaves," Rygel replies. "They're servants. They get paid. You don't own them," Bobby informs him. "What? You're kidding. They come running when I call." Bobby tells him, "The government wants you to feel at home." "Then give me slaves." Bobby asks what, besides eating, what his favorite thing to do is. "Uh, gamble. You can do it over the phone. You can call females, too. 1-900-SLUT-GIRL." Alana Lichtenstein, of the Outside Counsel at the Immigration & Naturalization Service, says that she interviewed Rygel, and despite what many viewers are probably thinking, this is the ruler of over 600 billion subjects. She says he must be doing something right. Monroe says that a little known fact about this story, is that there's at least one person that makes a credible claim that the aliens have been here before - in 1985, mere months before the Challenger disaster. He welcomes Robert Schelmacher, former Sheriff of Orlando. He tells Monroe that they were all here - ears, tentacles, Cher. He shows Monroe the carved pumpkin, referring to "their leader". Monroe says that in the Sheriff's defense, way back in 1985, he filed a report with the FBI giving what they now realize are fairly accurate descriptions of D'Argo, Noranti, Aeryn, and Rygel. Monroe says that the files are sealed and no one in the government will speak of their contents on the record. The Sheriff says that first they kidnapped the young Crichton, then sabotaged the space shuttle program. "They grounded us." Then they installed tiny microchips in each of their brains, and he shows a cap lined with metal foil, that keeps the signals out. Monroe asks what he thinks the signals are telling us. "Eat fatty foods." He says that you see their puny alien leader talking about fat, and that's the human downfall. "We get fat, we can't move, they defeat us," he says, "It's that easy to take over our world!" Monroe points out that the Sheriff spent most of the last 18 years in an institution, but the Sheriff insists he saw them and knows their plan. "Look at me -- lean. Undefeatable." Footage is aired of Chiana dancing. She asks Bobby what he thinks of sex, out of curiosity. She is shocked that he hasn't had it yet. He says he's 13, and it's against the law. Chiana says that's frelled -- "Who cares when you have it?" Bobby cites his mom, but Chiana asks why then, all the girls are wearing all those clothes. Bobby says they see it in magazines and stuff, but Chiana asserts that someone sold them the clothes, so somebody wants them to have sex. Chanderpaul says that there's an innocence about Chiana that is wonderfully contagious. Bishop Vosko calls her straightforward approach towards sexuality"outrageous and disgusting." Olivia says not to make more out of that than is actually there, saying she wasn't coming on to Bobby. Dr. Walker thinks it was rather innocent. "I mean, you get more juice from Dawson's Creek." The next footage is of Bobby talking with Sikozu on Moya, where she lets him use the comms. John is working, in Australia, and as Bobby talks, Sikozu walks down a wall. Dr. Hamilton comments that he met Sikozu and had no idea she could defy gravity. Dr. Anderson says that there is nothing about Sikozu that, in her opinion, is not infused with anger and disdain. "E.T., she is not." On Moya, Sikozu asks Pilot if he thinks it's worth continuing. Pilot says that, despite his strong feelings for Aeryn, he does not. Sikozu says she'll tell Crichton and arrives at his quarters. "We cannot find Aeryn. We cannot locate this Katratzi. No one has even heard the name." "I've heard it," John insists. He says he heard it on this ship -- someone said it. He pulls her in and yells at her, "What are you not telling me?" "I'm telling you everything," Sikozu insists. John says she's lying and has been doing nothing but from the moment she got on board this ship. He pulls his gun out, adding that he will not let Aeryn die. "It is not my providence if she lives or dies," Sikozu says. "Katratzi!" Sikozu tells him it's not her will if she lives or dies. "Katratzi!" he screams again. She tells him to listen to himself, "Everything lives and everything dies whether you wish it to or not, and you have to deal with it!" On the TV, Sikozu is singing, as she examines a metal cooking tin, that at one point covers half of her face. John walks over and forwards the tape, pausing while the tin excludes her face. He suddenly recalls a moment in the unrealized reality, with Sikozu-Stark. "You! You, shoot me. Shoot now!" Sikozu-Stark says. John asks Sikozu-Stark if he's coming back. As he shoots, Sikozu-Stark chants, saying "Katratzi." John again sees Aeryn talk about Katratzi and a flash of Sikozu-Stark saying it. He turns to Sikozu. "Sorry." Then, he says, "That son of a bitch deserves an Emmy." He turns off the TV and walks out of his quarters. John is in Pilot's den, asking if he still knows the location of the wormhole to Earth. Pilot says yes, so John asks him to plot a course. D'Argo walks in, and Pilot says he'll have to ask the captain. D'Argo asks what it is. John tells him it's complicated. D'Argo says he understands and Pilot chimes in to remind them that Moya is now phobic regarding wormholes. John tells him he just needs to get close enough to take his module there. "You are not going back to Earth," D'Argo insists. "No, I'm not," John replies, "It's complicated." Monroe closes up the show, saying that the network calls upon this government to release all files pertaining to Officer Schelmacher's allegations of past visitation, or any other related matter. He says that when the aliens return, and they will, they urge an aggressive quarantine until the true nature of their presence is ascertained. "Recall the same extraterrestrials that we behold with wonder as they learn our language and dance to our music, also bear weapons, as well as potential illness which could destroy us. Alien visitation is a reality. They've been here once and we seem to have dodged the bullet. The truth is, can we be as certain the next time? I thank you for being with us. There will be more in the days and weeks ahead. But for now, from New York, this is R. Wilson Monroe, saying good night." Scorpius is lying in his room. John arrives at the door, saying, "You set me up. Not that I care. I don't care about much. War, death, and wormholes. I don't care about the things you care about. Peacekeepers rule the Scarrans. The Scarrans rule the Peacekeepers. Let them rule together. Put your ass in a cage. I care about one thing. One. God have mercy on my soul. I think I'm going to need your help, Mr. Scarran half-breed, to get Aeryn back. Help me get her, and I will give you wormholes. I have an idea of how to find the Scarran base. Aeryn for wormholes. That's the deal." John stands up, leaving the room. Scorpius rises and looks toward the door. + +John and Noranti are on their way back to Moya on a transport pod, but receiving no response to their comms. "Are you eager to see the others again?" Noranti asks, with John saying that it hasn't been that long. "Still, you miss Aeryn," she says, as he has flashes of memories, "or don't you?" John says it's been a few arns since he thought about her. "Then my remedy must be working," she says, telling him to take it for as long as he needs it. "I don't need it," he says, "Just takes the edge off." He sniffs some more of the drug, as Pilot comms him. John tells him to get everyone to the hangar as he has a load of supplies. "Unfortunately, nobody is available to assist you at the moment," Pilot responds mysteriously. John asks what they're doing, and then asks to speak to "Captain James T. D'Argo." Sikozu is seen sitting in front of Pilot's consoles, handcuffed, with Chiana next to her. "Ka D'Argo is currently helping Rygel with his laundry," Pilot continues, "and Aeryn's writing some poetry." John asks about Sikozu and Chiana, seemingly realizing there's something wrong. "Enjoying each others' company, preparing a meal for everyone but Rygel; he's not hungry." John ends the conversation, while Noranti comments how nice it is everyone's getting along. John tells her something's wrong, maybe the game isn't over or Scorpius is really loose. As the pod closes in, John sees an alien ship attached to the side of Moya. On Command, an alien watches Grayza's wanted beacon, where both Aeryn and D'Argo are seen cuffed, along with an alien who tells Pilot to prepare docking bay two for landing, which he does. John says to give him a minute to get the crates locked down, while he really prepares himself and his weapon. Noranti says her mixture is ready, it'll keep her in a vacuum coma for at least three arns, so she can survive outside in space. As John comes in to dock, one of the aliens notices the approach vector is wrong and orders the evacuation of his ship, and puts his troops on full alert, as John's pod crashes into the alien ship. The lead alien, Axikor, says that John's destroyed their boarding craft so he's beginning to see why the bounty is so high. One of his men says that no one could've survived that, but Axikor is sure that John is alive somewhere on board, and ingenious. Axikor's men search for John tier by tier, as on Command Rygel asks who these people are. "Your captor," is Axikor's reply. Rygel says it's only temporary, and Axikor says not to prolong this, and for them to tell John to come to Command. "Tell him yourself!" is D'Argo's response. Axikor says that the longer this lasts the more likely it is that one of them will be dead. Aeryn tells him there's no chance that they'll cooperate. As John stops in a conduit above to listen in, Axikor threatens D'Argo with a knife, mentioning how entertaining it would be for him to use it on D'Argo. He then opens a comms and tells John that if he comes now, they won't be harmed, "but if you resist, we'll take it out on your shipmates," and he provides Aeryn with a bit of pain through her handcuffs. One of his men tells him that nothing of their ship can be salvaged, but Axikor says using a transport would make them a prime target for other bounty hunters. The alien says he'll contact the command carrier to have them picked up, but Axikor refutes that too, saying they'll contact Grayza only when they've captured Crichton. John sniffs more of the drug, and one of the men seems to hear the heavy breathing. As everyone remains silent, D'Argo realizes what is going on. "Aeryn," he says, "you know, I think we should negotiate." She looks back blankly. "No, I really think we should negotiate," he says. She cottons on and she, D'Argo and Rygel begin rambling in their native tongues. Axikor calls for silence, and the other bounty hunter says it's no good, John's gone, but Axikor points out that now they know he's in the ducts. He refutes a suggestion to follow John up there, and says they'll draw him out. Axikor sends his men to search, then turns to Rygel and asks which one of the crew John cares for most. Rygel says "me, of course," but Axikor seems to read his thoughts that suggest Aeryn first, probably Chiana next. Axikor asks where he'll go now. "Center chamber for a nice, hot raslak," Rygel replies, but thinks that John will go to his quarters for weapons and the shield belt, then head for Pilot's den. Axikor tells his men what Rygel's thoughts suggest and to secure Pilot's den. Chiana asks if Sikozu can distract them by running up the wall or something, but she can't in the handcuffs. She is about to present an argument for letting them go, but Chiana instead tries to entice one of the hunters. "If I wanted you, I'd take you," he suggests. Sikozu tells him to leave Chiana alone, so he says he'll show both of them. Pilot tells him to leave them alone, but the hunter shuts him up. John enters the cargo bay to find the DRDs shut off. One of the hunters tells Axikor that he's in John's quarters, and he hasn't come near. John goes to Scorpius' cell, which is empty. He is almost caught by one of the hunters, but manages to get out of the way. He then finds DRD "1812" who was playing possum, and asks if it can get any of the other DRDs up and running, which it can. On Command, D'Argo tells Axikor to relax, as he'll see John sooner or later. "A microt before he kills you," Aeryn remarks. As John is procuring his weapons, Scorpius appears. John points his gun at him and says he sold them out. "Nothing of the kind," Scorpius insists. He points out the only reason he's evaded capture is because the bounty hunters don't know he's here -- he was gone by the time they got to his cell. He says the door on the cell was wholly inadequate. John asks if he means he could've got out any time he wanted to. "I never wanted to." John lowers his gun, and Scorpius says the bounty hunters captured the crew in a matter of microts, and immobilized all escape craft and DRDs, except 1812. John points out that 1812 is on a different wavelength -- he's not from Moya. John tells him he will go and take the bounty hunters down one by one. "By luring them into an ambush? You could do with some assistance," Scorpius mentions. "You really think our relationship has progressed that far?" John asks, and then hands him a gun. John enters the fan room, and comms Axikor. He says they can pay more than the Peacekeepers will. Axikor tells him no deal, and to turn himself in to spare the suffering of the others. Axikor notices the noises of fans, and tells his men to check all the airflow chambers. One of them walks in, and Scorpius creeps up behind him. "Are you looking for someone?" he asks, but his gun doesn't fire. He turns to say, "Thank you John" before being shot. John jumps out and fires multiple times till it stays down. "You didn't expect me to give you a loaded weapon, did ya?" John asks Scorpius. "Well, yes," he replies. They examine the alien, to find that he's wearing hard armor, and his body is actually soft. Scorpius points out that the body shield worked, but John's gun has run out of ammo. Axikor is informed that one of his men is dead, and D'Argo, Rygel and Aeryn say they tried to tell him about John but he never listens. Axikor says it's still early, and initiates the containment plan. John counts his weapons, but it's not nearly enough. He says there's always the pulse chamber overload trick, if he can lure them close enough, so he needs a volunteer for this dangerous mission. "The torment continues," Scorpius remarks. In Pilot's den, one of the men makes Sikozu stand, and starts hitting a keypad on his arm. Chiana slows things down and watches what he does -- he shrinks Sikozu to miniscule size! Meanwhile, on Command, Axikor stands D'Argo up, and Rygel distracts Axikor by gabbling, while Aeryn attacks him. D'Argo manages to grab the comms from the table with his tongue, so they pull off. Axikor then shrinks D'Argo, and puts him in a small container in his chest. He then tells Aeryn to relay to John what she just saw, so she tells him the hunters have shrunk D'Argo to no larger than a hand-length, and he's imprisoned inside the head bounty hunter. Axikor says others will follow, and killing one of his men will be killing on or more of the crew, and tells John to give himself up. Aeryn quickly adds that the device is activated by a combination of numbers on the handset, as she is then shrunk. Scorpius tells John that he can't give up, as he begins to overheat. He recalls a Peacekeeper file about the Coreeshi, known for constructing cells in various forms and reputed to possess reduction technology. Scorpius says to keep the prisoners alive the container must be near impossible to damage. John says he can't take that chance. "Is there another choice?" Sikozu and Rygel are in their container, where Sikozu says this shrinking can't be happening; it's impossible -- if they just had their atoms shrunk they couldn't breathe normal size air molecules. Rygel says they're here, it was done and that's that. He's been around long enough to know how ignorant he is. "I don't assume the universe obeys my preconceptions, but I know a frelling fact when it hits me inn the face." John and Scorpius, with 1812, prepare the bait. Scorpius is smoking, and mentions that Sikozu's replacement coolant rods don't work as well in times of exertion. They put the pistol in place, and one of Axikor's men hears noises. He goes down and tells John to come out, if John destroys him, he destroys Aeryn and Chiana. As the pistol is about to overload, he shrinks it and its explosion is miniscule. John signals 1812, who sets off a trap that immobilizes the alien. Scorpius points out the containment capsule, and 1812 begins to shoot to remove it. Axikor sends more men out as contact was lost on tier 16. Scorpius says there's no more time, and pulls out the container manually. As more men come along, John is shot in the leg, and Scorpius tells him to run and acts as a decoy, and is soon captured. John takes them to a hiding place, where they say they're OK, but Chiana is blind. Aeryn points out that their first priority is to rescue the others. John sniffs more of the drug, as Axikor comms again, and says that if John turns himself in, he'll restore the females to full size and set them free. He adds that John is costing him money and time -- he'll pass up the female's bounties in exchange for John. John asks about the others, but Axikor says he's not that generous. Chiana and Aeryn can't tell John where the bounty hunters put the others, and Chiana tells him she used her visions -- she knows the codes to remove the handcuffs and to shrink things. They ask what he has, and that's no handset and a few weapons that can barely touch the bad guys. Aeryn asks what happened to Noranti -- she's floating outside. On Command, one of the hunters tells Axikor that Scorpius was helping John, who was hit in the leg. Axikor sends the men off, then turns to Scorpius, who he knows by name. Meanwhile, Chiana worries that her sight may not return this time, saying she hates the feeling of being blind. Axikor asks why Scorpius is here. "Because you captured me," Scorpius replies. Axikor tries to read Scorpius' mind, but Scorpius responds in Scarran that this won't work on him. "So you know?" Axikor asks. Scorpius says that armor won't fool, and Axikor says Scorpius should bow down. "Entropy will claim the universe before I bow down to a Scarran!" "Even one of the ruling order?" Axikor asks, as he removes his mask to reveal a more humanoid head unlike that of other Scarrans. Scorpius realizes that he's not after John for the bounty, but to take him to his masters. Axikor says they're eager to know why Scorpius and Grayza are so interested in Crichton, but capturing Scorpius is a bonus beyond measure. Scorpius says he'll see Axikor dead, but is shrunk. John goes to the cargo bay with a plan to trap the other hunters in it using four DRDs. Chiana's sight is returning. Meanwhile, Scorpius is in the container with D'Argo, who spits out the comm. He says to signal John, but D'Argo wants answers first. As John finalizes the preparations, Axikor is with Pilot telling him to send a transmission as soon as he releases the cuffs. Scorpius tells D'Argo that Axikor is a Scarran spy, and says John can't fall in to Scarran hands. He listens, as Axikor signals a Dreadnought to come and pick him up along with Moya. Scorpius says the Scarrans will spare no one. D'Argo comms John. "Can you trust Scorpius?" he asks. "More today than yesterday, why?" John asks in reply. D'Argo explains the Scarran plot, as the other hunters surround the cargo bay. One goes in and John fires, but it has little effect. Another comes up behind him and knocks him to the floor. Pilot says he's received no acknowledgement to Axikor's signal, as John tells the hunters that Axikor is a Scarran and he's called for a Dreadnought. They don't believe him, so John tells them to get Pilot to play back the message and have Axikor explain why he's speaking in Scarran. John says he's dead either way, and they can take it out on him if he's lying, but if he's telling the truth, they're in trouble. One of the hunters goes to Axikor to get him to remove the armor, but Axikor initiates a self-destruct in everyone else's armor. John gets 1812 to get the handset from one of the corpses, as Axikor receives a response from the Scarrans. Scorpius says the Dreadnought won't risk coming to Moya with a command carrier in the area, so he has to rendezvous elsewhere. John puts on the handset and releases the cuffs with Chiana's codes, and releases the other container, with Sikozu and Rygel in. he can't make them big yet as he doesn't have the codes. D'Argo comms John that Axikor is on his way to escape, maybe steal Aeryn's Prowler. "Frell that!" Aeryn says, and as John goes to try and intercept him, Aeryn leaves too. John reaches the maintenance bay, as Axikor releases the magnetic locks. Aeryn comes in riding a DRD, disabling the Prowler while John takes Axikor. Axikor shoots in her direction and she falls to the floor. John hits Axikor with a metal panel, and retrieves D'Argo and Scorpius, but is knocked over and they roll away. Axikor and John both shrink each other, but Axikor enlarges himself. "Get big code!" John says, having noted how Axikor did it. He enlarges himself, and they tussle, shrinking each other again. John manages to enlarge himself, and saying "one small step for man" he stomps on Axikor, asking, "where is the cockroach?" in Spanish. John and D'Argo discuss what to do with Scorpius. They don't have a cage that can keep him in, and he did put himself on the line for the. They agree to keep an eye on him 24/7. Rygel comms to say there's an old woman floating outside, so John asks D'Argo to haul Noranti in for him. Pilot comms Aeryn to ask her advice before he and John approach Captain D'Argo. He says that with the danger they face in Peacekeeper space and even the Uncharted Territories, and given that the Scarrans will be looking for them now, they're reluctantly forced to consider travelling into Tormented Space. John asks if Aeryn knows what that is. She stays silent before saying it's a place where neither Peacekeepers nor Scarrans will travel. "Right, it's a rough neighborhood," John says. "Those who go there usually vanish," Aeryn points out, as Pilot adds that navigation is hazardous, as the area is reportedly a nexus of wormholes. Pilot says that Moya sees no other choice, despite her reluctance. Aeryn says that neither does she, as John says, "Look on the bright side, can't be as bad as some of the places we've been lately." "Trust me, it can." + +On Moya, Sikozu visits Scorpius with John Crichton's chessboard, and asks if he fancies a game. Chiana and John are on a transport pod, and Chiana is holding something. "Look at this, oh, porn!" she says to John, but he's zoned out thinking about Aeryn Sun and the Scorpius situation. Chiana snaps him out of it, and says he has to try this. "The Aeryn in your head can wait!" she enthuses. John says the game looks like some kind of sick root, but Chiana says it's an organic matrix -- reality games, simulations. On Moya, Scorpius and Sikozu are playing chess, and Scorpius says, "If you were to open the door, we could play properly." John, meanwhile, goes over to Chiana who is playing the game, but on the outside world is just sitting there shaking, completely vulnerable to anything or any probable attack. John comms Moya to get a fix on their position, but Ka D'Argo answers. "Tell him about Scorpius" Noranti says to D'Argo. "We're having a small problem with Scorpius," D'Argo says, as Chiana puts John in the game, despite him wanting to wait. In the game, John is in his Peacekeeper outfit, while Chiana tells him to wait for it. "This way!" calls out a familiar voice, "You have to hurry!" It's Gilina, and as John tries to make sense of it all Scorpius appears, aiming his gun at John. Chiana says they're on the Gammak Base. "I'll save you!" a voice screams out, and Stark jumps out with a huge gun and fires at Scorpius. Suddenly, the game changes, and they're in some kind of fantasy world, with Chiana in a jester's outfit with a pointy hat and John in a knight's outfit, complete with sword and shield. Chiana says they shouldn't just switch levels like that, but John thinks somebody's messing with them. John cuts Chiana off, "You know what? Screw the explanation Chiana, we've got a problem with Scorpy on Moya," and adds that they need to get out. "Help! Help!" a voice cries out from atop the 'Rapunzel-like' tower. It's Aeryn, only blonde and in a princess outfit. "Now I know somebody's messing with us," John says, and Chiana tells him to just say he wants out -- it's the standard override. He tries but it doesn't work, and suddenly a television set drops on John's head. Chiana goes to check if John's OK, and luckily his helmet protected him, although a piece of shrapnel from the TV is stuck in it. Stark is there, and he says he's everywhere, "I'm Stark, avatar, guide, the game embodied." Stark says that all players are supposed to begin at the Gammak Base. Chiana says the auto-out didn't work, and Stark replies with an "Oh dear." They explain to Stark that they're on a transport pod outside the game, and want out, but Stark says that the 'auto-out' could be broken. Chiana pins him up against the wall for questions. "Who's the designer of the game?" she asks "Yoti?", "Neural template?". "Yours truly, and an infusion of the dead John Crichton's memories," Stark replies. He explains that they've back-doored into a part of the game that shouldn't even exist. "So you're kind of stuck, I think," he adds. John again reminds Chiana about Scorpius, and she says that brain damage and death is very rare. John appears in a suit on the TV screen introducing them to the game as "My name is John Crichton-Crichton. The most notorious criminal in the known universe. I may look Sebacean but I'm not-not-not. Billions upon billions upon billions of lives hang in the balance-hang in the balance. Your mission, should you choose to accept it-your mission should you choose to accept it, travel to the source of evil-evil. Discover the darkness-discover the darkness. I may look Sebacean. Discover the darkness." At this point Stark shuts of the TV while John mumbles "I'm gonna kill Stark." Stark finds the manual, and discovers two ways out -- either to kiss the princess or leave through a green door. Stark gives John three "vouchers", little balls that will answer one question if John squeezes it. Stark tells them that the tower's up, but up is down, and to follow the path through fairy town. He exits, leaving them to play the game. John spots what looks like a trail, leading to a tiny door on the wall. Through said door they go, and they end up in a car park. They spot a van rumbling, and out steps a big, bald blue guy, who introduces himself as Pa'u Zotoh Zhaan, 10th level Delvian priest. He tells them he'll hurt them because they're invading his parking space, when Chiana points out that John is hurt. "Well, he's gonna be more hurt if he tries to kiss the princess, the Ogre'll get him." "Ogre?" John asks, as the male Zhaan then stomps on his foot and punches him in the stomach. He rips the piece of TV-shrapnel out of John's helmet, and soon after, in his van, Zhaan prepares the "cure." Chiana throws the first cure away because it's acid, so Zhaan milks the cure from his left looma instead, and Chiana gives it to John. John sits up and screams, then falls back down again. Zhaan starts shouting that the Ogre is here, and drives off, only stopping in another part of the car park to kick Chiana and John out and speed off. John and Chiana follow another trail, but in the front of them stands a knight -- Rygel. "None shall pass!" he proclaims. John talks to him, suggesting he is King Arthur of Camelot and Chiana is his vassal. "Bollocks!" Rygel says, adding that John's a pimped up fleshy who wants to go where none shall pass. "Let's kill him," Chiana suggest, but John says they can just go around him. "None shall pass!" Rygel repeats. When they attempt to go round, Rygel turns around and blows fire out of his behind! Chiana distracts him, and jumps over the flames, sliding along the floor with sword out front, causing him to explode. John asks if she sees a path, but she doesn't. John has a go at Chiana again because Scorpius is causing problems on Moya so they have to get back. Chiana says they need a green door, so just ask one of the voucher balls. John uses one, and Stark appears as an image in Rygel's flames. He just recites the same riddle he said before then disappears. John calls for him to come back, but Chiana figures it out. "Follow the path," she says, "The path ends here". They go through and arrive in a house made of candy, like a freakish version of Hansel & Gretel. "What're you doing here?" asks D'Argo, dressed in amusing Scandinavian gear. Jool and another Chiana are trapped in a cage-like ball suspended from the ceiling, crying out to be eaten. "The ogre is gonna have my hide if I let you go without some molestation," D'Argo says. He then trots over to the ball and jumps and hangs from it, as John says they don't want to kiss the princess, just to find a green door. As D'Argo watches, John and Chiana go to the green door on the wall, but just as John opens it, D'Argo 'tongues' Chiana down, so only John makes it through. John is back on the pod, and comms D'Argo who tells him that Scorpius has escaped, and there's a command carrier on the way. D'Argo says there are a lot of bugs in Moya's systems, and they haven't heard from Sikozu since the escape. Aeryn adds that Pilot is losing control of critical systems, and John says they'll be there as soon as possible. He tries to wake up Chiana, but has to go back into the game to do so. He asks "D'Argo" where Chiana is. "Ah, she's too bony, probably tastes like fish. You don't wanna eat her -- the bloody bitch bites," he says. Jool screams out "How come nobody ever wants to eat me?" as John uses another voucher. Stark is called, his head appears under a platter cover. Stark tells him that Chiana went through a door. John goes up to it and it's an elevator. Stark tells him to "mind the gap." John gets in and the suited image of him appears on the TV screen. John asks to go "where the grey girl went." "Oh, the penthouse. Mmmm Do you have an appointment?" says his image. John is annoyed by the TV-John's behaviour. TV-John remarks "Well, it's your funeral. So what brings you here? Business? Pleasure?" continues TV-John. The elevator stops and opens to an approaching Scarran, which John kills. The elevator continues, and TV-John babbles some more. Next stop is a Sheyang breathing fire, which John also slays. He finally arrives at the penthouse, where Scorpius is with the blonde princess Aeryn. "I knew it had to be you!" John says, drawing his sword. But Scorpius is actually Harvey, has a huge nose, and is dressed in a butler's outfit. Harvey presents John to Aeryn, not realizing that she expected visitors. She tells Harvey, in a lisping Southern accent, to let the master know they have a gentleman to visit. "He's not the Ogre?" John asks. "What, Harvey? Oh heavens no, he's just an incorrigible liar. And a butler. So, can I help you find some place to sheathe that sword?" she asks. Aeryn says that her "beast of a boyfriend" is showing the grey girl around the place. She offers him a drink, which he declines. "I only want Chiana," he says. "Oh come on now," she replies, stroking his face, "we both know that's not true." The Ogre bursts in, and it bears a resemblance to Crais! He asks if John's here to kiss the princess, and rants about Aeryn always redecorating. "What is it with women and change?" he asks. Chiana runs in, and she and John leave as Aeryn berates the Ogre for scaring all their visitors away. Chiana and John leave the game and dock on Moya. D'Argo explains that Pilot's blind on the Hammond side, tiers 7 and 11. Aeryn says that the DRDs are searching there, as it's likely Scorpius is hiding in the blind spots. D'Argo says, "The plan is to hunt him down." Aeryn and John search together. "This is familiar," he says. "What, the passageway?" Aeryn asks. "No, it's good to have you back." D'Argo is searching when suddenly he screams. "Crichton, Aeryn, he's here!" Pilot exclaims, as John and Aeryn run to his den. Scorpius seals the chamber, so they use an access shaft. John says that it feels like a trap, but they go in anyway. As they approach Pilot, the DRDs open fire. "Everything is finally under control," Pilot says. Scorpius steps out, and tells them that Pilot's mind is now slaved to his, using a neural harness. "Whatever happens to the master, happens to the slave," he says. John says that Grayza's Carrier is on the way, as Scorpius asks if John's feeling lucky. Aeryn knocks John to the floor and kicks him in the head. John wakes in a cell, where Aeryn is standing watch. He thinks that Scorpius attacked her with a neural chip, but Aeryn says that he hasn't considered the possibility that she was protecting Pilot. "That second boot to the head convinced me otherwise", John says. Scorpius appears behind Aeryn, who walks away. "She's special, don't you think?" Scorpius asks. He asks John if they should end this. He says that John resisted the Aurora Chair, his neural clone and all reason. John says that it's time Scorpius headed off and left him alone. "You resist because you have hope", Scorpius says, "Hope that your friends will save you. This time it will be different. One by one I will extinguish all of your hopes and little by little you will begin to see reason". Aeryn comms Scorpius to say that they have Rygel. John goes to stab Scorpius, but can't, as if he harms Scorpius, he might harm Aeryn too. Chiana whispers to John in his cell, from a ventilation shaft. She says that she's got the game, so they go back into it. She says that Scorpius has control of the ship and has everyone and can hear everything, but not in the game. John says that they can't kill Scorpius as what happens to him happens to everyone else, so John decides he will throw Scorpius into the game. Out of the game, John cuts his finger and starts writing wormhole equations with his blood. Aeryn asks what he's doing, and John says "what your master wants". "Look", she says, "the only thing that keeps you alive is the secret you hold. The same is true for me". John points out that Scorpius is hearing all this. "I know". "I should never have let you go", John says. John gets Scorpius to his cell and tells him that he should recognize most of the floor -- it's the wormhole equations, but what the equation lacks is the single unified symbol, which is under his left foot. John wants Scorpius to come and take it. Scorpius enters, and John says that if anyone else enters the room he'll spill enough blood to erase the equations. "You know, if you kill me." Scorpius begins. "Oh, I don't think that's gonna happen, not after all you've survived", John says. "Then again, I could get lucky", he adds, as he goes to stab Scorpius. Scorpius blocks and has John by the throat, when John throws him into the game, trapping him. Gilina comes and hides behind John, saying that Scorpius isn't supposed to come from that direction. John pulls out his gun, which is actually a banana. Scorpius says that this world means nothing to him, he sees through its very existence. Meanwhile John is having trouble breathing from the choke outside the game. Scorpius wonders if he dies, will John's mind carry the wormhole knowledge into the game. Aeryn pulls him out of it. "He was killing you, I couldn't let that happen", she says. They leave while Scorpius is still trapped in the game. John asks what about the others, but Aeryn says that they don't matter; she came back for him. "I just want to be with you" she says. She kisses him, and he notices something is wrong -- he still holds the game vouchers. "Does this mean it's over?" Aeryn asks. John calls Chiana, and tells her they're still in the game. A door appears, and John says that Stark must've changed the doors. Stark comes, and says, "This is all about you, John Crichton. You're far too sick to be allowed to run free in the Universe". Speaking through Scorpius, Stark continues that when John dies in the outside world, he will live on, here - trapped in the game. Back in the fantasy world, John wonders how he and Chiana might get out of the game. He uses the last voucher, and the evil Stark appers on TV. Crichton demands to know the endgame so Stark replies "One hero's sword to set her free-free-free, one kiss upon her lips, so sweet. Thus ends your quest, thus ends the game-game and thus your soul is saved". John says that they have to kiss the princess, and angrily destroys the TV screen saying if Stark wants to play, they'll give him what he wants. They go to male Zhaan, where Stark speaks through him. John asks how he did it. "You did, you and that tragic brother". John says this game has crap he couldn't know, and Stark says it's crap John gave him along the way, "you talk so much". John then realizes that is the reason why there's no Noranti or Sikozu in the game. John asks why plants love the light, as Chiana turns on the van's headlights, distracting him so John can kill him. Back they go to Rygel, who John runs laughing over in a van. They go back to Jool and D'Argo, and John asks what they're doing here. "It's my turn!" Jool screams. The other Chiana is on the table, tied up and gagged, mumbling for attention. John asks his Chiana if this room seems too easy. She asks what he means. "I mean, first time here, how did you make it through?" He then questions her about Aeryn's secret. She has no answer, so realising she's the fake one John knocks her out, along with Jool. He goes and unties the other, real Chiana, who then whacks D'Argo with a giant lollipop. Chiana then says that John left her there for arns; she could've died. They go into the elevator, where the annoying TV-John starts babbling about asking for an autograph. Annoyed to death, John destroys the TV screen. They arrive at the penthouse. "I'm here for the princess" John announces. "I can see that, so romantic!" Aeryn exclaims. John begins fighting the Ogre while Chiana takes on Harvey in a swordfight, as Aeryn comments on the action. Chiana stabs Harvey, as Aeryn says, "Honey, the butler's dead!" John asks Chiana for help against the Ogre and his axe, when Stark comes in. Chiana fights him, knocking him down and as the Ogre's about to get John, Chiana throws her sword at him, and John finishes him off. John goes over to Aeryn. "Are you really John Crichton?" she asks, "We are going to be so happy together". John kisses her, but nothing happens, as Stark looks on. Stark suggests that maybe he has to do more than just kiss her, maybe show her a really good time, or maybe Chiana has to kiss her too. "I love to watch" he says. "She is not the princess", Chiana suddenly notices. "Well, I'm not the princess you seek, but we can still have a really good time!" Aeryn says. Stark says bitterly that "This is my world, meat. You're just walking through it for a very long time. When your body is dead, your mind will live here with us to strut and fret forever, you poor player". John suddenly realizes what he needs to do and jumps out of the tower window, allowing himself to reset the level. Crichton throws away the helmet and his shield and goes inside. Stark, in the apparently never-broken TV asks "What are you doing John-do-doing John?" Crichton angrily responds that it's Stark's world, and therefore the Princess is his Princess. Stark realizes that John knows who the real princess is. John goes to male Zhaan and kicks Stark aside. "One hero's sword to set her free", John slices male Zhaan, and out of the light comes the real, true Zhaan. "Don't touch her, she's mine!" Stark screams. "Be silent Stark", Zhaan says. Zhaan asks if it's really John Crichton. He says yes, "And you're?" "Zhaan, for all that matters" she says, "This Stark wishes to keep you here; he blames you. Believes I died for the love of you". "A lot of people have died because of me" says John. "What is it that you wish of me John Crichton? A kiss? Have you wasted my death, and the deaths of so many others?" "I don't know" John replies. "Then I suggest you find out, before anyone else dies for the love of you". She kisses him, Stark saying "No!" and the game finally ends. John comms D'Argo, who asks where John is. John asks what's up with Scorpius. "We had a small problem with his door, but that's already sorted" D'Argo replies. Chiana is happy that the two of them aren't dead. On Moya, John goes to the cooking room to see Noranti. "Interesting day?" she asks. "They're all interesting" he says, "this was more like confusing". "And a warrior needs clarity" she replies. "I'm not a warrior" John insists. "You carry a weapon" she says. John explains that it's Scorpius' war, not his. "Thousands dead, billions in the balance, but that's not the war I'm speaking of" she says; "Aeryn -- the war of the heart". "Always Aeryn. I don't think too clearly where Aeryn is concerned" John replies. "Pain clouds judgement" she says, and offers something that, for a time, will help him forget the pain; forget about Aeryn. John takes a piece of it. "Please don't thank me" Noranti insists, "it's been 150 cycles since I felt for someone the way you do for her". John takes a closer look at her substance. John walks down a corridor, where Aeryn sits. "I hear I was a princess," she says chirpily. John just carries on, pausing only briefly before continuing on his way. Aeryn looks puzzled. + +John is still floating in space above Earth, alone. "Home -- that really is Kansas," he says, before calling for Ka D'Argo and Pilot again. On Moya, the crew are on command, but have heard nothing. "I can't believe I'm going to die here. It's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen," John says, looking at the Earth. Suddenly some radio crackling, "John where are you?" asks D'Argo over the comms. John is surprised that they can hear each other, and D'Argo mentions that the wormhole keeps opening and closing. John tells them to lock on to his voice signal, and when the wormhole opens again, follow it. D'Argo decides to leave Scorpius and Sikozu behind, despite objections from Chiana, and asks Pilot to shut down Moya to ensure Scorpius can't do anything while the rest of them go to rescue Crichton. John begins singing "500 bottles of beer on the wall." as the others arrive at the wormhole's location, but aren't getting any readings. "The coordinates are exact. Wait for it." Aeryn Sun says, and sure enough, the wormhole opens and sucks the crew through in D'Argo's ship. "He did it!" Aeryn exclaims. They retrieve John, who asks for a radio signal to find out what year it is. He hears that Reagan is President, meaning it's the 1980s. He tells them that Einstein said if he came back before he left it would screw things up, so they need to go down to check things out. D'Argo turns Lo'La's stealth mode on, and flies down. John is standing in front of his house. "Home. I can't believe I'm home." He takes it in for a moment, just listening, then tells D'Argo to keep everyone of comms and the ship invisible while he checks it out. Einstein told him that if there were a problem it would start close to him. He walks round and peeks through the plants growing at the fence, and watches as his family are celebrating. He spots himself -- a younger version -- and can't quite believe it. He then realises that they're celebrating because his Dad's going up on the Challenger. He explains to D'Argo that in 1986 the Challenger Space Shuttle exploded killing everyone on board, but his Dad wasn't on that flight. Back on the ship, Rygel asks, in the scheme of things, "what does it matter if your father dies?" "No Dad - no Farscape Project," John replies, "You stay in Peacekeeper custody, she remains a Nazi, she ends up on Nebari Prime." Chiana asks how to fix it, and John relays that Einstein told him changes ripples out from the first mutation, so if they fix that everything will fall back into place. He decides they can't all stay in the ship for a long time, and knows a place where they can go, and luckily enough, tomorrow's Halloween. The crew are inside an abandoned house that John says was raided by the police in a drugs bust. The dust is playing havoc with D'Argo's eyes; meanwhile Chiana finds some old clothes in a box. John takes some jeans to change in to, and tells the others to stay out of sight. John steps outside to find his family arguing. Young John is having a go at his mother for backing down from his Dad all the time, while his Dad tells him not to talk to his mother like that, and to shout at him. Young John gets in his 4x4, and when his Dad gets in his face, he shouts, "Yo, hero, read the middle finger!" as he gives him the finger, and drives away. "What the hell is wrong with him -- he's so damned angry!" says Dad as he and the others walk back in the house, and he says he won't go Sunday - he'll go tomorrow. John spots a milk bottle on the drive. "Oh, God, milk!" he says as he opens it and takes a few long overdue satisfying gulps. Girlfriend Kim is at the front door unseen, spots him and asks what he's doing. "Do I know you?" she asks. Startled, he turns around, "Fred Scarran" John replies. She tells him he looks a little like John. He asks if John's gone to the lake, and she tells him that he's gone to the canal; he goes there whenever he's angry. John tells her he likes the spot with the overhang and the tall trees. "That's my favourite place! Johnny hates it there," Kim says. John tells her that he knows, but he shouldn't, and gives her the milk back and leaves. D'Argo turns on the power in the house, and the TV turns on -- it's Wheel of Fortune. "What the frell is that?" Aeryn asks. "I have no idea!" Rygel replies. Noranti shows Chiana a picture of one of the previous occupants sticking his finger up at the camera. "Must be some kind of a greeting," she says, "Yeah, to a friend." Meanwhile, Aeryn is still mesmerised by the TV. "Wwwwwheeel of Fortune," she says with a huge grin, "Wwwheel." They all continue watching the odd contraption, mesmerised and much amused. John goes to the canal, where he finds his younger self sitting on his car bonnet. "Who are you?" he asks John. "My name is John, John Clarence. You know, you should go to the overhang more often. Kim likes it there," he replies. John tells his younger self that he needs him to talk to his father and convince him not to go up on the shuttle. "Look, I don't know who you are, but shove off," is the reply. John grabs his younger self and pushes him up against the truck, taking his keys. "We don't hit! We may shoot people sometimes but we don't hit!" John says. He tells teen John that he knows he has problems, and he'll outgrow them, and he knows he's upset because he thinks his Dad treats his mum badly. "How do you know that?" young John asks. "Same way I know you helped DK cheat on his SATs." He tells teen John that if he wants to go to college, he should convince his Dad not to fly on the challenger. Young John tells him that if he knew anything, he'd know he can't convince his Dad to do anything. "You're wrong," John says. "You're wrong," his young self replies, "He never listens." As teen John drives off, John says "Man, when you're right, you're right." Back at the house, Aeryn is watching Sesame Street, as Kermit and a young girl relay the alphabet. Aeryn is going along with her, and tells D'Argo he should learn this. "Just a few of their words, just in case." He says Chiana's already told him a few words, "Yes - no - bite me." He says that's all he needs to know. Chiana is wearing a bright dress, and tells Rygel she's busting to get out -- it's Crichton's home. Rygel tells her that John got home, so if she doesn't screw this up maybe he'll get him home. Nevertheless, despite D'Argo's attempts to order her, she goes, saying it's Halloween -- she'll fit in. As she walks out she meets a neighbour, and gives her the middle finger. The woman enters and is met by Aeryn, but sees Rygel and is freaked out, and leaves in a panic. On Moya, Pilot tells Scorpius and Sikozu that Peacekeeper Marauders are approaching, and Grayza and Braca are on board. Scorpius calls to starburst, but Sikozu says they can't -- they'd never find their way back to this exact location. Pilot wants to run, but Sikozu tells him that if they do, Grayza will hunt them down assuming John is on board. She suggests they let Grayza aboard, so she can see John is not aboard. Pilot is afraid she'll kill him, but Scorpius assures him that if John is not here, Grayza won't hurt him. Young John arrives back home, and spots Chiana wondering the streets. He comments on her outfit, and asks if she's going to a party. "Yeah." He asks if she wants a lift. "Sure," she replies, as she climbs over the bonnet and slides in through the window. She cranks up the music. He asks her name. She says Chiana, but he mishears, asking "Karen?" She says, "Yeah, yeah Karen." She sniffs the car's lighter, burns her hand and says "shee-aw", which John interprets as "Shaw." "Karen Shaw, right? The name's John Crichton." "Crichton?" she asks surprised, and he asks what's the matter. She ignores him and tells him to drive. Back at the house, a policeman has come to check out their house. Aeryn is left to greet him. She somewhat awkwardly speaks to him, saying the house was abandoned by their uncle, and lets her in. He says he's received a complaint from the lady; Aeryn tells him she thinks she was scared. "Saw Kermit," she says, picking up Rygel, and as she throws him on the floor she says, "We thought the batteries were dead. It's just a silly toy." The policeman asks where they're from, when D'Argo sneezes, revealing himself. The policeman gets worried, so Noranti reminds him it's Halloween, and says D'Argo's dressed up. "That's a mask," the officer asks. Aeryn says yes, and the policeman suggests he's a little old to be dressing up for Halloween. "No. Yes. Bite me," D'Argo replies, so the policeman gets hostile. D'Argo pulls out his Qualta Blade, which Aeryn calls a toy. Noranti blows some herbs in his face, and whispers that there's no danger here, telling him to see D'Argo remove his mask and see the human he expects to see, and then to leave them alone. Sure enough, D'Argo pulls off his "mask" to reveal a human male beneath, prompting the policeman to leave. "Bitch I think you broke a rib," Rygel says, as Aeryn decides she has to go and find Crichton. Outside, Aeryn meets up with John, who tells her that in these clothes she kind of looks like Cher. He tells her that things are getting worse -- now his Dad is leaving tomorrow. They walk past his family's garden, and John spots his mother. He tells Aeryn that she dies four years before he left; now he's going to talk to her. He calls her, and she asks if she knows him. He says no, and mentions her reading the card. She says everyone thinks it's silly, especially her son. "He's wrong. It's not," John replies, "He's just young." He says that he did a reading in Gainesville, and that she has to make Jack stay until Monday. She says she did a reading, but he says he doesn't know what will happen, she just can't let him go. He tells her not to back down like she always does. "How do you know that?" "I can see it in your face -- you're a peacemaker, not a fighter." As he gets more emotional, he tells her just to make sure he doesn't go, and apologises for bothering her. Back at the house, Rygel tells John to just tell his Dad not to go on the shuttle, but John says he wouldn't believe him. When he was 17, John was trapped in a fire and was in a coma for two days, and his Dad saved him. After, when NASA called he refused to leave, and the plan is to recreate that. He'll get Kim, his old girlfriend, to bring his old self here and they'll simulate it all. He then notices Chiana is missing. Chiana is with John in his car at the canal, as John tells him about the troubles he has with his father. He says that the truth is one day he wants to go up there to, and she says he will. He's still unsure, but says that one day, maybe he will. The policeman returns, snooping around, and Noranti catches him and blows more herbs in his face. In the garden, she makes him drink some concoction, and when D'Argo asks what she's doing she says she's running tests to make sure she won't hurt John when she puts him in a coma. They take him and stuff him into his police car. D'Argo attempts to drive. "Machine Go," he commands in an attempt to start it, so Noranti points out that she thinks he has to turn the key. Unsteadily he drives away, and gives the agape mouthed onlooker, the nosy lady from earlier, the finger. The Marauder arrives on Moya, and in his chamber, Pilot pleads to Braca to not have the control collar put back on. He says they didn't starburst -- he has no idea where John is. Grayza tells Braca to find Crichton if he is on board, prompting Braca to commence a full tier search. Back in the house, John sits next to Rygel who is cutting a pumpkin. "Make him scary you said Scary!" Rygel seems to be on a sugar high, and asks John how illegal the candy is, because he needs more. John tells him just to breathe. On Moya, Sikozu wants to hide in the fans, where they can't be detected, but Scorpius tells her to go, and that he'll be fine. She leaves, as Braca climbs down to their level. Scorpius growls and points his gun. "You! You're dead!" Braca exclaims. Scorpius asked how many are aboard the Leviathan. "30 Peacekeepers, and Grayza." He asks if they'll follow him down here, and when Braca says no, Scorpius calls him Captain, grabs his head and kisses him. "Well done," he says, as Braca grasps Scorpius' face, saying, "It's good to see you, sir." The next morning, another officer and the lady find the policeman hanging out of his patrol car, and he says he thinks he needs a warrant. In the house, the preparations are made, and John leaves to go get himself. He and Chiana spot John's parents in the garden, happy, as Mum has convinced Dad not to go. John says he just wished they stayed like that, but they think they've got all the time in the world. At the canal, John gets in his car, as young John is throwing stones into the water. Kim tells John she did what he asked, but he thinks she's going to break up with him. As they continue to talk, Chiana comes round and knocks Kim out. She asks if this is what he's in to. "She's a nice girl!" John says, so Chiana proposes that he takes a bit of her, and she gets a bit of young John, no questions asked. Meanwhile, at the house, Rygel scares some trick-or-treaters off and takes their candy, but John walks in and takes it off him. Rygel, hands shaking and in an obvious sugar rush, begs for the stuff back. "But I love this and you-you-you won't buy me anymore! I want Kit Kat, and M & Ms, and Pez, and Reese's Pieces!" Already addicted to the sugar, he asks John if "this stuff is legal?" They're all set, and Chiana asks Noranti how long it'll be until the serum is ready. She says it'll be half an arn, and asks if Chiana can find a way to keep him occupied. In the back of his car, Chiana asks young John if it's his first time, and if it's how he imagined it. He says yeah, but not in Betty--the car's name, in the back of his Dad's four wheel drive. They kiss, and we cut away. Scorpius asks Braca if Grayza knows that Braca is his spy. He says no, and Scorpius says she must never find out. "We've got to stop her," Braca says, "She's organising a Peace Initiative with the Scarrans." Scorpius says they're using her, and they'll agree to everything, then betray the Peacekeepers when their forces are battle ready. Braca asks, "What should I do?" Scorpius tells him to stall her, and that he's not one for exaggeration, but the future of Peacekeeper survival depends on him. The policemen have a warrant, and go to search the house. As John watches TV in a chair, Noranti brings Chiana the serum, and she makes him drink it. As the police arrive, young John gasps and falls to the floor in convulsions. He has no pulse, as the officers knock the door insistently. In the chaos Chiana notices that John's arm is going invisible. He's fast becoming incorporeal. D'Argo runs in and asks where Crichton is, and he says he's there, but he's just disappeared. Noranti says that the sheriff's body weight is greater so she probably gave young John too much, and his body is ceasing to function so John is ceasing to exist. Aeryn and D'Argo let the police in, and summarily knock them out. Noranti chews something, and passes it from her mouth to young John's, and he revives. She couldn't bring him back too quickly so John is still semi-corporeal. He urges Granny to do something, but she tells him to use his condition to their advantage, so John leaves to see what he can do. Meanwhile, the gobsmacked sheriff asks who they are, and Noranti says they're aliens, before D'Argo tongues him out cold, again. John visits his mother, whom she recognises by his voice. He tells her that he loves her, and has wanted to tell her that for a very long time. He tells her to get Dad, because he's in trouble, so she runs to call for Jack. Braca tells Grayza that scans were correct -- Crichton isn't on board. She says she thought as much, since she checked the memory banks, and Pilot has no idea where Crichton has gone. She tells Braca to prepare the Marauders and set course for their meeting with the Scarrans. When he leaves, Grayza stands at a door and speaks to a creature in the darkness. She asks for reassurance that there's no way it will be detected once she has gone, but the DNA from John that she provided will be sufficient to detect his presence, so once he returns as she's certain he will, he can be captured. alive! Noranti whispers in John's ear to remember nothing, but Chiana tells him, "Except for Karen Shaw, in the four-wheel drive." Noranti gets to one policeman, but they have to go before she can make the sheriff forget. They drag the unconscious policemen to the car and pile them in then leave, as Jack arrives to get young John. John, D'Argo and Aeryn squat and watch, but Jack hits his head on the light as he rushes in and falls to the floor unconscious. D'Argo realises he's been too long, and asks John, "Why do our plans never work?" "Murphy's Law," John replies, as he runs in the house. He calls in D'Argo and they drag both Jack and young John out the house, and lay them on the floor. John kisses himself goodbye, tenderly on the forehead, and wishes himself good luck. D'Argo leaves as John's mother is pulling up in a car in an utter panic. Aeryn tells John they have to go now, they run and hide behind some bushes nearby, looking on. Jack wakes up puzzled, then notices John, who is OK. As John is about to jump the wall, Jack spots him, and John lingers. They hold each others gaze for a frozen moment, Jack with an intent look of almost recognition, then John jumps off the wall and out of sight. The sheriff is explaining all in some sort of interrogation room. He swears that there was an invisible guy, and one with a really long tongue. He has no idea why no one else remembers, but he has Rygel's pumpkin, which has a face rather like Scorpius, and says it has to be a message or something -- "No human could have made it" he insists, caressing the pumpkin utterly bewildered. Aboard Lo'La, D'Argo asks if there's any way they can save the other people who are supposed to be killed in the Challenger explosion. Crichton states there isn't, in their case history must be allowed to proceed normally. The crew then pick up a message from Pilot. John gets him to check the year, and it's 2003. "Follow my signal. Commander, come home," Pilot says. The wormhole opens and they return through. "By Lannit another Earth!" Rygel says, as they spot Moya, but in orbit of Earth in 2003. "No, same Earth, different time," corrects John. They dock, and when John steps round a corner, he's met by four humans -- three of the officials from the interrogation room and his father! "Welcome home, son," Jack says, "We've been waiting for you a long time." As Jack approaches, John pulls out his pulse pistol, and takes a good long look at them. "What's wrong John?" his dad asks. John replies, "Was it a bass, or a trout?" + +Ka D'Argo is still towing John Crichton's module, and there's still no sign of Moya. Rygel wants to land on the planet close by because he's starving, but the planet is hot and lifeless. Chiana comments that right now she could eat rock. Sikozu is surprised as Chiana ate only three days ago, asking how inefficient her body is. "How edible is yours?" Chiana bites back. Rygel farts, and moans that he needs food. Noranti spits out something, jilnak, and hands it out first to Rygel then the others, except Sikozu who offers her portion to Rygel. Noranti claims it's restorative. John wonders, "How come everything tastes like chicken?" "What's chicken?" Chiana asks. Cut to D'Argo's ship, Lo'La, landing on the lava-filled planet. Rygel comes out of the ship on his ThroneSled, only to fly off to throw up. John follows, then D'Argo, and both join Chiana in the mass regurgitation. Noranti offers John something to help the cramp, which he declines. "I am inside out," says D'Argo. "But you're not hungry anymore!" Noranti points out. Rygel has gone down a nearby hole for a shlock. John, D'Argo, and Noranti follow him. At the bottom, Rygel has found some treasure that he clearly wants to swipe. "That stuff belongs to somebody else" John warns, and D'Argo throws it away, adding, "we have enough enemies already." Something seems to happen when what D'Argo threw hits the floor. Noranti finds some medicines, and thinks she recognizes some of the markings on the container. D'Argo wants to leave, but Rygel sets off a booby trap, and a column of amber substance solidifies around his body, and seals the entrance to the hole, with Chiana and Sikozu on the outside. The whole place is booby-trapped, and D'Argo can't shoot the hole open; they're stuck. Rygel is moaning for the others to get him out, while Noranti continues to ramble about the markings. "D'Argo, we may have to stick granny in a hole" comments John. "I think we should burn her" D'Argo replies. They hear people coming, who kill the traps, as Noranti recognises the markings as Tarkan. John ushers her to go and hide with him and D'Argo while Rygel plays dead. The two men converse, as John and D'Argo discuss taking them out. Noranti says there should be no violence, while the men realise the traps have been set off, and notice Rygel. He farts, so the men realise that while he smells dead, he's not. Rygel apologizes for disturbing their work, but they realize he's a thief too. He tells them there's no one with him, and the men comm someone else, who tells them not to touch Rygel as he's on his way. Noranti tells John and D'Argo that these are Tarkans -- good people -- and despite John's objections she introduces herself to the men. Rygel claims that he's never seen her before, but she says they're not alone -- there's a human, and a Luxan too. She urges John and D'Argo to come on out, as John comments, "burning is too good for her!" John steps out and tries to move along, thanking the men for looking after Noranti and telling her to stop wandering off. He implies to them that she's a bit crazy and asks if they've seen his dog. Rygel tells John to get him out, and John has an idea: "Why don't we all put our guns down?", but two other men arrive and start shooting. Chiana and Sikozu are watching from the sealed hole, trying to make out what is going on down there. The shootout continues, but the men have body shields, so D'Argo, John and Noranti are forced to run. One of the men cuts Rygel from the floor but leaves his body encased and carries him off, dropping him down a chute. Chiana thinks that the lights she saw were pulse blasts, and tells Sikozu they need to help them. Sikozu says that they have to get to them first. "Well, you're a genius. How?" Sikozu mentions the cannon on D'Argo's ship. Only D'Argo can operate it, but Chiana ponders if there might be another way in. Rygel reaches the bottom of the chute, and witnesses a huge person in body armour come out from a pool of lava. Meanwhile, John, D'Argo and Noranti are running from the men. Noranti tells them these are Tarkan Freedom Fighters - heroes; there's no need to fight them. John points out that they're shooting at them, and D'Argo notes they fired first. Noranti wants to mediate, but John says she'll just get shot. "And that would be bad?" D'Argo asks. Rygel asks the armored person, Raa'Keel, if they can discuss this. Raa'Keel is not happy when told that there are more intruders here. He asks Rygel how they found this place, but a nervous Rygel says no one told them; they found it by accident. When pressed he claims he was just putting back the chain he was going to steal. One of the men comms Raa'Keel to say that he has the intruders cornered, but he needs help. Raa'Keel says that he'll take care of it, while the other person keeps moving the crates. He asks the man on the comm. to describe the location, but the man says it all just looks like rock. Noranti tells John and D'Argo that she trusts the Tarkans, but John and D'Argo don't. D'Argo tells John that it might be an idea to let Noranti mediate, so John finally agrees, but she yawns and drops to the floor -- deep asleep. Raa'Keel asks the man if there are any writings on the wall. There are some purple markings, which Raa'Keel tells the man to shoot. When he does it causes a huge explosion and rumble. D'Argo says "trouble," and as the lava begins to flow in where they are he remarks "same dren, different planet." "Yep, we're trapped. Again." D'Argo wants John to jump, but John says that he can but the old bat can't. "Old bats can fly," says D'Argo, as he throws Noranti to the other side of the lava. D'Argo propels John across, but when he jumps he nearly falls backwards into lava, so he wraps his tongue around Noranti's neck to pull himself up. Chiana couldn't find another entrance, while Sikozu has been trying to power up the ship's cannon. Chiana repeats that only D'Argo can operate it, but Sikozu says he'd be a fool not to set an override. Chiana gets an idea; they just need D'Argo's DNA. Raa'Keel tells the leader of the men that his people are worthless. Rygel comms D'Argo to say that he's dying, and begs them to get him out of there. John asks where he is, when Raa'Keel grabs Rygel and asks "who's this?". "Lou Costello" is John's reply. He says that he is Raa'Keel, and Noranti introduces herself and says they're not enemies; it's a misunderstanding, they know they're Tarkan Freedom Fighters. Raa'Keel says that even though they approve of their work, Rygel attempted to rob them. John apologizes, and says they'll punish the slug appropriately. Raa'Keel says that they'll release Rygel, but knocks him out and tells John that Rygel doesn't look well -- they'd better come get him. Raa'Keel says that they'll send an escort, and neither John nor D'Argo trust him, despite Noranti's objections. John wants to ambush the escort, hit him with a rock and take the shield. "That is your plan?" D'Argo asks. "Yeah." "To hit him with a rock, when they have these, like, shield things?" Apparently, the shields only work against pulse energy -- they saw the man get burned, so John is sure a rock will work. Noranti announces that she wants to help. Chiana and Sikozu check out all the piles of vomit and find D'Argo's, of which Chiana takes both a bite and a handful. On the ship, Sikozu wants to try to control it, but Chiana objects, as she's the one who put her hands in the vomit. Sikozu observed the starting procedure for the ship when they left Arnessk, so they start it, but Sikozu's never seen D'Argo use the cannon. Noranti blows powder all through a chamber, where D'Argo and John hide. As the men come in to find them, Noranti turns saying "hey fellas", and starts to dance. The men don't see Noranti, presumably due to the powder; instead they see a young lady wearing a skimpy outfit with blue hair. The men drool over her as she strips, and John and D'Argo sneak up behind them and whack them with rocks. Noranti continues to dance anyway, finishing with a strip, much to the chagrin of D'Argo and John. Sikozu has got her own vomit, so has a go at working the ship. She gets it moving, and lines it up with the hole, but when she tries to fire the cannon nothing happens. John has put on one of the men's body shields, and is told that it works automatically when fired at. D'Argo wants to test it on one of his John's appendages, but then shoots anyway and it works. Noranti asks if they can go now to talk with the Tarkans, but John points out there is no "we" - they have two belts and three people. Leaving Noranti behind, John and D'Argo let the men lead the way. John arrives at Raa'Keel's chamber with the men, trying to use them as hostages. Raa'Keel shoots them instead, and activates booby traps around D'Argo and John. He adds that they aren't freedom fighters at all; they're robbing them. John points out that they don't care, and D'Argo adds that they've performed quite a few burglaries themselves. Raa'Keel asks who else is with them, but D'Argo refuses to say, prompting Raa'Keel to throw lava over them when they don't cooperate. Chiana and Sikozu argue, and when Chiana tells her to try anything the cannon fires, opening the hole. Below, they feel the rumble, and D'Argo realizes it's Lo'La's cannon, so it must be the girls. John tells Raa'Keel that it's their squad, and D'Argo explains, "we die, you die." Raa'Keel goes to throw lava on them, but the leader of the men stops him, saying if it's true they'll need hostages. Raa'Keel asks why now, when he's been planning this for so long. John has no sympathy, "life sucks, doesn't it?" "Well, quite often in fact," D'Argo adds. Raa'Keel leaves to search for the ship. Meanwhile, Chiana leaves to check down the hole, and suggests that Sikozu turn the ship invisible. Raa'Keel and one of the men argue, with Chiana nearly running into them. D'Argo and John try to convince the person guarding them to betray Raa'Keel, but he doesn't listen. Rygel forces himself off an edge to drop to the floor, and in the distraction John shoots the person, but Rygel gets knocked into the trap and becomes completely encased again. Just as Raa'Keel and the man get to the surface, Sikozu turns the ship invisible. The weapon they use to melt the amber substance runs out, so D'Argo leaves to get a new canister from the level above. The man suddenly gets up and goes to hit John with Rygel, but John fights back and he and Rygel fall into the lava pool. John wants to try activating the shield so he can go into the pool to rescue Rygel, but Harvey tries to talk him out of it. John shoots his finger to activate the shield to give it a try, and the shield protects him from the lava while it's activated. Raa'Keel and the man find nothing wrong with their transport, so decide it must have been a bluff, and Raa'Keel returns to dispose of the hostages. Chiana is still roaming, when Noranti grabs her and says they have to hide; these are not real Tarkans but "highly evil men." She tells Chiana they have to get a message to real Tarkans. D'Argo and the man get into a fight when they meet in a corridor. John finds Rygel in the lava, but Raa'Keel pops up behind him, and in the mean time D'Argo decapitates the man and his head rolls down the shoot, landing in front of John. Raa'Keel knocks John's pulse pistol away, and John's shield switches to reserve mode. Chiana walks in, and John yells to shoot him. John's shield is reactivated, and he manages to overpower Raa'Keel and make him encased. With Raa'Keel out the way, John finds Rygel, and yells, "Can I get a hell yeah?" as he holds Rygel up in triumph. John frees Rygel from the amber substance, when Tarkans approach. As the crew prepare to fight, Noranti tells them these are real Tarkans, and she told them everything. "And they believed you?" John asks. A Tarkan explains that Raa'Keel was once one of them, but now he's a traitor and a thief, and tells them they're free to go, as long as they take Rygel with them. John thanks a Tarkan for the shield belt, as the Tarkan thanks Noranti for the jilnak, prompting John and D'Argo to drag her away. Rygel says that he'll never eat again, as D'Argo, John and Noranti arrive on the ship. D'Argo asks what the mess and the smell are. "This is all you. Well, from you, " Sikozu replies. When they lift off, the ship informs them that it's received a transmission; it's from Pilot, transmitting Moya's location and saying they look forward to the crew's return. "By the yotz, Moya's all right!" Rygel exclaims. "She's waiting for us!" + +John and Aeryn Sun are sitting in Pilot's den. Pilot tells them that they've reached the optimum departure point and Rygel, Scorpius, and D'Argo are waiting for John on Lo'La, while Chiana, Sikozu, and Noranti are already in a transport pod. John opens his Christmas gift from Aeryn -- a remote control. "Does something come with this?" John asks with a knowing smile. She tells him yes, something big that's pretty much taking over his room. John tells Pilot they'd actually stay behind rather, and sit and watch and eat popcorn like normal people. Pilot tells him that D'Argo is waiting. John tells Aeryn he has to go look after Scorpius; Aeryn says she should go with him. John tells her she knows that's not possible and she needs to look after the girls. She says that's not funny and he tells her it'd be better than mental arts training. "I don't know, you could do with the mental discipline," she tells him. "Not from someone Scorpy recommends. You got the better job." Sarcastically, she says rummaging around a dead Leviathan settlement looking for a Moya part is thrilling? She'd much rather swap places with him. Pilot tells Aeryn that now Chiana is asking where she is, and so they say "Merry Christmas," kiss and part ways. D'Argo, Rygel, John, and Scorpius are at the training camp. The trainer, Katoya, tells them their objective is mental discipline, a skill few ever achieve. He tells them of the task chairs, which provide access to a "mindscape", where they will compete with an opponent to the point of great pain. If they endure the pain, they'll succeed. Retreat, and they'll suffer the consequences. He gives them 80 microts to leave if they have self-doubt, after which the Juxtowi crystals on their heads will activate and on any attempt to leave it will bore through their brain. John says he needs to know about the creature that attacked his family and killed his friends and Scorpius assures him that if it's from Tormented Space Katoya will know about it. Scorpius says his price is completion of the course. D'Argo smells something that gives him flashbacks. Rygel comments it's "the stench of that frelling Charrid", also in training. "Oh, I know that odor," D'Argo assures. That person pulls off a mask he's wearing, and it's indeed someone D'Argo knows - Macton, the man who killed his wife. D'Argo attacks him. "You killed my wife. You set me up and then you sent me to prison," he shouts. Macton says he didn't want the truth then and won't now, and tells the others to let D'Argo hit him like he beat Lo'Laan. As they jostle for the advantage, Katoya separates them, saying, "That ends this." As they sit in a room outside the main chamber, John asks D'Argo if he's okay. Rygel says that Macton's a liar and he can't believe a Peacekeeper has found them. He suggests they leave before any more arrive. Scorpius tells him that they will not be permitted to leave prematurely. They agreed to say; they must obey the rules. John says they won't stick around and wait for a Marauder, regardless of the rules. Scorpius tells him that this sector of Tormented Space is forbidden to Peacekeepers without express orders from Peacekeeper High Command, so it's likely Macton is here unofficially. D'Argo says that Macton destroyed his family, his wife, and his son and deserves to die. D'Argo has a flashback to a time when, at his home, he overheard Macton telling Lo'Laan that D'Argo is a Luxan, and he can't help but hurt her. She retorts that they are in love and D'Argo would never hurt her, nor would she hurt D'Argo. Macton promptly storms out. "Now we're both here," D'Argo says, "One of us must die. I wouldn't run even if I could." John says he's got D'Argo's back on this, but Katoya won't let them disrupt his class, so they should wait until after training. They are called back to the arena. Katoya asks John to join him for a demonstration; John says he's here to watch. Katoya tells him everyone must participate. John says that after everything he's had in his head, he won't offer another chunk for Katoya's games. "It is not a game," Katoya insists. John tells Katoya to fail him, but he won't get in. Katoya looks to Scorpius, who agrees. John tells Scorpius it proves nothing to him if he wins. Scorpius steps in and they are in a huge blackened room with a grid of tiny lights like a starry midnight sky, on a platform. The task-chairs are within a metal frame icosahedron looking device. There is a glowing orange icosahedron (hologram) hovering around, that they are pushing towards each other with their minds. Katoya tells Scorpius to overcome the pain. They push it back and forth with their minds and Katoya tells him not to withhold his efforts, nor is anger a substitute for clarity. The task may be completed with a minimum of harm. Katoya pushes it against Scorpius, asking if they should end this, Scorpius pushes it back almost hitting it's target. "I was just starting to enjoy the pain," he replies, as Katoya retaliates, gives a final push, and it smashes against Scorpius. When Scorpius gets off, John sarcastically comments on how constructive it was. Scorpius tells him it's not meant to be painless. "It never will be painless, John," he assures him. John goes to the bathroom, where Macton is waiting. John asks why he's here, and Macton says he's responding to D'Argo's death threats; D'Argo told him he was coming for him. Macton says he won't allow D'Argo to kill him to conceal what he did to his wife, my sister -- he killed Lo'Laan. John says that it was Macton who killed her, but he tells John that D'Argo killed her in a fit of hyper-rage. John says D'Argo says he didn't do it and that's good enough for him. "You do know that Luxan hyper-rage causes blackouts?" Macton asks, adding that any honest Luxan would tell him that. And again insists that D'Argo was the one who killed his wife, just doesn't remember, or has blocked out, doing it. John returns to the chamber, where Rygel wants to go up against the Charrid. Katoya tells him this is not a game. "It's a war of wills," Rygel says, "Where else will I get chance at a fair fight, where I have the advantage?" Katoya allows Rygel to proceed. D'Argo asks what lies Macton told John. He admits to sending the death threats. John says he doesn't want to talk about it anymore, as it will piss D'Argo off. D'Argo says he's pissed off already, so John tells him about the mention of Luxan's hyper-rage causing blackouts. D'Argo flashes back to a moment when he went in to hyper-rage in front of Lo'Laan because he didn't want Macton in his house. Back in the arena, D'Argo says that blackouts during hyper-rage do happen, but he learned to control them successfully. Young Luxans are genetically violent and the impulses take cycles to master, which is why Luxans aren't allowed to marry young. He says Lo'Laan knew he would never hurt her and he made a solemn vow that if he ever did he would leave immediately, no questions. Rygel is groaning and frothing from expending so much energy against the Charrid. John tells Katoya, "Excuse me Master Jedi, Sparky there looks like he's loosing a few brain cells", and so maybe it's time to let him out. "It was his choice," is Katoya's reply. John and D'Argo approach to take him out anyway and are both thrown back by an invisible force by Katoya. Rygel ultimately prevails and overcomes the Charrid and wins. He smiles triumphant, then promptly collapses. D'Argo and John take Rygel to the outer room and D'Argo says he's like ice. John, angry, tells Katoya that they're leaving, and this wouldn't have happened if he'd allowed them to take Rygel out before. Katoya just ignores him, then exclaims, "Your training isn't over," and as John turns his back on him, strikes him down the stairs. "It's just begun," he adds. The trainees enter, along with Scorpius and D'Argo. Scorpius says that John is fine; he's just been moved to remedial training. D'Argo was thinking about Macton and Scorpius says that perhaps he should remain focused and heed their example. Katoya calls him up and Scorpius reiterates the need to stay focused. D'Argo flashes back to asking Lo'Laan if he hurt her. She says they'll get through it. "If I did ever hurt you, you'd tell me, wouldn't you?" he asks. She says he's never hurt her, and promises she'd tell him if he did. D'Argo is in a room with barriers of blue energy beams and has to try to find his way out. Katoya tells him to release his mind and find the path. D'Argo keeps getting hurt by the barriers and eventually gets so angry that Katoya stops the task, telling him to exert even a microt of self-control over his personal impulses is the point of the exercise. In another room, D'Argo says he's leaving. Katoya tells him that will not help him find the answers he's looking for. D'Argo gets angry again, telling Katoya he's sick of the mind games and that if he remains here he will kill Macton. He stops his anger slowly and Katoya tells him that proves he can control it. John is locked up in a small barred cell that has a coaled furnace that takes up a quarter of the cage's floor space. He calls for D'Argo, but gets no answer. Meanwhile, Rygel tells D'Argo that Macton must be lying, why?, because he's a Peacekeeper. Macton is just trying to get to him. D'Argo says that he and Lo'Laan were happy together and Macton can't change that. He says he should have killed Macton. "Isn't that what you set out to do when we all left Moya?" Rygel asks. D'Argo says part of him knew that wouldn't bring Lo'Laan back, but the other part wanted to let him know he knew exactly where Macton was. Rygel urges him to pay attention to the part that wants to kill Macton, so he can finally get it over and be done with it. D'Argo says he's not so sure that he wants to take revenge any more. Katoya goes to see John, who tells him to let him out. Katoya drops a key into the room through the bars, which lands on the furnace. Katoya tells him he wasn't quick enough and that he can leave when he catches a key to let himself out. Macton and D'Argo meet just outside the chamber. D'Argo tells Macton to stay away from him and his friends and to stop spreading his lies. He says Macton always hated him and would have hated any non-Sebacean that married his sister. Macton replies that he may have come to accept the marriage in time had D'Argo not started beating her. D'Argo says he's violent when he chooses to be, and now he chooses not to kill Macton. But that could change. Macton said that if he came to kill D'Argo he'd never see him coming. He tells D'Argo he came to give him the truth the blackouts and Lo'Laan stopped him from seeing. D'Argo says he's lying and when Macton taunts him further, he pushes him onto the desk. For a moment, he sees Lo'Laan lying on the table in Macton's place and is taken aback, and Macton tells him this is his uncontrollable rage and asks if he thought he could really ever protect Lo'Laan from that. And that if he looks deep within he'll know the truth - or in fact, he's certain he's always known!. Another key is dropped down to John, which he doesn't catch in time. Scorpius turns up and says that Katoya told him John was experiencing setbacks. Scorpius tells him neither Earth nor John himself is safe; the Scarrans know of him and are coming for him. He cannot run away and Scorpius says he cannot protect John from them. John shouts for him to get him out of the hole, but Scorpius says he's undergoing specific Scarran training. John tells him that he'd figured that out already. "It's not the heat, it's the humidity," John spits mockingly. Scorpius tells him the heat mechanism the Scarran employs is just the beginning, and if they disable his mind's defenses, there is no secret that they will be unable to extract. John tells him that he'll take his chances on his own. Scorpius stresses that when they find John, the Scarrans will extract the wormhole knowledge and then kill him. "After all we've meant to each other, you'd kill me first," John pronounces. "You have such a limited mental capacity, John, but apparently an abundant will to prevail." Scorpius says that his advice is to use that will right here right now, as Katoya is the only one that can give him the tools he needs to survive the Scarrans. Scorpius is talking with Katoya. He says that he knows John will survive, just like he would. Katoya says that for Scorpius to have survived this long, his training must have been helpful. Scorpius tells him they've saved his life, on countless occasions. He requests three favors. "Do I owe so many?" Katoya asks. "I did spare you from Peacekeeper captivity, and my Aurora Chair." Katoya says he would have survived the Aurora Chair, but tells Scorpius to proceed. Scorpius' first request is to intensify John's training; without the training, he will ultimately die anyway. Second, Macton has become a dangerous distraction. Katoya says he's done nothing wrong. "I believe despite his protests, he will kill D'Argo," Scorpius says. Katoya retorts, "Or D'Argo will kill him." He says he will have neither here. Thirdly, Scorpius asks for information on a species he has no knowledge of. This species recently attacked John. "May I describe it for you?" Scorpius asks John is still in his cage, with the coals sizzling around him getting hotter by the minute. D'Argo comes and tries to help release him, but he can't do it. So instead he gives John a drink and tells him this is doing his head in. He's been thinking of killing Macton for half his life, but is now questioning if Lo'Laan lied to him. John says that Macton is filling him with possibilities. What Lo'Laan did, she did for D'Argo, and that means something. D'Argo says that means it's possible he killed the woman who loved him more than life. D'Argo talks again with Katoya, saying he has a great deal of respect for his work. He says that mental strength just isn't his strength, and asks if Katoya can help him find an answer. "What would you like to know?" Katoya asks. "What kind of monster I really am." They enter the task chair, where D'Argo sees an image of Lo'Laan with a knife through her chest. D'Argo says he doesn't want to see that, but Katoya tells him to stay focused. Lo'Laan says that she knows it upsets him, but he's getting worked up over nothing. D'Argo says that his anger is to be controlled, not used against someone you love. Katoya asks if he used it against her. D'Argo eventually lashes out and sees himself hitting her. He kneels next to her. "Did I hurt you?" he asks. She says no, he'd never hurt her. He says she promised to tell him if he did and asks if she knows how much he loved her. She says yes - suddenly Katoya implodes into swirling shards of glass and disappears/exits, ripped from the task; and in the chair where he sat, Macton has replaced him. "Sorry to interrupt Master," Macton utters sarcastically. John is getting more and more agitated in his cell, which now has heating elements on further sides of the cage, making the heat unbearable. Meanwhile, Macton hits D'Argo, and the environment morphs into the house he shared with his wife, returned to "the scene of the crime." D'Argo goes to hit Macton, but he morphs into the visage of Lo'Laan again. Macton starts hitting D'Argo and switching his image with Lo'Laan's to try and convince D'Argo he couldn't control himself and it was all his doing, putting these images in his head. With her visage, showing D'Argo huge bruises, on her legs, arms and neck. Is this what you never meant to do Macton/Lo'Laan asks, taunting him ? They switch to D'Argo's cell on Moya, where Macton says he belongs. D'Argo is chained up, and Macton starts punching him, saying that this is what he did to Lo'Laan so it's no less than he deserves; what D'Argo's rage felt like. Another key is thrown down and this time, John exasperated and in utter frustration just pulls off the grill cover, dips his hand into the coals, and retrieves the key; enduring great pain and severely burning his hands. D'Argo tells Macton he didn't kill Lo'Laan and Macton says no, but D'Argo drove her to her own death. He shows Lo'Laan stabbing herself, saying he beat her beyond her capacity to endure and longer. Macton says, on finding her dying, he doctored the scene to provide the evidence and put D'Argo in prison forever. D'Argo begins to go in to hyper-rage, and then leaves him to rot in his rage for eternity. D'Argo shouts in an incontrollable HYPER-rage. As Macton leaves, D'Argo makes himself focus and manages to control and exit the rage. Macton turns around and D'Argo causes his chains to just fall away. "You're lying. Every word you've said is a lie." Macton insists no, he beat her and drove her to suicide. D'Argo hits Macton to the ground and says he knows what Lo'Laan went through for their love, and he wishes he could have loved her half as well. "Oh, you loved her to death," Macton croaks, "You do not have this power!" D'Argo says Lo'Laan taught him that he does have power over his rage; then even though Macton now expects D'Argo to strike him a killing blow, D'Argo says he has no intention of killing him. He stresses he loved his wife, but Macton wouldn't know that because he didn't even know Lo'Laan, but D'Argo did. He says she could have left him for his failings and maybe she should have, but he knows that she would never have left her son without a mother, therefore she would never have taken her own life. That's why he's certain all he says are lies. D'Argo now 'turns the table' on Macton and wants to see Macton's memories, and why he killed Lo'Laan. D'Argo grabs his head and has a vision of Macton telling Lo'Laan of what he plans to do to D'Argo, turning him in so he'd be dishonourably discharged and put away. She pleads that he's done nothing wrong, and as Macton walks away she says she won't let him. She grabs a knife and goes to strike him, but he turns and on his reflex, grabs her and stabs her in self-defense. Macton tells D'Argo it was his fault, she attacked him and his Peacekeeper training took control, by the time he was aware of what he had done, it was already too late. D'Argo says that's not the whole truth, since she was clearly beaten. Macton says he had to make D'Argo pay and make it look like he did it in a fit of hyper-rage, so he beat her after she'd perished. D'Argo walks away disgusted, leaving a guilt-ridden Macton to relive what he did. Back on Lo'La, D'Argo, Rygel, Scorpius, and John are leaving the camp. John is nursing his hands, and asks if D'Argo's all right. D'Argo says he's fine. "If you were fine you'd have killed Macton instead of leaving him there." D'Argo says that he's trapped in a coma with his own nightmares, killing him would've been merciful -- he's not that enlightened. Scorpius asks John if he was able to obtain the key, but John whistles and doesn't answer. Scorpius tells him that the creature that attacked him was a Skreeth, a species that can communicate over long distances telepathically, quite possibly passing on the information regarding Earth. John asks who he'd pass it on to. "Grayza, almost certainly." John comments that the Peacekeepers now know where Earth is. "May know," Scorpius corrects him. John asks if Grayza will go there and Scorpius says it's possible, but she doesn't want Earth, she wants John first and foremost. John again asks if D'Argo is OK, and he says he will be, but he's got things on his mind. Things he's done, things he can't take back. + +Moya is sitting at a dead stop in the middle of open space because John thinks a wormhole will form soon. Aeryn Sun is pacing up and down command, while Rygel whines to Ka D'Argo, who promised John two arns to wait for the wormhole while he was captain. Rygel is now acting Captain, as the crew are taking it in turns. Chiana comes to command, and asks if John's found any wormholes. "Ba-boom," John announces, "wormhole in diez, nueve, ocho" but when he gets to one, nothing happens. Sikozu asks if he knows what he did wrong. "You mean other than getting up this morning?" Pilot asks for Rygel's orders, as John goes over to Aeryn. Sikozu follows him, but Aeryn asks if she'll excuse them. "Can I speak to you?" she asks John, "Quite a few things I'd like to say." "There's a lot of things I'd like to hear," John replies. She invites him to her quarters, when a wormhole appears, to everyone's surprise. Sikozu looks particularly impressed at John's prediction. As Rygel is about to give Pilot his orders, something hits Moya, causing explosions and sending everyone to the floor. Rygel looks outside and asks anxiously "What happened to the stars?" Rygel panics, prompting a slap from Chiana. Pilot says that Moya is convulsing unlike anything he's experienced before. Since they weren't moving something hit Moya, and Pilot says that not a single sensed neuron on Moya's skin is transmitting; he has no readings. "That cannot be right," Sikozu points out. "It is, you disagreeable hi-" Pilot begins but is cut off by John, who asks how that can be right. Something is attacking Moya's sensor; her skin is burning all at once. Since Pilot says under these circumstances, a hull breech would go undetected; Aeryn takes Chiana to do a perimeter hull search. Sikozu calls to ask if Scorpius is alright, and he says he'd appreciate being let out. "Absolutely not!" John says immediately, and comms Noranti, who doesn't answer. She is in the cooking room, muttering words that eventually lead to her screaming "Flora PLANT!" Rygel asks Sikozu what kind of plant lives in space. John and D'Argo go to check the hill and determine it is some kind of plant, so they take samples. Scorpius asks for some assistance, since a fire has broken out in his cell. Sikozu races to put it out, and Chiana follows to see what she's up to. She reminds Sikozu that Scorpius is a prisoner; the doors stay closed. "Does he look like he's trying to escape?" Sikozu asks. Chiana doesn't really care, and calls her out of the cell. She corners Sikozu against the wall, telling her that they know Scorpius better than her, he probably started the fire himself. Scorpius is listening, and objects, pointing out fires starting all down the hall. John says that the plant is oozing something that dissolves metal, while Aeryn says that Moya's fluids are rushing in to protect her internal organs, causing ruptures everywhere. D'Argo comments that it's playing havoc with his eyes, while Aeryn says that they have to get it off Moya's skin. D'Argo decides that they'll blast it off with Lo'La. D'Argo and John fly out with Lo'La, and see Moya completely covered up. When Pilot asks how bad it is, they decide it best to not tell him the details. Aeryn is with Pilot in his den, and asks how they missed it. "We didn't," he says, "We assumed it was debris." It snuck up while they were distracted by the wormhole. Aeryn tells him not to give up, and he adds that if Moya's skin becomes irreparably damaged, she will not recover. "We'll fix it," she assures him. John says they have one last chance, and should they wait. "What, so Noranti can tell us how to make a great salad?" D'Argo asks, "No. See plant, kill plant." Chiana walks along and spots Aeryn in a corridor, standing around watching a leak. Chiana points it out, and Aeryn tells her what it is and that it can linger in your bloodstream. "Never stopped you before," Chiana says as she seals it. "Yeah, well this time I'm pregnant." Chiana is surprised, and asks if she was before or after she left Moya. "Before." "Does Crichton know?" Chiana asks. Aeryn shakes her head. "Somebody else?" Chiana asks in surprise. "Possibly," Aeryn replies, adding that she only found out on the command carrier and hasn't had a chance to DNA test yet. "Your life is so much more interesting than mine," Chiana says. "Can I trust you?" Aeryn asks. "Yeah." "I don't want you to tell John," she says. "No way, never, never. That's, that's your speech." D'Argo is preparing to fire, so Moya won't feel a thing. John asks Sikozu if they've found anything, but she says nothing unexpected. The plant secretes an acid which dissolves metal which it then ingests. She mentions that the gravitational pull of the wormhole likely drove the plant to Moya. D'Argo initiates the firing sequence, as the pot Noranti is cooking the plant in bursts making her mutter "eat." D'Argo tells John something he's never put into words before, "Well, you know how I love shooting things!" John is not too sure, but decides not to spoil his fun. Just as they fire, Noranti shouts "Don't shoot the plant!" Sikozu comms them to hold their fire and not shoot the plant, but it's too late. John and D'Argo return to Moya, and Sikozu tells them that the plant eats much faster when attacked as a defense mechanism, it's eaten its way through Moya's hull already. John sees some roots and pulls them, causing large chunks of the ship to come apart with them, and revealing the infestation is spreading fast in the ships innards. Aeryn gives herself and D'Argo gas masks, while Chiana climbs down from a duct and says there's no way she's going back up there again, seemingly having been affected in some way. She says there's plant as far as she can see, and then gets hyper that the plant's acid has gotten on her, rubbing fiercely at her clothes; so Aeryn takes her away to try help her. D'Argo blames himself for the situation, but John points out that they all agreed to the plan so they all screwed up. The lights go down and Rygel pesters Pilot to find the problem. Chiana and D'Argo meet up in the corridor, where D'Argo says that he thinks the plant is spawning. "It's not the only one" Chiana says. "You're pregnant?!" D'Argo asks. "No, not me, Aeryn," she replies. D'Argo is surprised, but Chiana isn't finished. When D'Argo asks if John knows, she says yes, but he doesn't know that it might not be his. D'Argo mentions the John on Talyn, having the same DNA, but Chiana adds it might not be John Crichton's. "Well then, whose?" D'Argo asks. "Good question." D'Argo asks who told her, and she says Rygel. She asks him to swear that he won't say anything, but he just walks away. Noranti tells Sikozu that this Leviathan is in much pain; it's dying. "Leviathans are good, good things shouldn't have to die." Sikozu says that's why they have to work on this plant. Noranti doesn't know what to do, and Sikozu suggests a poison. Noranti says that she knows a lot of poisons. A frustrated Sikozu tries to get her to concentrate on a solution. In his cell, Scorpius notices something about the plant. Meanwhile, Chiana goes to Aeryn and says there's no plant in Moya's neural tissue. Aeryn tells Chiana that they have other nodes to check, but as Chiana goes to leave, Aeryn asks her to forget that they had the pregnancy conversation. Chiana worriedly says sure, but that Aeryn had to tell someone. "Yeah, umm, now I'm really regretting that I did," Aeryn says, "I may not even tell him." Chiana is surprised, but Aeryn says she can't tell him she doesn't know. Chiana agrees to forget, saying it's OK. John goes to Scorpius' cell to see what he wanted. Scorpius shows John that he can somehow repel the plant. Aeryn tells John that she has good news -- there's no plant in the neural cluster. John says that it must not like the toubray tissue, when suddenly explosions erupt around Aeryn. She climbs up, and finds Pilot apparently unconscious, severely drooling from the mouth. Then suddenly he starts convulsing. John and D'Argo hope that the plant is repelled by Scorpius' coolant rods. Sikozu explains to D'Argo that there's no metal in neural clusters but there is in the regulators -- when they jammed they exploded. Aeryn ties Scorpius down to the controls in Pilot's den, although he's annoyed at the restraints, since he wants to help in any way he can. Aeryn believes him, but the others don't. Scorpius manages to repel the plant, and elsewhere John also manages to use a rod to do so. Sikozu says she'll see how far she can dilute the remaining rods down. D'Argo tells John he knows Aeryn is pregnant -- Chiana told him, and Rygel told her. John is hurt that others have been told but not him yet. D'Argo tells him, "Aeryn isn't sure if the child is John Crichton's." "The thought had crossed my mind," John replies, and then asks what D'Argo thinks. "I think either way you're going to get hurt, so, err, look after yourself." Noranti tastes some poisons, to find out what is working specifically. "You defy the whole theory of natural selection," Sikozu tells her. Noranti laughs, and Sikozu tells her that this crew is trying to save them, and this ship, and if their plan fails. They need to find out what component of the coolant is working. D'Argo goes to command to see why Rygel isn't helping. D'Argo tells him that he's often insufferable, but it's not his fault. "I was captain," Rygel says, but D'Argo retorts that they can't avoid something they can't detect. He adds that Rygel should hate himself for other reasons, "like sulking while others are out there risking their lives." So, to pull himself together and do something to help the situation, not hinder it. John asks Pilot if they'll be OK in the fan room, and although phased he gives the OK. John asks Aeryn if she wants to talk. "I appreciate you waiting for this appropriate time and place," she says sarcastically. "Yeah, I got pretty good at waiting," he retorts. They position the buckets of thinned coolant rod substance under two fans. Rygel says that even the DRDs have given up -- the fungus is everywhere. John and Aeryn wait for the liquid to evaporate into the air stream. "You know we don't have a contingency plan," Aeryn points out. "This'll work. Unless that plant can mutate in 5 minutes what could go wrong?" John asks. Suddenly, as the plant creeps into the fan's turbine, it breaks it apart and it smashes to the ground, knocking over the buckets at the same time. John tells the others the liquid is lost down the drain; and then notices Aeryn on the floor next to him, bleeding. "Does it hurt? Where?" John asks. "Where it's bleeding," she says, slapping his hand away. Rygel asks when John's wormhole will open again, as they've drifted directly over its coordinates. Aeryn asks if D'Argo's ship could move Moya, but Scorpius says it's hardly worth the effort - this Leviathan is gone. D'Argo says it's worth the risk, and Sikozu says Noranti has isolated the compound. Noranti explains what it is, and Sikozu points out they have it -- it's within Moya's filter system. John instructs DRD "1812" to get the other DRDs to help, and asks Chiana if she's sure she wants to be here. She agrees, as her body reflects radiation. Aeryn says she'll stay and activated the DRDs simultaneously. "What about the radiation," John asks. "I can handle it," she replies. "What about the baby?" Aeryn rolls her eyes and spits "I'm going to kill her!" D'Argo asks for volunteers to take her place, and Rygel goes forth. D'Argo, along with Sikozu, Aeryn and Noranti leave Moya. John and Chiana go to stop a fan spinning, by blocking it with a pole. Scorpius instructs Pilot on what to do. "If this goes bad," Rygel says to Scorpy, "Please die first, so my last moment can be joyous." John starts flushing the mist through the ship, as Scorpius says the radiation makes him stronger. Rygel, swallowing down hard, starts regretting his jibe. D'Argo pushes Moya clear, as John counts down successfully to the resurgence of the wormhole. 1812 confirms the mist is spread, but as Rygel goes to ignite it, Pilot awakes shouting "Wormhole!" and holds Rygel back away from the controls. Sikozu says too much mist will cause an explosion. Rygel can't get to the controls, so Scorpius hacks off Pilot's arm to get him free. Rygel manages to hit the control, and the mist is ignited, and the plant is burnt up, finally destroyed. Chiana loses her grip on the pole and falls, and is dragged toward a vertical fan. John manages to grab her just in time but he's quickly loosing grip, so he screams at Rygel to shut off the fans. Rygel panics, unsure what to do, but manages to shut it down just ahead of time. Chiana stands up and her trousers are scuffed, so John laughs at her. An elated Rygel is self-congratulating his own efforts, saying he had done it. A scoffing Scorpius sits in the background thoroughly unimpressed, for it it wasn't for his help. Pilot announces the results of the voting for captaincy. Moya abstained, and Scorpius was not allowed to vote so therefore there were eight people participating altogether. There was one vote for Rygel--who clearly voted for himself, one vote for Aeryn, amazingly there was one vote for Scorpius-courtesy of Sikozu, one vote for the Divine Eternal--from Noranti, and four votes for their new captain. D'Argo! While John is in the fan room with the DRDs Aeryn approaches him to talk about the pregnancy. Aeryn asserts that she didn't want to tell him until she was sure and that she no longer sees a distinction between either Crichton. John in return shows a distaste over her not being aware of who the father was. She explains that military campaigns can last many cycles. Those born on a command carrier can retain an embryonic fetus for up to seven cycles. This could perhaps be from four cycles before she even met John, and only a surgeon can release the stasis so the baby can grow; when she left, she didn't even make it that far. John, still angered, says that he figures relationships are built on trust and that while he would easily put his life in her hands, he's more wary of doing the same with his heart. A saddened Aeryn asks what she can then now do, as she's prepared to do whatever necessary, whatever he needs, to put this right again. To regain his trust. John pulls away, stands up, and says "Come back when you get your story straight!", then leaves a now crushed Aeryn, with tears in her eyes, alone. + +Aeryn Sun stands next to her Prowler, landed on a planet. She has a flash of her telling a small child, who is messing around the Prowler, "Don't touch that!" The child continues, and begins to hum. Some townsfolk are wailing at Chiana, as she seems to be leaving, with Ka D'Argo following her. An alien priest tells her, "Banishment is lenient for your indiscretions." "Many indiscretions!" Chiana bites back, as people hurl things at her. "No wonder your men were begging for it!" she shouts. D'Argo tells her she's not helping, and adds that it's no wonder she gets thrown off every planet she lands on. Chiana says to an alien, E'Alet, that he's friends with the planet's leader, maybe she can appeal to him one on one. He tells her the Prefect has already rejected her petition, but bids her a safe journey. Chiana gets upset, but is pulled away. Back at the Prowler, the child continues to hum, while Aeryn has a flash of her striking the child. Meanwhile D'Argo tells Chiana that Moya is lying dormant in space, and this is the first planet in 20 that has any drinking water, and she is going to get them kicked off. "I didn't do anything," she protests. A woman is upset that an "outsider" had been with her son, and Chiana turns around. "Is he the cute one?" she asks, and then taunts the woman. D'Argo berates Chiana for continuing to provoke them, while Aeryn tells her to come over so she can be packed off in her Prowler. D'Argo is with a clan leader, Gaashah. "More than you know is at stake here!" he yells at D'Argo. D'Argo says he understands, but the man says no one does; "Unity of the clans is new, peace is new." He says even he knows that peace is too fragile to be endangered by "some indelicate whore," as Chiana flies overhead in the Prowler. John is with the Prefect, and assures him that Aeryn and Sikozu are "perfect ladies at all times." Aeryn comms him, as she's being led through woods by the child. John tells her that the Prefect has accepted their apology for Chiana's conduct and a generator, as Aeryn has a flash of Gaashah. The child giggles and leads her off. John tells her it's a good deal, allowing them all to stay on the planet. Aeryn is preoccupied, and tells him the comms are frelled and to call back later. "Seems a bit moody!" the Prefect says. "Man, you should've met her mother," John replies. Aeryn reaches the market, where D'Argo is talking with Gaashah. D'Argo says he can help him, but Gaashah says the less anyone sees of him and his friends, the better. Aeryn has a flash of Gaashah shot. John comms her to say he's talked to Rygel, and Moya is still out of commission. He asks how she's doing. "I'm getting a really bad bribe," she says. "Oh god, she's talking English!" John mutters. "Vibe, it's a really bad vibe," he tells her, sniffing more of Noranti's drug. As John continues, Aeryn has further flashes of Gaashah being shot. She tells John she'll get back to him, as she checks her pulse pistol, and looks up at the child who is eating something from a stall. Another flash; this time she sees half the market being shot down, and sees Gaashah being shot over and over. Chiana is talking to Gaashah, who will be Prefect soon. She tells him she could come back then, but he says that would be suicide for her and her friends. "This place is run by tight-asses!" she says, walking off. D'Argo asks her how she can be so selfish, with Moya floating dormant in space, and says this is the first planet in 20 that has any drinking water. They spar briefly, then D'Argo goes to talk with Gaashah. He puts a knife to D'Argo's throat, and asks for a reason not to kill him. "One stab, my clan is avenged, the leaders reassured; I am made Prefect," he says. D'Argo says they're going to leave the microt their Leviathan revives. Gaashah says that killing D'Argo would improve everything, as only criminals come to this part of space so there's probably a bounty on their heads. D'Argo says the Luxans overcame their violent past, but Gaashah says it's in his bones, what he knows. "More than you know is at stake here!" he proclaims, insisting that peace is new, and too fragile to be endangered by some indelicate whore, as Chiana leaves the planet in the Prowler, passing over them. D'Argo says no one on this planet gives a dren about Chiana, but Gaashah says the problem isn't simply her. "It's your son," D'Argo replies. Sikozu is recreating with Gaashah's son, Zerbat. Gaashah tells D'Argo that when the wars were ongoing, he traded his herd to send Zerbat off planet, where he'd be safe, and could learn other disciplines. D'Argo recognizes that the Prefect's son can't be seen as an outsider. All the other clans view Zerbat as corrupted by outside influences. "And then we bring Chiana," D'Argo says. Chiana returns to the planet in the Prowler, where she finds Zerbat and Sikozu recreating. In the market, Gaashah and D'Argo continue to talk, and D'Argo tastes some food, when another clan leader approaches. Gaashah says the food is tasty, but the other leader retorts that it's fit for a prefect, a flavor he may never know. As he walks away, Gaashah spits out the food, and tells D'Argo that if the clan leader acquires enough votes, he could be removed as Prefect for being unworthy, by being killed. Despite there being two hundred clans, the priest, Paroos, uses it as a negotiation tactic, and apparently his arguments can be compelling. As Aeryn is led in by the child, Gaashah tells D'Argo that his only risk is that his failure will signal that there's more to be gained from war than peace. "Let me help you," D'Argo says. "The less anyone sees of you and your friends, the better for me," Gaashah replies. D'Argo leaves, and comms John, saying he thinks they should leave. D'Argo says Gaashah respects him, and it'd help if he could show Gaashah that he has the crew more or less under control. Chiana interrupts Sikozu and Zerbat, and D'Argo hears her over the open comm. "They would stone you to death if I turned you in," Sikozu tells Chiana, who replies that she was banished for being with the locals, and Sikozu would probably be impaled for shacking up with their prince. Sikozu warns her not to tell anyone about this. D'Argo comes along and grabs Chiana telling her he wants to know why she's back when he put her on the Prowler himself. He asks violently if anyone else knows she's here. "Of course not, I'm just sneaking around like I always am," she replies. "Good. Turn around and sneak back to the ship," D'Argo says. Chiana storms off saying she thinks this captain thing has really gone to his head. D'Argo then tells Sikozu that Crichton wants her back on the transport pod now; the sooner she goes the sooner they'll all be able to come back. He tells Zerbat it's his father who needs him now. Suddenly, gunfire is heard, and D'Argo runs off through the woods. John, in the Prefect's room, is talking to Aeryn, telling her it's a good deal that allows them all to stay on the planet. She tells him the comms are frelled and to call her later. John tells the Prefect that he'll get going, since the Prefect has to leave soon to make room for the next one. The Prefect says the system of changing Prefect every half cycle is frightening. He says it takes a three-day festival to distract from the fact that someone from another clan is assuming power. It took him months of haggling thereafter to gain the slightest support. "Better than the clubs and machetes approach," John says. As Chiana moves through the woods, the priest, Paroos, spots her and says she returns seeking forgiveness. "Is it true what they say about priests?" Chiana asks, "That they give great religious experience?" "What I give is great consequence." John talks to D'Argo over the comms, with D'Argo saying he feels it's important the future Prefect can depend on him. John says Moya may not be ready yet, as Tormented Space has beaten the crap out of her. D'Argo says that Gaashah respects him, and it'd help if he could show that he has the crew under some sort of control, more or less. John comms Rygel, asking if Chiana's back yet, but Rygel says he didn't know she was coming. As John descends the stairs, he is grabbed by E'Alet, who says he's puzzled by offworlders. He says he has concerns about them, but John says that E'Alet's boss seems to think he's OK, so he lets John go. John comms Aeryn, who says she's getting a really bad "bribe." John corrects her, "Vibe, it's a really bad vibe." John says D'Argo may be right; cozying up to Gaashah may be the only solution. Aeryn says she'll get back to him, and checks her pulse pistol. D'Argo and John hear gunfire, and start running towards it. In the market, all the townspeople are being shot dead. As Gaashah is hit, D'Argo runs in screaming "no" but is also shot, and Aeryn is the perpetrator. Amidst the flames, the child crawls over to one of the dead bodies. John runs in to find everyone shot, followed by Sikozu and Zerbat. Sikozu checks D'Argo, while Zerbat goes to Gaashah, who is dead. Shortly after, D'Argo assures them that it was Aeryn; he knows who shot him. The Jabuka Clan Chief comes in, and his people strike John. The leader tells them to take the crews' weapons, and asks D'Argo where the assassin is. "I wouldn't tell you, even if I knew." The clan leader accuses them all of being assassins, when Paroos arrives. He says that the murderer can only be hunted on the order of the clan's next leader, in this case Gaashah's son, Zerbat. The Prefect arrives and asks what clan attacked. The Jabuka clan leader says that it was an outsider, and she escaped. "Find her. Kill her," orders the Prefect. The clan leader says that if she acted on behalf of anyone, she'll be tortured until she tells them. "The way the clans tortured the others?" Paroos asks. Before the crew arrived, two clan leaders were killed. John says he'll go and bring Aeryn back. "I will go," Zerbat insists, "I have the right to avenge my father, to see his killer brought to justice." Paroos says that is the law, and Zerbat says he'll go, and take John with him, as he'll lead him to her. First, they must perform the burial sacraments. As John and Zerbat are searching, John wonders if Gaashah was really the target. As Zerbat threatens to kill John, Sikozu comes along, who talks him out of it, saying John is the only person who can help them find Aeryn. John says they should split up. "So you can run?" Zerbat asks. "At this point you either trust me or you don't." Zerbat agrees, and he and Sikozu take one path leaving John to the other. As John ponders sniffing more of the drug, Aeryn whispers that she's behind him. She asks if she killed Gaashah. John confirms and asks why. "I have no idea," she replies. John joins her, and she explains that all she can remember thinking was "I can't stop myself." John asks about the others. "What others?" "D'Argo for one," John answers. Aeryn is surprised, and says there were no others, it was just Gaashah in one clean shot. John asks how much Chakan oil for "one clean shot," so she checks her pistol. She asks how many people she killed. "Seventeen," a voice answers; it's Paroos. He says people kill each other on this planet all the time, finding a way to kill Gaashah was finding a way to start a war. John says she has no reason to start a war. Paroos says he suspects she's being used, but he needs evidence. He says they must see to it that Aeryn remembers. "I aimed and I shot him," Aeryn recalls. "And?" Paroos asks. "And that's all I see." John says they're getting nowhere, while Paroos urges her to try again. She says it's all she says; all she remembers. "Then don't see, listen," Paroos tells her. She remembers the child being there, who Paroos assures her is still alive. She has the flash of striking the child, but then realizes that wasn't real; she never really hit him. John swats a bug on his neck, and asks, "Who cares?" Aeryn remembers that a bug bit her. "There are no bugs on this planet," Paroos insists. Aeryn remembers the shootings, and gets distressed. John has a flash of standing next to Aeryn and shooting Paroos. John gets up and tells Aeryn that he's got to leave now before there's another killing. "Me?" Paroos asks, as John hands Aeryn his gun and says he is the next assassin. John, Aeryn and Paroos are around some smoke, to keep the bugs and flashes away. John reassures Paroos they're both stabilized. Paroos hands John Winona, his gun, and says he got it peacefully, for the most part. As they prepare to leave, Zerbat arrives with Sikozu, and his gun aimed, saying no one will go anywhere, or should he gun Aeryn down like she did his father? Paroos tells Zerbat that Aeryn is not responsible for Gaashah's death. "She got bit by an insect that allowed her to be controlled," John explains. "We do not have insects on this planet," Zerbat insists. John then points out bug bites on his neck and Aeryn's arms. Paroos says that enemies of peace, those who want power, must have brought them here. Zerbat says it's not possible, but Sikozu asks who his father trusted. "Paroos, he always trusted Paroos." She asks if he trusts his father's judgment, which he does, as well as Sikozu's. Paroos says the insects are from off world, so essentially they're looking for an offworlder. The Prefect is manhandling Chiana, while he berates E'Alet, as his insects failed. E'Alet says these offworlders are difficult. He adds that the clansmen's hatred is easy to exploit, but these outsiders have no reason kill. He says he's not being paid enough, and wants double. When he confirms that will pay for the extra bugs to eliminate the outsiders, the Prefect agrees. As E'Alet creates the bugs, which come out from the sides of his head, Chiana slows things down to get a good look at their creation. With her blinded, E'Alet hits Chiana and leaves. John and Aeryn are walking through the woods while fending off more bugs, and they are both sure they can do this. Zerbat and Sikozu go to a camp and free D'Argo. Chiana comms John and says she's in the palace, blind. She warns them that the bugs are coming for them, and says the hive is in E'Alet's head. On their way up the stairs, John and Aeryn stop and point their guns at each other. They have flashes of shooting each other, but continue up. As Aeryn helps her up, Chiana says she's been blind too long and it's definitely not going to go away. More bugs start harassing John and Aeryn, while Chiana says they don't bite her. E'Alet enters and shoots at John, who jumps out the way. Both John and Aeryn shoot him, and more bugs are released. He's still alive. "Shoot him then," Aeryn says. "You shoot him," John replies. She says she can't, but neither can John, and again they turn their guns on each other. "Well then, we have a problem," Aeryn announces. John tells her to fight it, but she is. They again have flashes of shooting each other, but when both do shoot they miss. "I'm not sure I have the strength to miss next time," Aeryn says. "I think I'm just a bad shot," John retorts. "You know I really thought the coin toss ended badly," John says. "It did." As they are about to shoot, D'Argo, Sikozu and Zerbat run in, with D'Argo jumping John and Chiana jumping Aeryn. As both continue to struggle to fight the bugs, John tells D'Argo to just knock him out. E'Alet wakes up, but before he can shoot, Paroos gets him from behind and kills him. The Prefect enters, saying it's excellent that they've extinguished this threat to peace. Chiana calls him a liar, saying he hired E'Alet, but he asks if the clans will believe a banished outsider. "You ordered my father's death so there'd be war," Zerbat pronounces. "Welcome home, boy," the Prefect laughs, as Zerbat goes for his gun. Paroos tries to talk him out of it, asking if this is what his father would've wanted, but Zerbat aims at the Prefect anyway. He tells the Prefect he knows that his treachery would mean the death of every man, woman and child in his clan, but he can die the noble hero. "I will not be judged by you or your pitiful council," the Prefect responds, and purposely falls out of the castle to his death. D'Argo tells Zerbat, "You made your father proud." Sikozu and Zerbat stand, watching the castle burn. She tells him that making the destruction of the castle his first order as Prefect was extremely bold. He says that a leader belongs with his people not above them, and Sikozu tells him he sounds like his father. He asks her to stay with him, and she says she would love nothing more than to be off that Leviathan, and he tells her he's starting to care about her. "Good, but you're right, a leader belongs with his people," Sikozu replies, as she leaves. Chiana is with Paroos, telling him it's the longest her blindness has ever lasted. "The stop using the vision, twizit," he tells her. He tells her he should've let the bugs eat her hide, but she takes that as a blessing. Sikozu comes to collect her, telling her Moya and Pilot are waiting. Aeryn is standing by the buried bodies of the dead, and John, who was watching her, approaches her and strokes her head in comfort. + +With Ka D'Argo's ship still towing John's module, Rygel wonders how much longer; they have yet to spot Moya. D'Argo soon sees her in the distance, and everyone is happy to see her again after months away. "Moya looks beautiful" D'Argo tells Pilot. Pilot says they're eager to have the crew back. John asks if they're OK; "We are well" Pilot replies. "Pilot knows, knows what happened!" Noranti says enthusiastically. When questioned on where they've been, Pilot says they stopped at Arnessk, then searched for the crew at the burial ground. "Back it up a second" John says, "Moya was sucked down a wormhole and spat out again. What happened in the middle?" "My memory is unclear" Pilot says, "We were not harmed, merely examined." He says he doesn't know who by, and he remembers nothing more of importance. Noranti finds this odd, since Pilot told her he remembered. "Something's very wrong," she says. Chiana wonders if it's a trap, but John and D'Argo say the only way to find out is to walk right into it. John steps off the ship first, seeing a shadowy figure in the distance. It steps into the light -- it's Aeryn! "You've come back!" John says, but she is visibly upset. "Everything's going to be alright" John ensures her, as she walks towards him. As they go to hug, she falls to the floor, and says she's got heat delirium. "But you have to promise me something" Aeryn insists, "You have to promise that you will not kill him." "Won't kill who?" "He found me, he saved my life." "Who saved your life?" John asks. "I did," and out steps Scorpius. John aims his gun, saying Scorpius is dead, he saw him buried. Scorpius says that he's put Aeryn in this coolant suit to stabilize her fever, and tells Aeryn that she must return to the coolant room to resume full treatment. John calls D'Argo out, but Aeryn insists he's not a threat. As the others, surprised at both Aeryn and Scorpius being aboard, come out with weapons ready, Aeryn climbs to her feet and stands between them and Scorpius. "I gave my word that he would not be harmed. Put your weapons down," she insists, adding that she'll leave Moya if they don't. Chiana asks what he wants. Aeryn replies, "He wants asylum." John can't believe it, but Scorpius wants him to allow Aeryn to return to the chamber, then they can talk. Chiana goes to help Aeryn, who forces John to promise that he will not harm Scorpius. John and D'Argo move around Scorpius cautiously. "What did you do to her?" John asks. "I saved her," Scorpius says. She was alone and wounded, adrift in a Prowler in an early stage of heat delirium. D'Argo asks, "How did you find her?" "I was looking for all of you." John tells Scorpius he'll never get the wormhole tech from him, but Scorpius reminds him that he couldn't use it even if he had it. "I merely want to safeguard it," Scorpius says, "and hope that when the inevitable Scarran bloodbath begins, you make the appropriate choices." D'Argo doesn't believe it, and John wonders what it will take to keep Scorpius in his grave. D'Argo suggests they cut off his head, since that worked for Durka. Into John's mind we go, where Harvey tries to convince him to kill Scorpius, originally saying Scorpius' plan was survival, but then that it's to steal what is in John's head. Rygel has prepared Scorpius' room, including teasingly smashing several coolant rods on the floor; John stops him since Aeryn now needs them too. John ensures that there are DRDs watching at all times, and they leave him locked up. Sikozu tells Pilot that the consoles need repairs. Pilot asks if they've been introduced, so she says her name and then tells him that command functions are their top priority, and to send DRDs immediately. Chiana overhears and tells Pilot to ignore her, and isn't too surprised to see she's been here only a few arns and is already trying to run the ship. "Someone has to" Sikozu tells her, but Chiana says that someone is not her, and reminds her that she's cargo, baggage, and that they haven't forgotten that she was in the grave with Scorpius. She pins Sikozu up against the wall and asks if she's working for Scorpius. John is blaming himself for the situation, and agrees to see Aeryn. She's sitting on a bed, in a full Scorpius-style coolant suit, helmet and all. As John approaches, she tells him, "I'm really sorry." "For what?" "For everything." This is not how she pictured coming back. When John asks how she caught the heat delirium, she says that she can't talk to him about that. "I really want to tell you, but I can't, and we need to leave it at that." John notices it's cold, and asks how they found this room; Scorpius did. John asks if it was Scorpius who gave her the flu too, but Aeryn is adamant "He didn't, and I need you, I want you to believe that." "You make it very difficult" replies a frustrated John. Pilot suddenly announces that a massive ship is approaching fast, and they can't starburst because of it's great mass being too close. A loud noise overrides the comms, and a man calling himself Ullom addresses the ship, all her crew, including the assassin Aeryn Sun. He claims he induced her heat delirium, and only he can save her. He says that he'll give them the antidote as soon as Aeryn gives them the names of her employers and fellow assassins. She can't tell John anything as she gave her word, but again says that Scorpius was not involved -- he took advantage of a situation. John asks if she's an assassin, but she doesn't reply. John tells her he needs something, and asks if she believes he has the only cure, to which she nods. John asks what he's supposed to say to him. "If you love me, you'll say nothing." John tells Rygel his plan; Rygel will talk Ullom into letting him and D'Argo aboard under the pretense of a truce, and turn it around on him. Rygel says that if he had half an arn with Aeryn, he could get the names, but he'll do it their way first. Cut to the command carrier, where a Peacekeeper, Ponara, shows Braca a missile that, on impact with a Leviathan, will destroy its biologics, killing the Leviathan but not affecting the people aboard. But she wants a Prowler to carry it, although the pilot, Rinlo, says a missile this big belongs on a Marauder. She says that a Marauder would be detected quickly; only a Prowler could fly close enough to get a lock. The pilot is adamant that a Prowler couldn't fly steady enough, but she says a skilled pilot could. Braca tells them to run more simulations, and on his way out Grayza calls him over. "What sort of leadership was that?" she asks. He says this is an unproven weapon; it needs studies. "I don't want studies, Captain, I want Crichton." John and D'Argo take a transport to Ullom's ship, unarmed. Ullom is holding the antidote, and D'Argo tries to tongue him but it's just a hologram. He reappears, and doesn't care what they want. He wants the names of those who worked with Aeryn. They say they don't know, so Ullom asks if they played a part in her "monstrous act." Apparently, Aeryn and two others invaded his home world, shot their way in to the governing chambers and assassinated their Prime Lukythian. "You know for a fact it was her?" John asks. Ullom says they managed to dose the killers with a contagion that induces heat delirium before they escaped. "Her illness should be all the obvious proof you need," he says. Chiana checks Aeryn's coolant rod, and thinks it should be blue. Scorpius tells her over the comm. to put it back and change it. Noranti offers something to help Aeryn sleep deeply, and Chiana leaves to get a new rod. As Noranti goes to give her substance to Aeryn, Aeryn suddenly knocks it up in her face, causing her to instead fall to the floor unconscious. Aeryn gets up and throws the coolant helmet on the floor, and goes to command where she abruptly throws Sikozu out. Ullom tells John he might want to tell Aeryn that if she cooperated, he'd have no reason to hunt the other assassins. Aeryn appears on the screen, and says that threatening her friends won't help him, so to send them back home and let Moya go. "I am breaking this stalemate," she says, and puts a pulse pistol to her head. "Goodbye John" she adds, as the others scream to get help. Fortunately, Rygel headbutts her from behind, knocking her to the floor. Ullom tells John that after a suicide attempt he's been too patient, and he could have his soldiers board Moya at any moment. "Go ahead, bring 'em on!" is John's response. They say Aeryn will never be taken alive, "And I need her more than you do," John says, "So back off and we'll get your names." Sikozu visits Scorpius, and surprisingly speaks in 'Leviathan dialect', switching off the guard DRD's. He asks what else she can speak, Scarran perhaps? Sikozu asks why he saved her life on Arnessk. "Your death would serve no purpose, but your life might still" Scorpius responds. She says it hasn't thus far, and now she is blamed for Scorpius being here. "How did you survive?". "Foresight, and preparation," he says, and again reiterates he's here to safeguard John, "amongst other things." John goes to Aeryn, who tells him not to be upset; death is nothing to fear. John hallucinates a 'Scorpius-y-fied' Aeryn asking, "why won't you allow her to die? Soon enough, you'll wish you had." John says they'll get the antidote, but 'Aeryn-Scorpius' says he's still in denial, and asks why he won't just let her go. The real Aeryn meanwhile says he has no right to do this; Ullom just wants her. "Not as much as I do!" John replies. She says she made promises and asks if that means anything to him. John asks if life means anything to her, and asks when she became an assassin. "When I found a cause that required it," she answers. She still won't tell anything, other than she thinks it was worth dying for ! On the command carrier, recon has found a Leviathan they think is Moya. Grayza asks Braca for recommendations, and he says he will fly a Prowler with this missile. When the pilot questions him, Braca says it's obvious he's convinced the mission will fail so he will replace him instead, dismissing him. An impressed Grayza offers a "Good hunting, Captain", as Braca leaves. Harvey tells John that he has to stay away from Scorpius, but John goes anyway. He finds Sikozu with him, and accuses her of being on Scorpius' team all along. She has in fact helped Scorpius concoct a device that will take the neural clone from John's mind. Scorpius says that he can help him, "Simply clear your mind and I will." A doubtful John continues pointing his gun at Scorpius, who reminds him that he saved Aeryn's life while the clone killed her. A wary Harvey tries to convince him otherwise, and says he'll get back in the dumpster. "That's not good enough" John says. He tells Harvey that this is a private place, he doesn't belong here. "I've been your ally John, and your friend," he says. "It's time for you to go" John replies. He shakily hands over his gun to Sikozu, wary that Harvey might cause him to break his promise to Aeryn, by making him shoot. Meanwhile Harvey says "your mind is all chocolate & ice-creama, and perfume & girrrls", and asks how he could take this from him. "You're not real" John says. "I'm real to you, to myself," Harvey replies, but John insists he come sit in the chair. Harvey does so, and says "well, goodbye then John - I will miss you." Suddenly Scorpius stabs the device in John's neck. Harvey's final words are "without hesitation" and he is gone. After a few seconds recovering, a relieved and much pleased John confirms Harvey has indeed gone. Then John asks what Scorpius can further offer, "what can he do now". He tells John that in less than three arns a Prowler will fire a missile, killing Moya and everyone on her. "If you don't trust me now, we're all as good as dead". Scorpius tells John that once locked on this type of missile can follow even through starburst. John won't leave without a cure for Aeryn, but Sikozu has a theory about the other ship. The mass readings lead her to believe it's a chameleon, a projection; probably with only a tiny crew of four or five at most. John likes those odds. Scorpius volunteers, but John refuses, and not to argue. But says Sikozu is coming with them, "we may need a nerd". Scorpius says they now have less than two arns before the Prowler's in range. "How did you learn that?" John asks. "I have a spy aboard the command carrier." A not surprised John tells Sikozu that's why he has such a problem trusting. John, D'Argo, Sikozu, and Aeryn go over to Ullom's ship. John tells Ullom that Aeryn will talk, but her condition is worsening -- she needs the antidote now. Meanwhile Braca is well on his way with the missile. The crew board Ullom's ship, and John gets him to inject the antidote. John and D'Argo then turn on Ullom's men, and knock the real ones out. Ullom is still a hologram though, and seals the room from outside. Aeryn begins to recover, and she tells Ullom to come out and face her unless he's a coward. He says he faced her once before, but she shot him and left him for dead. "You killed so many that day," he adds. She tells him that his leader had more slaughtered in one day than she could in a lifetime, so if asked, she'd do it again, and again, and for free. "I wasn't hired to kill him," she says. The real Ullom steps out from a chamber and shoots at her, but she's protected by the Tarkan shield belt, John had insisted she'd wear. When an impressed Aeryn asks again what that belt was, he replies that "it, was the best part of the plan". John returns fire and Ullom's life-support system takes damage. Sikozu grabs his control orb, and John tells her to run the ship with it. She reluctantly agrees to attempt it and luckily fast gets the hang of it, much to her glee. Pilot tells everyone that they're too late to get back before the missile is fired, as Sikozu gets the hatch open. D'Argo takes Aeryn back to the pod, while Sikozu and Scorpius tell John that the missile locks on to Moya's pulse. Pilot can shut it down, but only through a full biological shutdown, which Moya can only survive for 800 microts. John tells Sikozu to create a decoy with this ship's chameleon abilities, and although she doesn't think she can, she agrees to try. Braca comes into range with the missile. Ullom tells John that he's finished what Aeryn began. Sikozu gets the decoy working, just as Braca begins his scan. Moya is shut down, and Braca reads two Leviathans on scan. They are fooled by the decoy, thinking the 'dead' Moya is a decoy." Braca fires the missile on the live one, locking on to the real decoy. A while later Pilot just manages to get Moya resuscitated, much to everyone's panic. They starburst, as the other ship is destroyed by the missile. Braca reports that the dead Leviathan is moving, and relieves the Peacekeeper that mistook the target of her duties. Grayza takes over, and tells a now terrified officer to report to the Aurora chamber. "Just take a seat," she says, "I'll be with you shortly." John congratulates Scorpius on making it through the day. He has two questions. "Did you do anything at all to Aeryn?" "No, I have not harmed her, in any way," he replies. "Two. On the Carrier, you said you knew where Earth was. Is that true? Do you?" John asks. "I do." "Anyone else?" Scorpius says no, he purged all records; the knowledge exists only in his mind. "You can use it to get home," Scorpius says, "Or you can safely eradicate it, by killing me. Again the choice is yours." Chiana tells Pilot it is great to see him and Moya again, "it almost feels like coming home." Pilot is equally happy to see everyone, with the exception of Sikozu. "I now miss Jool more than ever," he says. Chiana tells him that if Sikozu ever speaks to him like that again, gives him any lip, he can drop her in the bat dren. "Nobody should tell you what to do" Chiana says. "Yet everybody does" Pilot replies. He says that they can't serve so many masters at once. "If we have one request, is ask you to choose one spokesperson," he says, "A single voice for us to follow." Chiana says she'll tell the others, and they'll take a vote or something. John is on command, and Aeryn joins him. "Hi," she says, "I'd like to stay". John says he's sure Moya would be happy to hear that. She says she also wants to help him keep an eye on Scorpius. "I want to be here," she adds. John asks if she has any other oaths or silences, and she shakes her head with a tentative smile. Awkwardly he asks, "So, you could tell me if you were pregnant?" Her face changes, but she stays silent. Disappointed, he leaves her, alone. + +Moya docks at a Scarran border station, where three other vehicles are present. One is their own transport; Sikozu had gone on ahead, blending in with the other Kalish aboard. John is masquerading as a Peacekeeper. Scorpius comes in and tells them that all vessels on route to Katratzi must stop for inspection and quarantine, which takes five solar days. Any vessel lacking the proper security code beacon will be instantly destroyed on site. Chiana reassures John that they'll get Aeryn back. An inspection party arrives, and Scorpius tells Pilot to let them dock. He is masquerading as "Captain Wentrask," a Scarran spy. Dr. Trayso Talnell introduces himself as Chief Medical Officer on the station. Scorpius refers to him as another Kalish functionary. They are checking for contraband and contaminants, when he spots John. "A Peacekeeper?" he asks. "How remarkably perceptive," Scorpius replies. Trayso asks how he came to have a Peacekeeper on board, and tells Scorpius that he will answer, or be refused entry into Scarran space. Scorpius informs him that the Peacekeeper is a spy for the Scarrans, and they have a Nebari and Hynerian on board, who are also spies. He ensures Trayso that the Hierarchy would not look kindly on a Kalish who obstructs their delivery. John asks about food on the station, and is told of the station commons. As he is about to leave, Trayso tells him that weapons are not permitted on the station, and the sentinels are programmed to shoot and kill any armed visitors, so John locks away his gun and asks DRD "1812" to keep an eye on it. On the station, Sikozu is with a young Kalish male, and Chiana and Rygel watch on. Rygel mentions how they were smart to send Sikozu ahead, since the Kalish run things around here, but Scorpius interjects, saying that they are a conquered species and serve the Scarrans to survive. Sikozu tells Karohm that she envies his stable position running the station, compared to her life roaming Tormented Space. He says it's boring, and goes back to work, agreeing to meet later. Sikozu meets John at the refreshment machine, where he asks if she has any information. As it turns out, she has a very valuable piece of information. Aeryn is here! More specifically, she is on a Scarran freighter that is docked, but the freighter has finished its quarantine and is leaving in half an arn. The nurse Vreena is giving Aeryn drugs to keep her docile, and says that she could make things so much easier for Aeryn, if only she'd trust her. John informs Scorpius, Rygel, and Chiana that they have half an arn, and suggests storming the station. Scorpius sees the flaw, since they'd be killed by the station's sentinels if they carried weapons. John says that Ka D'Argo and Noranti are hanging back in Lo'La, but Scorpius says that should D'Argo's ship attack the station, a fleet of warships would be dispatched after them. Regardless, everyone agrees that they have to act now as they have a far greater chance of rescuing Aeryn here than at an heavily armed Katratzi base; however half an arn isn't enough time to even formulate a workable plan let alone carry it out. The freighter needs to be stopped from leaving, and Rygel has a plan. He asks for all the food, and tells them to get him more. John retorts it's hardly the time for him to be thinking of more food now. But Rygel just stuffs his face with everything in sight. Jenek and his Charrid escort enter, and Scorpius greets him. Jenek sends his Charrid away, and Scorpius introduces himself. He says his mission is secret, and gives a Scarran proof code. Jenek recognizes it as from the Ministry of Dissimulation, and says Scorpius has little to fear from him. He says he is Jenek in command of a freighter, "You have your mission, and I have mine." "As it should be," Scorpius says, before walking away. The Charrid returns, commenting on Scorpius being a half-breed. Jenek is not concerned, and tells the Charrid to ready their ship to leave. Aeryn hallucinates John telling her she's doing great, and the nurse asks her why she is making it difficult for herself. "There's no point fighting. You know that," she assures Aeryn. The nurse enters the commons, and John recognizes her, telling Chiana that Sikozu thinks she's a nurse from the freighter. Rygel says he'll be able to fool her, and throws up a river of lime-green puke everywhere, as a small crowd looks on in disgust. Trayso arrives on the scene quickly, asking Rygel if he's had an emesis of this severity before. Rygel says once, a touch of dermafollica being the cause. "But, that's a highly contagious disease," Trayso exclaims somewhat in panic. Rygel assures Trayso that he was told it was dormant, but nevertheless, Trayso orders a lockdown of the station until further notice, ordering all vessels to be anchored to their docking ports. Jenek protests that they can't be kept here, but Trayso assures him that they must, according to the quarantine policy of his Hierarchy. Jenek asks if he has evidence that the Hynerian poses a risk; he doesn't, but he must err on the side of caution. He is unfamiliar with Hynerian dermaphollica but they're having details transmitted from Simstef. Karohm has also sent out a request for all doctors or healers in the area with any knowledge of the disease. Trayso says it's not procedure, but under the circumstances, a very good idea. He turns to Sikozu and covertly thanks her for suggesting it. Chiana is chatting to a male, when the healer arrives. Trayso introduces himself, as does the healer -- Utu-Noranti Pralatong, alleviator and healer. She also introduces D'Argo, her personal assistant. As they go forward, Trayso questions her having a Luxan assistant, but she says they make fine bodyguards, good pilots and superlative lovers. Trayso is handed data from Simstef, and after looking over it, he tells Noranti they brought her here for nothing -- it isn't dermafollica at all, as it's been arns and he's not exhibiting signs of skin sloughing. She says that it's too soon to tell, as the virus causing the disease is very hard to detect. Trayso says that none of the other symptoms are there either, so unless they show within an arn, he can safely lift lockdown. Noranti goes to examine Rygel, and asks if he genuinely had dermafollica. Rygel confirms he did, and it very nearly killed him, he complains bitterly. Noranti then feeds him some more herbs. Noranti returns to D'Argo in the commons, who is watching Chiana with the male. She tells him that there is no news yet, and D'Argo goes over to Chiana. "Hey, Nebari girl, how about I buy you a drink?" he asks. The male remarks that he was here first, but D'Argo asks bluntly, "Your point?" Feeling outmatched the male gets up and leaves, and Chiana and D'Argo touch heads lovingly. D'Argo tells her that Rygel's scam seems to be working. They knew because one of the voices on the distress transmission was Sikozu's, so they played along. Trayso tells Noranti that it seems her caution was justified; Rygel's skin is now sloughing, so the lockdown will remain in effect. Scorpius and his crew, Jenek, Noranti, and Trayso discuss the disease. Scorpius asks how contagious it is. Noranti tells him that it can affect non-Hynerians, and those it does, it kills without warning. John says that he's going to lock himself in an airlock, but Noranti says it's too late for that -- this virus is so pervasive that this station, and any attached vessels, have already been exposed. She can attempt to concoct a cure, but her ship is under stocked. She asks if any of them have any supplies, but Jenek is quick to say that no one may board his vessel. Scorpius offers his Leviathan for her use, and tells Chiana and John to escort her. As they board Moya, John tells Noranti that she did a good job in scamming them. "I couldn't scam Trayso," Noranti replies. "But you did," Chiana says, "He believes Rygel's sick." Noranti says that's because she made Rygel sick -- she reactivated the dormant dermafollica in his system. She hopes she can deactivate it, or he dies. Noranti tells John that Rygel has plenty of time if she's not disturbed, and she's sure she can make a cure. John asks if this variety is contagious, but Noranti says she'll fix it. John is furious that Noranti has infected them all with a deadly disease but Noranti counters that she only exposed them, not infected them. Nebari and Scarrans are immune however Sebaceans and Kalish are not. Chiana takes her to task because she could kill Aeryn before they even save her, but Noranti bites back telling her not to worry, that she will fix it! She turns to John and tells him the simple truth. if she hadn't reactivated the disease then the lockdown would have been lifted and Aeryn would have been on her way to Katratzi. Jenek tells Trayso that he has a patient he must protect, but Trayso says the passenger has already been exposed; they all have. Jenek tells him that the facility on Katratzi is more likely to have a cure. Trayso asks if he would expose them too, but Jenek points out that Scarrans are immune to this disease. Trayso says that Kalish are not, and he won't be responsible for loosing a virus that could prove catastrophic to his people. Karohm tells them that the healer has requested they allow her to move the patient to the Leviathan, since it's easier to take tissue samples that way. Jenek questions removing him from isolation, but Trayso says that given the virus' pervasiveness, isolation is pointless, and signals Karohm to allow it. On Moya, Rygel screams at Noranti, calling her a madwoman and pestilence. She tells him he can shout at her later, and continues to work on the cure. Scorpius tells John that Noranti's is the best possible course, as it's bought them time. John says that someone needs to get on the freighter, and Sikozu's schematics won't get Aeryn's location, her condition or tell them how many guards there are, so he's going in. He adds that Jenek is not the only one with access. John enters the commons and spots the nurse. He tells her that he can't remember the last time he saw a Sebacean woman, "It's got to be at least half a cycle." "So?" she asks. He tells her it's a long time without companionship; he doesn't do aliens. "Well, I don't do Peacekeepers," she retorts. He puts something up to his mouth, and she asks what it is. He says it's the Sebacean cure for dermafollica. He says she's a medical worker, and he could let her analyze it. He gets up to leave, but she asks where he got it. "Sorry, I don't kiss and tell," John says, but assures her that she won't get it anywhere else. She says that Hynerian dermafollica rarely infects Sebaceans, but he says that when it does, they die instantly. He doesn't like those odds. And all he wants is to share. The nurse takes John aboard the freighter, and she sets up her equipment. John notices the spare bunks. She tells him cure now, then fun later, and takes the cure for analysis. She says that there's only enough for the two of them, asking if there's more. "No, why?" John asks. She tells him that another Sebacean needs treatment -- Aeryn, who is in the same room. John hits the nurse and tries to wake Aeryn. She pushes him away as her tries to unbind her, thinking it's a hallucination. A Charrid comes up behind him, telling him to leave her alone. John says the Scarran Hierarchy wouldn't want the package delivered damaged, but as John attempts to go for him the Charrid knocks him out anyway. The nurse and the Charrid are present in a room where Jenek is heat-probing John. John tells Jenek that the cure was a fake, and he was looking for a Sebacean woman. The nurse says that John attacked her and attempted to release one of the patients. "No offense, but she's sexier than you are," John says. Jenek asks what he'd have done had he been successful. "Taken her back to my ship, frelled her, and made babies." Scorpius walks in, asking what Jenek is doing with his Peacekeeper. Jenek tells him that the Peacekeeper was aboard his ship, attempting to recreate. "Is this true?" Scorpius asks. John says it is, more or less. Scorpius tells Jenek authoritatively that he will deal with John, and Jenek and his people leave. Scorpius asks how he lied to Jenek's heat probe, asking if it was Katoya's training. "Ha! Nah, I told him the truth. Just not the whole truth," John says, as he uses Scorpius to climb to his feet. John tells him that Aeryn is there, and Scorpius says that Sikozu is gathering information that will help them put together a rescue plan. "We will free Officer Sun," he says. Sikozu hands Karohm data from the Rosrob Center on dermafollica, but it isn't much. He still can't get a response from some Diagnosans on Coldjen. Sikozu suggests that he get some rest, as she can monitor communications for him. Noranti feeds Rygel an antidote that will boost his Hynerian antibodies and clear him of the disease. Unfortunately, it won't cure anyone else. No one else has contracted the sickness yet, and they may not, but there's always a chance. Rygel appears to pass out, and Noranti checks on him, afraid perhaps she's just killed him instead. Chiana spots her male friend head down on the table in the commons. She asks if he's OK, as Trayso realizes that they may have another victim, and takes Karohm with him. Chiana calls for somebody to get the Healer. On Moya, Trayso tells Noranti that a Kalish fell victim to the dermafollica, and Captain Jenek has requested her presence aboard his vessel. She tells him she must find the remedy, and he may come to Moya, but Trayso insists she go to him. Scorpius tells Jenek that the Healer needs more resources than are available to her, asking if there's anything aboard his vessel that can assist. He tells Jenek to realize they have a common problem, but when Trayso signals Jenek, he tells Scorpius he will solve his own problems. On Moya, Sikozu tells Chiana, D'Argo, and Rygel, on Command that the freighter is tied to the station's power grid as well. She can force a power surge from station command, that will knock out the lights and the Scarran DRDs. Sikozu adds that they will only have about 30 microts until emergency overrides activate. She says that she thinks she's worked out how to bypass the docking locks, so Moya can get away. Chiana asks what she's been doing with Karohm all this time, but John asks, "What about the window stickers this joint's supposed to give out?" D'Argo says they'll need the security beacons. "If we rescue Aeryn--" Sikozu begins. "Don't say 'if'," Chiana says. "I'm sorry. Yes. When we rescue Aeryn, we simply starburst away from Scarran space," Sikozu concludes. "What if we starburst deeper into Scarran space?" D'Argo asks. John mentions that the freighter could take off with Aeryn. "If the freighter escapes, then we abandon all hope," Sikozu says. "We abandon all hope of leading long and prosperous lives and we follow the freighter," John surmises, adding, "She's still learning." Noranti is brought to the freighter, where Trayso tells her she will find a cure. Jenek tells the nurse to assist them, but on checking her, she is dead from dermafollica. Noranti checks Aeryn, saying she doesn't appear to be infected. She thinks she can cure her if she is given time. Jenek tells Noranti that the female is pregnant, and her fetus must be saved. "Is there a suitable recipient for transplant?" he asks. Noranti objects, saying that even if there were, it wouldn't do any good -- all the females here are equally at risk. "What about the Nebari girl?" Trayso asks. Jenek orders his Charrids to take a transport pod and board Moya from the outside, to get Chiana. Chiana finds some Charrids in a corridor, and despite her best attempts to fight back, she is eventually overpowered. In Pilot's den, Sikozu asks him why he just let them take Chiana by force. He says he was unaware until it was too late to prevent it. Scorpius tells her that recriminations can wait. Aeryn is struggling, saying they can't do this. Noranti says that they won't find Chiana, but she is immediately brought in, struggling. Noranti tells Jenek that the patient is weak because she was drugged, and she may die, but all he cares about is the survival of the fetus. He orders them to proceed, and four sharp pipes extending from the table are inserted into Aeryn's body, as she screams in overwhelming pain. Noranti goes to give her something to ease the pain, but Trayso sends her to Chiana instead. Trayso injects Chiana, commenting that she is strong and will make an excellent host. Jenek tells Trayso that if she doesn't, they will die. Karohm comms Jenek, telling him that Captain Wentrask demands an urgent word. Jenek meets with Scorpius, who tells him that he requires his cooperation. "I know that your prisoner is the Peacekeeper Aeryn Sun, and that you are taking her to Katratzi, for Minister Ahkna. I also know that if my mission fails, your mission becomes irrelevant, as do you." "Continue," Jenek tells him. Sikozu enters station command, and Karohm is not there. As she touches the controls, Karohm appears, aiming his gun at her. He tells her that someone has been downloading the station codes and schematics, and it had to be her. Noranti tells Trayso that this procedure will not succeed -- it'll kill them both and the fetus as well. Trayso is adamant that they have to try. Meanwhile, John and D'Argo are preparing on Moya, wondering why the lights aren't out yet. Trayso tells Noranti that the procedure's success relies of the swift transfer of the fetus. Therefore, they should open both the subjects simultaneously. D'Argo goes to check out what is happening. Sikozu tells Karohm of two, maybe three females being held against their will on the Scarran freighter. They pose the Scarrans no threat, and their imprisonment is unjust. Karohm believes her, but won't help her. "I'll lock you up," he says, when D'Argo comes in and tongues him, asking, "How wrong was he?" He tells Sikozu to do what she said she was going to do. Noranti tells Trayso that the patient's body is overstressed, and so the fetus will be debilitated. She thinks they should let her regain her equilibrium, but Trayso tells her they don't have time. Scorpius tells Jenek that he doesn't realize that Ahkna's only interest in her prisoner is as a means to the possible information that John Crichton possesses, and his Peacekeeper defector can give them John Crichton himself. "Now, which mission do you think is more vital?" Scorpius asks. Sikozu unlocks the docking ports on Moya, D'Argo's ship and the transport pod, and D'Argo fins the security beacons. Noranti argues with Trayso, but the lights go out, and John runs off Moya. "Show time." John kills some Charrids and reaches the freighter. Trayso threatens to kill Aeryn, but Noranti tells him that if she dies, Jenek will burn him anyway, so shoot. John tells him that Kalish are supposed to be smart and asks who he thinks he'll believe. John shoots Trayso, not killing him, because his body count is already too high. John goes to Aeryn, and after a lingering look, they release her. Jenek tells his Charrid to check their ship, and Scorpius says he must check his. Jenek tells him to stay here. Sikozu tells D'Argo that she's almost done, but wants to jam the docking ports so the freighter won't be able to break free and follow them. With D'Argo's back turned, she burns a panel with what looks like a heat probe. D'Argo asks how she did it, and she says she cross-coupled the emergency bypass conduits. The Charrid blocks John's and the crew's escape. John tells him that security is tight for visitors, so they shouldn't be carrying weapons. The lights come on, and a sentinel shoots the Charrid. D'Argo and Sikozu come up behind them, and Noranti gets D'Argo to carry Chiana. Jenek calls for Ralnaht, but receives no answer. He reaches for Scorpius, and they struggle with each other. The crew return to Moya, while Scorpius is eventually overpowered by Jenek, who gives him a heat probe. Moya, Lo'La, and the transport pod are released, as Pilot tells Sikozu that Scorpius has not responded to the comms. Sikozu says he might have been captured or killed, however no-one is remotely interested in rescuing Scorpius and prepare to leave. Sikozu objects, so Chiana knocks her out. John takes Aeryn to her quarters, telling her it's all right, she's here. "Is this real?" she asks. He says it's real, she's on Moya and she's safe. "What about the baby?" John tells her the baby is fine, and everything will be OK. She asks him to stay, and touches his face. Noranti is with Rygel, who says she nearly killed him. "No I didn't," she replies, "But I did kill others. By my actions, I have taken innocent lives." "Welcome to Moya," Rygel says, "In my time as Dominar, some of my actions resulted in the deaths of the undeserving. Even when the cause is just, it's a hard thing to accept." "I must seek forgiveness, from the Divine Eternal," she says. Rygel says he can't help her there, but he can extend his forgiveness. John is sleeping next to Aeryn, who is stroking his hair. He suddenly jumps up, screaming "No!" With organ music in the background, we see a black and white scene, candles burning around a single coffin. The coffin opens -- it's Harvey, doing his best impression of Nosferatu, pointy long nails and all. "You're not dead," John says. Harvey says that he is the un-dead, in affected vampiric 'spooky' voice. "It's not funny! That son of a bitch said he took you out of my head," John says. "Scorpius, he upgraded me to Harvey 2.0. One of my many improvements - utter loyalty to Scorpius." "That's not an improvement," John replies. "Oh, but it is! His course is the correct way -- eliminate Scarran threat." John says he doesn't give a damn about Scorpius' agenda. "You must go back for him," Harvey implores. John tells him to go back to sleep before he drives a stake through his heart, and shuts the coffin lid down on him. As John walks away, muffled from within the coffin, Harvey reverts to his normal voice and says something that stops John cold. "He knows everything you know, John." John walks back, lifts the lid again, and asks him to repeat it, twice, and Harvey utters the same chilling thing. "Meaning what?" John asks nervously. "Another new feature. Scorpius can hear me. Well, I've been sharing the contents of your head with him; memories, thoughts, dreams. wormhole technology." "No, you're lying," John says. "And eventually, they will torture the information out of him," Harvey continues, "And everything they ever wanted to know about wormholes will be theirs, courtesy of John Crichton." John slams the coffin lid down on him again, and as he's mumbling "No, no, no," in panic. He's awoken by Aeryn. Aeryn tells John it's all right, however, with worry creeping into he's eyes, John prepares to tell her the news that the rescue mission to Katratzi is still going ahead, this time for Scorpius. + +In a chamber on Katratzi, Scorpius is held in a Scarran torture device. Minister Ahkna tells him to tell her all he knows about wormholes, and if he does, even the smallest secret, she'll leave him at peace for an arn. Scorpius says that he's been searching for a female like her his whole life and makes a gesture with his tongue. Ahkna begins a heat probe and Scorpius screams in defiant anguish. The crew are in Lo'La, with Rygel complaining about how mad this is. "We're going to walk into the most heavily-guarded base in the Scarran Empire, start a civil war and walk out with Scorpius. What part do you not understand?" Aeryn Sun asks. "How you can possibly believe it will work," Rygel responds. Ka D'Argo says they've been spotted and they receive a Scarran communication. Sikozu answers, telling them that they're escorting John Crichton and he wants to join the negotiations. The Scarrans clear them to dock. Rygel says it's not too late to change their minds, but D'Argo says they've just passed Jenek's freighter, which means Scorpius is probably nearby. DRD "1812" hands John a contraption. "That's it?" Chiana asks. "That's it. Mankind's greatest contribution to the absurd - the thermonuclear bomb." On the base, a meeting is held around a large table. Commandant Grayza tells Scarran Emperor Staleek that despite what his minister of war believes, this offer of peace is genuine. Every day that he fails to take it seriously, they continue to build more and more wormhole weapons and soon the urge to use one will become irresistible. Seated are Grayza, Braca, Ahkna, Staleek, Captain Jenek, a Charrid, and a Kalish male, all surrounded by their attachés. Staleek introduces a guest who should make these talks more interesting. "John Crichton," Grayza remarks with surprise. "And partner. What did we miss?" he asks, as he walks in with Aeryn. Staleek tells him that he's taken a great risk by coming here. "Why shouldn't I just have you seized right now?" he asks. John points to the bomb attached to himself. "Now, before anyone decides to get clever," John tells them, "You should know I have multiple dead man's sensors from every culture on my ship and a few cultures I haven't even heard of. My heart stops? We all go boom. My heart speeds up? It's boom again. Too hot, too cold, too happy, too sad, thirsty, hungry, bored. it's John Lee Hooker time. Boom, boom, boom. And if you try your little psychic trick, kaboom. And we're all pushing up day-glo daisies." "Why do I doubt that?" Ahkna asks with a sneer. John says because she lacks the imagination, then Staleek asks him what he wants. "What do I want? I have not been chasing my ass all over the galaxy trying to pull out chunks of my brain. I have not been sneaking Fembots and Skreeths in to the places where I live. You want something. You. You want what's inside my head. You want what I know about wormholes." John jumps up on to their conference table, and says "Because I can leap tall galaxies in a single bound," as he tramples upon it. "I can scorch planets with a single wave of my hand and you and you and you, you can't do jack." Grayza insists that it's not true, but John says he knows they can't, but he has! Aeryn smiles at him and he says, "Because I am an American. And what does an American want? Democracy? Capitalism! I want to sell out and settle down. For one day only, it's a blue light special on aisle three. My wormhole technology and a free set of steak knives. For all the tea in China and anything you can imagine to pay me." Ahkna questions him and the Kalish calls crazy. "Isn't it fun?" Aeryn remarks. John sits back down on their desk. "Welcome to my Cold War," he says, asking what the offers are for all the powers of the universe. In a private room, Ahkna tells Staleek and Jenek that she thinks John is bluffing. She says the bomb isn't real and he's got nothing to give them; he's come for Scorpius. Jenek says that they know they're working together, but Staleek tells him to get a full analysis of Crichton's weapon and how to disarm it. He then asks Ahkna why John would risk so much just to rescue an ally. She thinks he may be in league with Grayza, to stop Scorpius telling them anything. "Ridiculous!" Staleek remarks, but Ahkna says that it was his females that rescued her. "From your clumsy attempt to abduct her," Staleek retorts, "Another one of your failures, Minister Ahkna." The crew are in a room, where D'Argo says they think they've managed to locate all of the surveillance devices. Aeryn walks in and says Pilot has enhanced the encryption so the comms should be secure. John says that should anyone have any problems, "Phone home and the Fat Man and I will throw our weight around." Noranti asks to be refreshed of the plan. John points to Rygel for Charrids, Sikozu for the Kalish, and Noranti for recon. She points back at him, "Peacekeepers!" Aeryn and John are led on to the command carrier by Braca. "A peace conference with the Emperor," Aeryn comments, "Very brave of you to enter Scarran space." Braca says he could say the same for them. Grayza tells John, "Do not destroy the Sebacean people." He says that she's doing a good job on her own. She says that everything she has done has been calculated to gain peace. "Give us wormhole weapons and everyone will be safe." "Didn't she already say she had that?" John asks Aeryn, who nods. Grayza says they are very, very close. If she can buy peace, even for an arn or two, perhaps they can develop them. "And what will you do?" asks John, "Kill billions of your rivals? Hey, maybe kill us?" She tells him to name his price, anything that he can imagine. He says he can't figure a way out of this situation, but the first side that does, wins. Jenek tells another Scarran that Crichton and crew have negotiated full access to all common areas, and are allowed onto their ship and they will acquiesce, for the time being. Chiana enters the room and asks Jenek if he was the one that was on the border station and the one that ordered for her and Aeryn to be cut open. She adds she's not to sure as they all look alike. He nods with a grimace, as she chuckles. She then asks if Scarrans have mivonks, and knees him hard. She promptly falls backwards in pain. "Yes but they're not external," he tells her. In another room, some Charrids are drinking and joking about the Kalish. D'Argo walks in, sniffs, and asks if they ever bathe. He says the Scarrans have nothing decent to drink and he won't drink with the Kalish, and asks if they have any raslak. They sneer at his insults, but tell him to sit down anyway. Sikozu waits for Secretary Vakali to walk past and tells him that she believes the Charrids are trying to expel the Kalish from Katratzi permanently, by force. He asks who she is to have such prestigious knowledge. "Just like you, I am a devoted Kalish," she replies. He tells her that without the Kalish to administer their empire, the Scarran system of governance will collapse. She then begs him to talk, and Vakali's aide, Zukash, tells him that he's too prominent to be seen talking with Sikozu; he'll do it instead. The Charrids ask what D'Argo wants, and he says he has what he wants. The Charrid asks if he enjoys travelling with a group of thieves and a Hynerian slug. "You would, too, if you were being paid what I'm being paid," D'Argo tells him. "Which is what?" the Charrid asks. D'Argo says he thinks they should take it up with his employer and all eyes turn to Rygel, as he enters the room. "What's this? Dinner?" the Charrid jokes. Rygel tells him that this is opportunity. Zukash tells Sikozu that she will submit her identification details for them to carry out a background analysis. Sikozu refuses, saying they will trust her or she is gone. Suddenly, she twists around her left eyeball, revealing on the opposite side a full lid-to-lid swirly-cartwheel like iris. "Now, what of your background?" she asks. Zukash does the same with his left eye revealing the same, then they touch heads. "How many other bioloids are here?" Sikozu asks. Zukash says that he's the one resistance member to infiltrate this posting. Sikozu asks how much hatred exists here between the Charrids and the Kalish. He says even more than the outer worlds; since there's more at stake, there are bigger egos. She tells him that they want to ignite the hatred, and use it to help them escape. She asks if he will help them. John tells 1812 to get one of the Scarran sentinels out of a room and Aeryn asks him if he thinks Grayza is actually close to developing wormhole weapons. John says no, because she looks pretty damn stressed. Aeryn concers that she should be, as High Command will be very unhappy if she returns without a peace treaty. Aeryn says it's OK as long as John is not stressed or excited, and he says the bomb doesn't think he is. They get close, and the bomb starts to beep. "It's working," he says. Jenek tells Staleek that they have a good scan of John's fission device, but it may take time to decode. "Not if you expect to prosper," Staleek tells him menacingly. He and Ahkna enter the room where John and Aeryn are waiting. John points out that he came back, so he surmises that they couldn't disarm his bomb. "Not yet," Staleek says. He offers John a refreshment, pointing to a large glass bowl in the centre of the room filled with red petals -- a flower, which John tries, but on tasting immediately spits it out. Staleek calls it an acquired taste, as he scoffs another petal down. John tells them that the flower is a Strelitzia, common on Earth then decides to change the subject. Ahkna question whether he has anything to offer, and Staleek won't believe he can control wormholes without proof. John says they'll meet him half way and Aeryn presents a navigational data chip, with a local star chart. She tells them to send a ship to the designated coordinates and let them know when they arrive. John says they're going to put on the 'wormhole show' just for them. When the Scarrans don't answer in hesitance, John grabs back the chip and mentions Grayza will probably be interested. Staleek tells him to wait, and takes the chip. Staleek tells Jenek to dispatch a Stryker with fill instrumentation to the coordinates on the chip and asks if they've checked Lo'La yet. It's protected by a force field, so they've been unable to, but they will attempt to override it at Staleek's request. Ahkna tells Staleek that this is folly; Crichton knows nothing about wormholes. "And Scorpius does?" Staleek asks. Ahkna says they'll soon find out, as he is ready for his final inquisitor. In the torture chamber, Scorpius is drooling. Ahkna tells him he is very resilient. Scorpius bates her, but she tells him they don't have time. She needs to know what he knows about wormholes. "Well, torture me and I will amuse myself with dreams of you," Scorpius says, making another tongue gesture. "Kill me, and my knowledge will die with me." "Are you sure?" Ahkna asks, "Even if an old friend helped you to the other side?" Out of the shadows steps Stark. "There's no way to escape, Scorpius. Not even into death. Because, as you make your agonizing passage to the other side, I'm going to capture your soul, and with it everything you know." He says he's waited many cycles for this; dreamed many sleepless dreams. Every dashed hope, every plunge into terrified despair he suffered at Scorpius' hands in the Aurora Chair. However, unlike the two cycles Scorpius had, Ahkna has only given Stark two arns to be finished with him, so he will be more imaginative. Stark removes his mask and the glow form his face causes Scorpius pain, while Ahkna, watching on, tells Pennoch she thinks this may have possibilities. Noranti pulls Chiana along a corridor and tells her to listen. Leaning up against a nearby wall and placing her ear up to a vent, Noranti is sure that she can hear Scorpius screaming. Chiana stays listening, while Noranti goes to alert John and Aeryn. She tells them that Scorpius can't possibly hold out much longer. "If he hasn't broken already," John comments. John comms Rygel, but D'Argo says Rygel is busy, as he's still talking with the Charrids. John then comms Sikozu, who says everything is going to plan, but also needs more time. "Why do we never have enough time?" Aeryn asks, sighing. One of the Charrids asks Rygel why he should work for a Hynerian when he is already a General in the Scarran service. Rygel tells him that it will end soon, when the Scarrans sever ties with the Charrids. The Charrid accuses him of lies, since they're going to war with the Peacekeepers. "But not with you as their allies. Just with the Kalish," Rygel says. The Charrid says they're just techs, but D'Argo points out that the Scarrans are building a wormhole weapon -- they need techs. Rygel says that's why the Kalish are planning to sabotage the Charrids by embarrassing them in front of the Scarrans. The Charrid says they'd never be so bold, as Rygel turns to D'Argo and tells him the Charrids are as stupid as the Kalish say. Vakali shows Jenek a scan of John's bomb, saying it's a mixture of parts from devices he's never seen before, he'll need around two days to try to disarm it. Jenek says he doesn't care; he needs to know how to disarm it now or he'll find some species that will. Vakali asks Zukash what he thinks, and Zukash tells him it's just as Sikozu said; the Charrids are trying to incite the Scarrans against them and it's starting to work. John and Aeryn are with Chiana, asking about Scorpius. Chiana says he is somewhere on this level and Aeryn says they will need alternate escape routes if he can't make it to Lo'La. Chiana says she'll keep looking. Meanwhile, John and Aeryn enter a room full of Scarrans. An utterly furious Staleek barges in, and tells John that he's cost him a Stryker and its crew. At his given coordinates, a wormhole opened and swallowed them up. "Do not tell me you ordered them into the wormhole," John replies. Gesturing to Aeryn, he continues, "She told you to call us when they got there." Staleek says John should've warned him, but John tells him he wanted proof and got it. Staleek asks if John caused the wormhole to open, but John nods and tells him he refuses to give him any more 'freebies'. Then asks if they want to make a deal or have him sell it to the Peacekeepers so they can gobble up all his warships. Staleek, seething, warns John not to threaten him, but John shrugs and says he's just a guy with something to sell; if he doesn't want to buy it, someone else will. Outside the room, Aeryn assures John, who's worried he might've just pushed too far, that Staleek will make an offer. "An entire cavern just to grow the flowers they eat?" Sikozu asks Zukash. He says it's a high security area, but they don't know why. Only the Charrids are supposed to have the access codes, so if anyone else enters the chamber, the Scarrans will assume the Charrids left it accessible. He unlocks it, having before managed to steal the codes. Sikozu tells John that they've found a much faster way to incite a riot. John tells her that's great, but he'll hear it later. John and Aeryn pass Braca in the corridor. "You look a little lost," John says. "Does 'mommy' know you're here?" Aeryn asks. "Does 'mommy' know he's Scorpius' boy?" John continues. Braca says nothing. "Oh, no, mommy doesn't know," John says. "Are you here to rescue him, or kill him?" Braca asks. Stark is torturing Scorpius, when Ahkna tells him to conceal himself. John and Aeryn arrive to see Scorpius, but she only allows John in, with Pennoch guarding the entrance. John gets a closer look, as Scorpius continues to suffer. As he steps down, Ahkna is suddenly upon him, and gives John a heat probe, with Pennoch holding a struggling Aeryn back from intervening. She says that she knows he has a real nuclear device, but is sure he can disarm it. John says he would, but he can't so he won't. Ahkna insists he's bluffing, but as the bomb begins to beep more and more quickly, and she sees the lit-up level on the bomb's panel start to rise, she reluctantly lets him go, calling him insane. She tells Pennoch to release Aeryn and she rushes in to help John up. Sikozu is leading John and Aeryn to the lift and comments on them finding Scorpius being tortured and leaving him there. John says it's not time yet, but reminds her that's what they're there for. They wait for some Charrids to exit the elevator, before they enter. Sikozu fiddles with the panel and leaves them to it. In the elevator, as they wait John takes Aeryn's hand and puts it on his shoulder. He gets her to stand on his feet, which she does quizzingly, then tells her to hold on tight and begins to dance. A delighted Aeryn leans her head on his shoulder, as she enjoys the quick romantic twirl on their short journey down to the bottom. The Charrids are now drinking with Rygel, and tell him the Scarrans will never dissolve their partnership. Rygel laughs at him, insisting they're nothing more than Scarran servants. One goes to attack Rygel, but D'Argo stops him. The elevator stops and John and Aeryn step out. An alarm immediately sounds and Tugar announces an intruder in the Crystherium chamber. He orders another Charrid to go and check. John and Aeryn walk in and see a huge bed of flowering plants covering the entire floorspace of the room/cavern. At the far end, centre-stage on a raised level, stands an alter-like contraption holding aloft a huge bouquet of the revered crystherium flowers. "Never knew Scarrans were so sentimental," John comments. The pair walk in amongst the plants, and to get noticed John suggests something he got arrested for in college once. They get down to it. The Charrids enter the chamber and tell John and Aeryn to come out immediately, asking what they were doing. They stand up, both noticeably flustered as they rearrange their clothing, "There's never enough time," John asserts. Staleek asks John and Aeryn who gave them the codes. John says they didn't need any codes; some Charrids got off the elevator, they got on, and then got off. "Well, we tried to 'get off'- we got interrupted," he adds with a grin. Ahkna asks which Charrids, but Aeryn says they couldn't tell as all look alike. Staleek angrily scolds Ahkna the Charrid troops are her responsibility, as she says she'll order a full inquiry. When she leaves, John tells Staleek to give him Scorpius, feigning it as an afterthought. But Staleek's not fooled and questions why, wondering if it's because he’ll give them for free what John is trying to sell. John replies he just doesn't like watching people who don't know anything being tortured. Stark continues to torture Scorpius, who refuses to break, saying he knows nothing about wormholes. Ahkna gives Stark a look and he says it's a normal part of the procedure; Scorpius is very strong, so when he finally breaks it will be catastrophic. Staleek enters, asking what is happening in here. Ahkna says he wanted the information taken from him, but Staleek stresses "alive." He asks if she has learned anything, adding that Crichton has since destroyed a Stryker and found a way into the caverns, but she has achieved nothing. He yells for everyone to get out of the room. When alone, he speaks to Scorpius. "I thought you said she couldn't harm you." "And she couldn't. I'm fine. Quite fine. I've caused enough harm in my time to be able to mimic it well," Scorpius replies. Staleek says they still haven't found a way to disarm Crichton's weapon, but he has demonstrated a convincing command of wormholes. "I can separate him from the bomb," Scorpius says, "He trusts me. More than he realizes. Just bring him to me." "Will you?" Staleek asks, "Or will you betray me?" "I've served you for ten cycles as a spy. Why would I betray you now?" Scorpius asks. "Betray me, and you will die in this machine. But deliver Crichton's knowledge to me, and all the power you seek will be yours." John and Aeryn return to Grayza, who makes an addition to her offer. She has a pardon from the Supreme Council. No Peacekeeper would dare violate them. It's conditional on no wormhole technology being shared with the Scarrans. "What if we give these back?" John asks. Aeryn says they're still valid; she wouldn't dare destroy them. Braca adds that he's witnessed them, so have all their principle officers. John tells her to keep it -- they'll let her know. John and Aeryn walk into a room, telling the others to start the riot now. Meanwhile, Pennoch is chewing Rahzaro out because his troops compromised the cavern's security. Sikozu tells John they are close to a conflict, but John says now means now. Staleek walks in, telling them a bargain is struck. His Charrids throw down Scorpius, as Staleek says a bargain requires trust, which has thus far been one-sided. "Now, you tell me what else you really want." "When you wake up in the morning on your big emperor bed and you listen, what do you hear?" John asks, "Do you hear the little emperor birdies singing outside your window? Do you hear the emperor wind whistling through the trees? Or do you hear people dying? Do you hear your friends begging for mercy? Do you hear doors being kicked in because people are hunting you? Do you hear the sound of your heart pounding in your ears? What I want, Santa Claus, for the rest of my life, I wanna wake up like an emperor." "Your safety guaranteed," Staleek says, in just a few arns. "Bill Gates can't guarantee Windows, how're you going to guarantee my safety?" John asks. "With great effort, and great sincerity," Staleek replies, "Though at some point, my largesse will dissipate." Staleek leaves. "My appreciation," Scorpius says. John grabs Scorpius by the throat, asking what he told them. He says that everyone he cares about is here in great danger to make sure Scorpius keeps his mouth shut. Scorpius insists he has said nothing. Aeryn says she believes him, but looks reluctant. "Good. Kill him and let's go," John says. Aeryn is taken aback. Aeryn says they came here to free him, but John says they're here to make sure the knowledge doesn't slip out and tells her to kill him. "Oh, you want me to kill him?" Aeryn asks. "Well, I'm not the assassin, am I?" "If you want him to die, you can kill him yourself," she says. "You made me promise that I wouldn't," he replies. "I release you from that promise." "Say that again." Aeryn looks at Scorpius and louder, repeats, "I release you from that promise." John thanks her and pulls out his gun. Scorpius simply looks at John and still says nothing. "I'll give you my bike if you kill him." "May I speak?" Scorpius asks. They both say no, and John comments that Scorpius is telling the truth. John then comms the others, asking where his riot is. Rahzaro and Vakali continue to argue, blaming each other over falsifying data. Pennoch stops them, saying he wants a full account from both sides in two arns. When Pennoch leaves, Vakali and Rahzaro continue to argue, Vakali saying Rahzaro's forces are useless and he seeks to refocus the blame. Rahzaro talks back, "Ordering biscuits and repairing urinals has never won a war." "And neither have you, as I recall," Vakali replies. Rahzaro grabs him, telling him you insult a Charrid at your own risk. Vakali hits back and a fight breaks out. The Kalish make full use of the walls, amidst the firing. Pennoch walks back in, and orders Strike Warriors to the Control Center to confiscate all weapons. Rygel tells John to leave now and never doubt his Dominar again. During the fight, Sikozu tells Zukash that she must go and they say a goodbye in Kalish. Ahkna tells Staleek that they've been sabotaged, as the Kalish and Charrids are fighting and he orders Crichton to be secured at once. Ahkna insists that Scorpius must be secured. "Don't worry about Scorpius. He's not going anywhere," Staleek tells her. Aeryn and John are helping Scorpius walk to their ship. A Charrid intercepts them, but is killed by Braca. Meanwhile, Noranti and Chiana are told to turn back by a Scarran, but Noranti uses some herbs to knock him out. Rygel comms John telling them not to leave without him as they are close, with D'Argo and Sikozu. Scorpius questions them escaping in D'Argo's ship, as even that cannot outrun a Stryker. Aeryn tells him that Moya is disguised as an oil freighter in the shipping yard. Scorpius stops, saying they can broker a bargain. He says he can't continue, and falls to the floor. John tells him he better not pass out and Aeryn tells him to get up, or she'll kill him now. He eventually gets up and they walk in to the hangar. Two Charrids await, but Aeryn tells them to drop their weapons, and not fire or they'll detonate the bomb. They do so, but while they’re distracted, Scorpius suddenly knocks Aeryn out, then pulls John to the floor! "You need to breathe deeply if you expect to live," he whispers. "You're gonna get us all killed!" John says. As the bomb begins to beep faster, Scorpius says, "If you trust me enough to live, you may well discover the truth." "Trust you? Trust you?!" + +With Scorpius still on top of John Crichton, Ahkna walks in telling Scorpius that he is still her prisoner. "Technically, he's my prisoner," John asserts. Scorpius thanks him. Staleek enters and says he's glad they're safe with a rather sarcastic tone, and that Ahkna's forces have done an excellent job, and will be eager to return to her duties. She leaves, and Staleek punches Scorpius. John goes to check on Aeryn Sun, when Staleek tells them that his guards were able to secure the rest of the crew, since, coincidentally, they were also nearing exits. John asks where they are, and Staleek again replies sarcastically, that guards are in place to ensure their well-being. "Were you planning to leave?" he asks. John says that Grayza called with another winning offer, and because of the riot they didn't want to bother the Scarrans so decided to take their own car. "I'm glad you didn't," Staleek says, adding that any non-Scarran vessels would've automatically been targeted and destroyed. "We'll transport you to the carrier," he says. "That's very kind," John replies. "My pleasure John." Jenek tells the Emperor that Ka D'Argo's ship is an Eradicator-class, and they've gained entry and neutralized its systems. The sentinels are securing their star charts and vector logs. Staleek tells them not to leave any trace of what they've done -- he doesn't want the crew to know that they know. Scorpius tells the rest of the crew that he prevented them from leaving for their own protection. Their plan would have failed. Everyone objects, but Sikozu tells them to hear Scorpius out. He continues that the Scarrans had likely already disabled D'Argo's ship, and found Moya location. D'Argo says that's impossible. Scorpius continues that even if they had got off Katratzi, the base's defenses would have destroyed them. Aeryn asks if Lo'La has enough power to blast them out, and D'Argo says maybe, it's worth a shot. Aeryn asks how it would work. "I'd call Lo'La, she'd blast a hole, and we'd run through it." D'Argo calls Lo'La, but there is no response. The comms are fine though, so Sikozu surmises that Lo'La must've been disabled. Chiana asks if they can still get a ride on the command carrier. "Try it and find out," Ahkna says, as she enters the room. She says that Grayza doesn't frighten her, the carrier doesn't frighten her, neither does John's bomb, or John himself. John jibes that he's on the brink of devastation. Ahkna smacks John across the room with one blow, suggesting that perhaps they should go there together. John and Scorpius go into a room that is bug-free, and John asks Scorpius to convince him. "Crystherium Utilia," Scorpius says. "The flower?" John asks. "Yes, very important." John asks if that's why they're growing in the cavern. Scorpius says that they need to destroy the flowers. "Flowers trump wormholes?" John asks. "At the moment, yes." John flashes to Harvey in his mind, they're in an office and John is playing cop/detective to a hooded Harvey's criminal/informant. John scolds him for 'smoking in his head' and slaps the cigarette out his hand, then starts drilling him about 'the flowers'. Harvey, in a rascal accent, answers that they're the number one secret in the Scarran Empire. Even the Charrids and the Kalish haven't figured out its real deal yet. Scorpius tells John that Stark used to live here on Katratzi, assisting the leadership caste with their death rituals. That is why Scorpius was torturing him when he and John first met. Scorpius tells John that Crystherium growth requires specific and rare conditions. The Scarrans can only propel their power forward from these very few locations. "And destroying a bunch of flowers is supposed to set them back?" John asks. "For hundreds of cycles," Scorpius answers. John asks Harvey why. He says that Scarrans are simplistic, brutish creatures that should have died out generations ago. "What happens when they eat the flower?" John asks. "Big brains, evolutionarily competitive," Harvey says. If they don't eat them, Harvey tells John, "Your dog could beat them at checkers!" Scorpius tells John that although Stark provided many details, he was unable to learn of Katratzi's location because John rescued him prior to that breakthrough. "Sorry to stitch you up," John says. "No you're not," Scorpius replies, adding that John was taking too long with wormholes, but reality provides opportunity. He needed a way to hurt the Scarrans now. John tells Harvey that he's not making any sense; he takes the knowledge from John's head and then tells him that he's giving it to Scorpius so he'll go and rescue him. Scorpius tells John he has no wormhole knowledge, but John says Harvey told him he did. "So what, I lied," Harvey tells John. "Harvey?" Scorpius asks, then realizes, "Oh, that is clever." Scorpius reminds John they had a deal -- he helps John rescue Aeryn from the Scarrans, and John gives him his wormhole knowledge. "But obviously you betrayed our contract, yes?" Harvey tells John that he went and left Scorpius behind to die. Scorpius concludes that John had had no intention of returning for him. "Failsafe," Harvey says, "You screw the boss, I find a way to get you re-interested." Scorpius tells John that if his neural clone has returned, it's only because John betrayed him. Scorpius says he should honor his contracts, but John counteracts that Scorpius betrayed them. Harvey tells John that they did have a deal, and he went back on it. "Would you have left me to perish with the Scarrans?" Scorpius asks. "Under the circumstances yeah," John replies. Harvey tells John that Scorpius is right, that he and John are brothers from a different side of an imaginary line. John says that now they're a team, "What now?" Scorpius tells him that they must destroy the flowers. He tells John to rest assured that his way is now the only one off Katratzi. Harvey tells John to listen to Scorpius, because he's smarter. "You used me," John tells Scorpius, who answers "We used each other." "You're better at it," John hits back. "You're learning. The bomb clever," Scorpius replies, impressed. John and Aeryn are now on the Command Carrier. Braca tells them that the minute they entered, 400 Scarran scrambler cannons were targeted on the Carrier, and Ahkna told them that unless John and Aeryn were safely returned, they'd fire. Aeryn says that to honor the truce they have to let the Peacekeepers leave. Grayza tells them that the Scarrans will let them go, but they just won't let John and Aeryn leave with them, as they feel it violates the terms of the agreement. Grayza asks Braca and Aeryn for a moment alone with John. Braca tells Aeryn there's nothing he can do to help, and she wanders in to a medical area. "I have something I need to take care of," she tells him. He posts guards near her, because she doesn't want to be watched. Grayza tells John that he came in here big and bold, dancing on tabletops, but look at him now, begging for scraps. John tells her that he may be jammed, and possibly dead, but he is not begging, "You can get that fantasy out of your head." Grayza insists getting more agitated, "In my hands, you can have peace. I can have peace!" John says that he's been in her hands and there's no peace there, just power! "You are so self-righteous!" she tells John, beginning to break down, "I have used all my skills, all my resources, for one perfect chance at peace. And because of you, it is gone! And I am" "Frelled!?" John finishes, "Screwed. Raped." Grayza lifts her head, the start of tears forming in her eyes. "Welcome to the universe, Commandant," John says, and gets up and leaves. Chiana and D'Argo are on Lo'La. She can't believe that they're being allowed on the ship. D'Argo smells that someone has been on the ship, and doesn't know what they've done to it but he's sure they must've done something. Though Chiana wants to make a break for it, D'Argo decides he has to shut the ship down and run a full diagnostic check first just to make sure, which will take three arns. If they find something they can't fix, they'll have to go with Scorpius' plan. "Frelling elevators." Rygel, Scorpius, and Noranti are discussing the plan. Rygel thinks it's crazy to use the elevators to tunnel through solid rock, although Noranti finds it reasonable. Scorpius says that Sikozu may not be able to provide elevator access, so they need to find someone who can - Stark. "Who's Stark?" Noranti asks. "Another lunatic with the wrong number of eyes," Rygel tells her. Stark walks past in the background, and Rygel says that is him. Scorpius says it isn't, it only looks like him to fool us; it's instead a bioloid replica. Rygel asks how he knows, and Scorpius tells him that Stark would never torture him, or anyone. Staleek replaced Stark with a bioloid so that Ahkna would believe he was real. "But you're actually working for Staleek?" Rygel asks. "So he believes." "Oh, I do admire your compartmentalization of duplicity," Noranti adds. Rygel asks how they find the real Stark, and Scorpius suggests that Stark is likely being held in the bioloid duplicator, and they must try find it. John asks Aeryn where she disappeared to on the carrier. "Some unfinished business," she says. He tells her to tell him about it later. He tells her that D'Argo is still working on the ship, and Sikozu is still trying to find the codes. The other alternative would be to give the Scarrans what they want. Ahkna is waiting for them in the room, and John comments that she just can't stop following them around. "And you just can't leave. Wouldn't Grayza help you?" Ahkna asks. "Perhaps now is the time for you to hear my offer." She says they'll go free now, but the price is to leave Scorpius behind for her. She says she will make sure the Hierarchy blames Staleek for their escape. John says he's not up on Scarran politics, but assumes that would mean she would take over his position. She nods in a gesture of affirmation, and continues to posture herself closer to John, but Aeryn blocks her, and Ahkna leaves. "Thanks," John says, "She scares the crap out of me." "It's the hat," says Aeryn. Jenek tells Staleek that within a quarter of an arn they'll have computed the final code, and be able to disarm the detonator. Staleek is pleased, "That's acceptable." Zukash tells Sikozu that security has been tightened since the riots, and all the codes changed, but there is a master key that overrides all the codes and will run the elevator and give complete access to the schematics. Zukash could get it at great risk, but if he's caught it could expose the entire Kalish underground. He asks Sikozu if it will help defeat the Scarrans, and when she says yes, he agrees to help and leaves to try find access. John tells Aeryn that he thinks Ahkna will try to screw them, but Staleek is probably way ahead of her. They will have to go with the elevator plan. Aeryn tells him to watch out for Staleek, but he says the Emperor can't do anything to him as long as the bomb is ticking. Just as he says that the bomb suddenly fades out and stops ticking. John can't reactivate the bomb in any useful manner, and it will take at least an arn before Lo'La is ready. Rygel says that they'll be found in half that. He and Noranti are stuck, surrounded by guards. John tells them to get to the elevator if they can. Staleek asks Ahkna where Crichton is, and she says he won't get far as the station is sealed. "War Minister Ahkna, that may well be your epitaph," Staleek tells her. John and Aeryn meet up with Scorpius and Sikozu, who are at the elevator. Sikozu says they'll need a key chip, when D'Argo and Chiana reach the elevator. D'Argo asks what Scorpius is doing here. "He's giving us the shaft, as usual," John jibes in hi usual witty manner. Everyone gets in the elevator, and Scorpius tells Sikozu to try and crossfire the drilling controls. She says it won't work, and just as the elevator doors are shutting, Zukash rushes over with the key. Though almost shot at by the crew, he manages to hand it over to Sikozu, but is shot at by the Scarrans, presumably killing him. The crew manage to get in the elevator and gain navigational control with the key. Sikozu needs time to activate the drill, so Scorpius tells her to take them to the Crystherium cavern. It's at the bottom of the shaft, so no one will be able to follow, and she will have enough time. Rygel comms John, and gets no answer. He then tells Noranti they'll go and find Stark, as he may know a way out. Meanwhile, Ahkna tells Staleek that they're in the elevator, and her forces are trying to override. Braca tells Grayza that they've detected weapons fire in the base, and communication interceptions indicate the Scarrans are in pursuit of Crichton with orders to kill. "They must have deactivated the bomb," she says. "Then he's lost," Braca says. "As are we," Grayza tells him, ordering them to battle stations. Sikozu can't get the drills activated, as the elevator reaches the bottom. Everyone gets out, but Chiana is forced to hold the door open because the Scarrans are trying to override Sikozu's override. D'Argo says that Lo'La should be functional by now, so if they drill to the surface he'll call Lo'La, and then they can go. Scorpius enters the cavern, and takes a look at the flowers. He tells John they must destroy them. He points to the large 'bouquet' on the alter-piece and informs him it's the mother plant, that is the key; it fertilizes all the others. Kill it, and no new Crystherium can grow here. Scorpius attempts to shoot it, but that activates an egg-shaped forcefield surrounding it, which they realise is an impenetrable shield. They continue shooting it, but to no avail. Staleek, meanwhile, attempts to recall the elevator. Scorpius is distraught that he didn't learn from Stark about the shield, and surmises that it must be because it's a new addition. "He doesn't like to lose, does he?" John comments of Scorpius. Sikozu has the drill enabled, but Ahkna has also regained control of the drilling elevator. The door begins to shut, forcing D'Argo to return to help Chiana. He manages to open it enough so that Sikozu and Chiana can exit the lift, once they've got the chip. Now, they're trapped here. Staleek tells Ahkna that her father would be proud -- security under him was riddled with incompetence as well, he adds snidely. Jenek informs him that the command carrier is showing signs of battle readiness. Sikozu and Chiana are up against the elevator, listening. They hear the lift moving, so all go to hide in the bed of flowers. Four Scarrans are in the elevator on their way down; along with John's bomb which they all forgot to pick up off the floor on their rush to exit. John realizes that he left his bomb behind, and asks in a panic if anyone brought it. They all have a 'slap-forehead' moment, then Aeryn says their weapons will be useless if they're Scarrans. John is certain they will be. "Am I wrong, or are we frelled?" Chiana asks. Sikozu says there is a way. Reluctantly she admits, "I'm not like normal Kalish. There are others like me. We're part of a resistance movement dedicated to overthrowing Scarran domination. We are genetically engineered to kill Scarrans by emitting an intense radiation, that specifically destroys their heat producing gland." But, she refuses to do anything without a promise first, saying that if the Scarrans learnt that there were others engineered like herself, they would kill millions of innocent Kalish to root them out. "Sikozu, we're a team," D'Argo assures her, then adds "Your promise is safe." The Scarrans exit the elevator, and Sikozu tells D'Argo that Scarrans are very good at finding out the truth, but they all agree they won't let themselves be tortured again. She hands D'Argo the key, and tells them not to look upon her. Scorpius stands up, and she says, "Especially you." He reluctantly ducks back down, and when the Scarrans enter, telling her to present herself and surrender, she rises up off the ground, glowing from all pores, her entire body, with an energised aura, and emits massive jolts of radiation that kills all four Scarrans instantly. D'Argo tends to Sikozu, who had fallen back down exhausted, while Chiana gets the scarran's weapons. John tells Scorpius they have to go. He picks up his gun, but John tells him it's over. "I do not lose!" Scorpius shouts in desperate anger at the prospect of being defeated, and not being able to destroy the mother plant. "Be happy to give you lessons," John says, asking if he's in or out. Scorpius has no choice but to leave with them and they all get back in the elevator. Noranti and Rygel find Stark in the bioloid replicator. "Rygel?" he asks. "Oh, you lunatic," Rygel replies. "You're green," he tells Noranti. Behind them the bioloid Stark enters, saying they'll have to deal with him if they want to deal with Stark. He grabs Rygel and begins throttling him, but Noranti pulls a blade out of her garments and throws it, penetrating the unshielded side of his head. Staleek comms Grayza, asking her to see reason. She tells him that reason suggests that he has subverted this conference, and with it, any chance of peace. He tells her that they continue to operate under truce, while her vessel prepares for battle. "Reason dictates that I not believe a single word you say," she tells him. He tells her to reconsider, and adhere to the name they've chosen for their kind. He then tells his people to monitor them, and should they attack, to annihilate them without mercy. Braca asks Grayza what she's doing. "Pursuing honor, Captain." "We're at peace, under truce. And vastly outnumbered," he tries to reason with her. "And about to rewrite the course of history." She tells him to prepare to launch simultaneous salvos on every weapons system, "Now!" Braca is shocked, and starts thinking fast. D'Argo is trying to solve the override problem, but since he can't, John shoots the control panel. It severs the connection, and the drill comes on. Pennoch tells Ahkna that the Kalish sensors report an unusual energy discharge in the cavern, and the status of the Crystherium is unknown. They've lost contact with the Strike Team, and Crichton has activated the drill and is coring through the solid rock. "Impossible to predict his destination, my love." "I'll tell you your destination, my love," Ahkna replies, "A frelling torture station if you don't stop him!" John gets D'Argo to increase the speed on the drillevator as the ride to the surface is bumpy. Staleek is telling Rahzaro that the protection of the Crystherium was their number one priority, but Rahzaro says that he didn't give permission for the access code. Staleek says he doesn't want excuses, when Jenek enters, telling him that Grayza refuses to acknowledge on all frequencies. "I credit her choice of suicide over failure," Staleek says. Jenek says that they will accord the carrier every opportunity for a ceasefire, so Peacekeeper Command will find no fault in their self-defense. Staleek tells Vakali and Rahzaro that Jenek epitomizes the competence he demands, and asks Jenek to assist Ahkna in her follies. "Capture Crichton and her job will be yours," he tells Jenek. Grayza tells her crew to let her know when target acquisition is complete, but Braca says there is no conflict here. She asks him why he's so adverse to conflict, and he bites back asking why she is so adverse. "Who do you think you are?" she asks. "Captain Miklo Braca, Officer of the Fleet, Peacekeeper Interplanetary Service." "Oh nobody," she says sarcastically. He tells her she'll start a war, but she says a war is inevitable. Braca says they should leave under the flag of truce. "Didn't Scorpius ever tell you?" she asks, "Truce with the Scarrans is suicide." "Ah. So the men and women of this vessel, must pay for your miscalculation with their lives," he says. "It is for the greater good, Captain, and we shall all be remembered as heroes," Grayza insists. Braca steps away, then, due to an incapacitation of judgment, displayed in multiple encounters under stress, he relieves her of duty. She laughs, and calls for the Officer of the Deck to shoot the "mutinous Captain" dead where he stands. But, much to her surprise, the officer points his weapon at her and tells her that Captain Braca has already relieved her of command. "Now let's get this ship out of here," Braca says. The drill continues, as Staleek tells the Charrids and Kalish that from this moment on, they will disregard Ahkna's status as ruling caste and ignore her orders. "Besides myself, John Crichton is the single most important person on this base! Am I clear?" he says, telling them to apprehend John and bring him now - alive! As the drill continues, the base shakes and parts begin to collapse, and Rahzaro persuades the Emperor to get to safety. Rahzaro takes some Charrids to the drill, and John takes a look outside. He's immediately fired upon, telling the others that they're in the conference room. Chiana asks, "Are we cursed? - I'm sure we're cursed!" Scorpius says that the compartment is quite strong, but D'Argo points out they can't stay in there forever. Sikozu states that they cannot escape through the hatch below as it would be a drop of at least a metra. Rygel, Noranti and Stark are at Lo'La, and tell John that it is crawling with Scarrans. D'Argo reactivates the ship through his link, causing Lo'La to target the Scarrans, killing them. Rygel and Noranti are elated. Jenek and his force reach the Crystherium chamber, finding the Strike Force dead, but the flowers unharmed. Rahzaro goes to check on the Emperor, while leaving his people on guard. John asks Scorpius how important the mother plant is. "I would trade my life for its destruction," Scorpius replies. "What about my wormhole debt?" John asks. "Of course," Scorpius answers reluctantly. John comms Rygel to make sure they're safe, and reactivates the bomb, dropping it down the lift shaft below them. It should go off in about sixty microts. "And then it explodes?" Chiana asks. John realises they should've voted so now quickly asks for their vote, and with himself, Scorpius and Aeryn in favor, D'Argo and Chiana against, and Sikozu abstaining, it would've gone down anyway. Sikozu says that the concussive pressure must exit through the elevator system, and therefore the shaft. Scorpius says that the compartment should protect them, at this distance. John closes the hatch, as outside Rahzaro returns, aiming their guns at the compartment, shouting it's the crew's last chance to come out. Jenek re-enters the caverns elevator 'downstairs' reporting that the Crystherium is not harmed when the bomb drops through a glass panel on elevator's ceiling right into his hands, which he grabs out of quick reflex; and with much surprise and dawning panic as he realises exactly what he's just caught. As Scorpius holds Sikozu, D'Argo holds Chiana, and John and Aeryn kiss, the bomb explodes. Jenek, his troops, the Charrids and everyone else nearby are killed and the mother plant is destroyed, but the drill-lift compartment does indeed hold. Rygel comms John, asking what just happened. "Did you blow up the bomb? How could you blow up the bomb?!" he asks, sounding a little outraged. "You missed the vote," John replies, with a pleased smirk on his face. Back on Moya, Rygel, Stark and Noranti are in Pilot's den. Pilot tells Stark that he never thought he'd see him again. "And I always believed I would," Stark replies. Pilot says it's a pleasure to have him aboard. Rygel wants them to starburst again, but Pilot and Moya believe four is enough, as there are no signs of pursuit. Stark says the Scarrans must still be busy on Katratzi. "They got off easy," Rygel says. Noranti excitedly says she'll cook a "voluptuous Caspitian haunch" stew to celebrate the victory. D'Argo and Chiana are in bed, giggling. Meanwhile, Scorpius is back in his cell, and asks Sikozu, who is at a short distance, how long it will take her to recover. "I do not know. I've never done this before," she says. She then walks towards Scorpius, and kisses him. Despite initial reluctance, she presses by turning his face towards her, and he soon relents and kisses back. John and Aeryn are in a room. "Stark," John says, "Everything old is new again. Except the old thing's getting really old." After a pause, he says, "Hi, honey. Guess what I did at work today? I wore a bomb - A nuclear bomb in a field of flowers. I could get lucky. Tomorrow I could have a bigger bomb. I could kill more people. Maybe innocent people. Children, maybe." He puts his head on his arms, covertly wiping away tears, suffering immense guilt he's clearly disturbed by his actions, as Aeryn strokes his head in a conciliatory gesture of solace. He grasps her hand lovingly, and continues to weep. + +Following his cliff-jump, John Crichton is floating unconscious in the water below. Once again he's startled by Oo-Nii, and as he swims to shore we see a horde of Peacekeepers waiting with guns ready. Oo-Nii drags him back underwater, and takes John to his lair, under the impression that John is with Grayza. He tells John that Vella was his friend; he won't let John take what she discovered. John insists that he won't tell anyone where the third probe is buried, adding that he is not with Grayza, but this just makes Oo-Nii want to know its location too. Ka D'Argo and Sikozu are now in Oo-Nii's lair, and D'Argo shouts that he told Oo-Nii to find John, not kill him, and yells at him to get off John. Oo-Nii swims away behind a pillar as D'Argo shoves John back in the pool with a "what's with the stench?". Sikozu sniffs and thinks she may know the reason. "The reason what?" asks a clueless John. D'Argo interjects "you know, about you and Grayzand", apparently everyone knows what went on. But Sikozu posits the smell could be the mysterious Heppel oil; some concubines have a gland implanted that exudes this oil as a sweat -- its perfume aggressively targets the erogenous zones. Though she doesn't think that Grayza would ever desire it, because its side-effects are irreversible; once implanted the concubines die prematurely, cycles before their time. John mentions that he doesn't want to ever go near Grayza again, but D'Argo insists that he'll have to see her one more time, to "take one for the team". Grayza has Jool and Chiana, and they have a plan to get them out, but they're operating on a need to know basis and, because of what happened previously, they think John only needs to be told his part. John is not too happy about this, but D'Argo says it's the right thing to do. John needs to keep Grayza occupied for a couple of arns, and wait for D'Argo's signal. D'Argo reminds John that when the Peacekeepers find him it has to be believable, which John ensures he can do. D'Argo asks if he's sure, but then 'tongues' him out anyway. The Peacekeepers find John washed up on rocks, unconscious. He wakes up tied in a room with Grayza, where he tells her he wasn't trying to escape. She gets on his back and uses her "influence" to try to get him to tell her why the Scarrans want him so badly, adding that if he tells her she will help him find his love, Aeryn Sun. Braca gleefully forces a leashed-up-like-a-dog Scorpius to drink from a big bucket of liquid on the floor. This is just outside the cell where the Old Woman tells Chiana that, she had no choice, John had to die. Jool notices that the magnetics are dropping, because the color is fading from everything, from rocks to skin, and it's getting hotter by the minute. If they stay here ten more arns they'll all be dead; flesh cooked off their bones. Chiana swears exasperated, then insists that she'll get them out of this, when Sikozu comes along asking who is in charge. She sees Braca, approaches him provocatively, and tells him that she's his promotion. D'Argo flies up to Elack on his ship, where he tells Rygel that if they can get Elack to crash into the Marauders then they might be able to escape, or at least get far enough away so the command carrier can't track them. D'Argo says that John doesn't know about the plan to use Elack, but they have no other option. Rygel believes he can convince Pilot, but tells D'Argo that they can't trust Sikozu -- she might betray them again, but D'Argo says they have no choice. Grayza asks, if wormholes are in space all the time, then why can't they be seen? John explains that under the right conditions they turn and appear, but they don't know how to make them do so yet. Braca interrupts and whispers important news to Grayza, as Sikozu stands with the Peacekeepers in the background. As they speak, John picks up a sharp object laying nearby, and when Grayza comes back over she tells John that his Luxan has failed; he's being hunted as they speak. John goes to stab her, but she resists, just as John is actually unable to, as if hindered by an invisible force, telling him not to fight her. John says that she wouldn't do this so far away from Peacekeeper High Command, so he wonders if she's just playing Scorpius' whore. Outside, John has dug a hole and Grayza offers him a pulse pistol with "one charge", with which to kill the half-breed and ruin everything, but John thinks there's no charge in the pistol. Grayza hands it to Braca, who shoots Scorpius in the back at point blank range! Scorpius falls into the grave seemingly dead, and Sikozu is pushed in over him by a guard. Sikozu says that Scorpius is dead, and Grayza instructs a guard to shoot her too. Sikozu pleads with her but Grayza is not interested. Braca prepares to shoot, but Scorpius whispers to her to say a certain word and it'll keep her alive. She repeats it and everyone stops, as Scorpius whispers, "do not let them bury me!". Sikozu gets out, and Grayza asks her how she knows special PK directorate code. Sikozu says the same reason she does, and suggests that the half-breed not be buried but to rather be left to rot in the sun as a warning to others - but Grayza has none of it, and orders Scorpius buried. D'Argo is back on the planet. Rygel has convinced Pilot, who much on it's 'last legs' easily agrees to sacrifice themselves, then bids Rygel farewell. Meanwhile Grayza, having again drugged John with beads of her sweat, is still interrogating him, saying that he doesn't just have to talk about the Scarrans. John, half stripped and tied to her bed, then spots a small creature crawling up the wall nearby and remembers the Old Woman telling him about the substance that would make him forget. He wonders if that might help him combat Grayza's hold over him. D'Argo knocks out some soldiers as Sikozu enters the girls' cell. Jool grabs her by the throat and a guard runs in, whom Sikozu tells to stand down. Sikozu turns Jool around and holds her as Chiana gets Sikozu from behind. Sikozu explains that she didn't betray them, but needed a way to get into the cell. D'Argo has a plan, and Sikozu explains that she wasn't killed because she uttered the code; it saved her life and if they stop fighting her she will save theirs. Jool tells Chiana to put her fingers in Sikozu's ears, and Jool screams, melting off their handcuffs. They all turn to the guards and knock them out. A Peacekeeper enters Oo-Nii's lair and signals Braca, so Oo-Nii drags him under the water. Grayza examines the tile that John found, and says that it means their two species may be more closely linked than they think. John gets a hold of some of that 'forgetful substance', and shoves it up his nose so he won't remember anything. As Grayza mounts him and says she can hear his heart, he turns and gets on top of her. D'Argo tells Rygel to get Pilot to begin the countdown. Rygel has DRD "1812" fixing his transport, and tells Pilot that she must start the descent in 1000 microts, then says goodbye. John has Grayza tied up as a close-to-death Pilot starts Elack's descent prematurely. Rygel tells D'Argo, who lets Chiana know and then signals John. John gets his things together and puts his clothes on, as Grayza tells him to untie her, then orders him to stay. John instead strokes her chest, picking up a globule of her sweat between his fingers, then drops the substance to sizzle off on a candle flame, as he tells her "You never heard my heart beat!". On his way out, grinning triumphantly, he's met at the end of the corridor by Braca and a group of Peacekeepers, who John taunts before a shootout begins. Rygel tries to get Pilot to stop the descent, as D'Argo explains to John that Elack left early. John asks for help, so Chiana sends the Old Woman to find Lo'La, and brings Sikozu with her and Jool. Grayza picks up the sharp object so that she can cut herself loose. John's gun runs out of fire as the girls arrive. They try to use the password code Sikozu used before, but this time to no avail, the Peacekeepers continue firing. John asks for Chiana's gun, manages to fight them off enough to run across the corridor and they all flee to the ship. Grayza storms out and berates Braca, who says that it seems they do in fact have a ship. Grayza orders him that they must not escape! John and the girls are having trouble finding Lo'La, as Elack flies over the ruins, causing a rumble. Rygel manages to wake Pilot and get her to pull up, and as his pod is finally finished, he departs. The others reach D'Argo's ship, but the Peacekeepers are following when John's gun hits empty again. Pilot tells Elack, "We must try, otherwise this would've all been in vain. Target the Marauders", and while the others pile into the ship and leave, Pilot says "Elack now!" and the Leviathan comes crashing down onto the Marauders as Lo'La barely escapes the massive destruction. Although they've gotten away, D'Argo reports that Lo'La's deception shroud has been damaged, meaning they'll reappear in 100 microts. Meanwhile the magnetics are spiking, and Braca says that two Marauders were destroyed, but one is operational so they can make it back to the command carrier, although Crichton will have a two arns head start. Grayza insists that they are picked up in flight, as they're going after them now. The Old Woman is still on the planet, muttering that the probes are still here, when Oo-Nii approaches her and tells her not to be afraid -- he knows a way. Meanwhile, D'Argo and the crew have been forced to land due to Lo'La's damage. He fired a satellite probe in hopes of throwing the Peacekeepers off for about a day. D'Argo insists that they'll be gone by then, "Look at your skin!" Jool retorts. If they stay here one more arn they'll all be dead from the magnetics. John recalls Vella talking about the probe, and Jool reminds him that if they get all three probes 600 motras apart and reactivate them, then the magnetics will be reversed, and off they go to find the final probe. The Old Woman suddenly realises she was wrong all along; it is Oo-Nii, not Vella, who wants to use the probe as a weapon. She tells him that she will never reveal where the probe is; when Jool and Crichton come along to tell Granny that they're going probe-hunting, and John ushers Oo-Nii off dismissively. Oo-Nii reveals that he's wearing the Serax carver, and has been searching for the Darnaz Triangle for twenty cycles. He insists John tell him the probe's location or he'll kill them all. John says that they need to reverse the magnetics, and they need the Old Woman as backup. Oo-Nii ensures that they walk ahead of him, and John leads them to the probe. He asks Oo-Nii where the other probes are, and Oo-Nii reveals they're in his lair; Vella swore he'd get half the bounty, but now he'll get it all. As Oo-Nii retrieves the probe, Chiana appears and a fight begins. Jool gets a hold of the carver, but can't shoot Oo-Nii as he still holds the probe. Oo-Nii jumps off the cliff, and the Old Woman tells that he can live underwater until the magnetic summer ends. She retrieves Winona--John's trusty ol' pulse pistol--from somewhere under her clothes and throws it over the cliff, prompting John to dive in after it, to retrieve it. Jool tells Chiana to help John while she gets the other probes. John and Oo-Nii get into an underwater fight, but just as Oo-Nii is about to knock John out, Chiana shoots him from the shore. John, out for a short while, manages to surface; then dives down to get both the probe and Winona. Jool has both probes, and John thanks Chiana for saving his life again. He tells Chiana to go to Jool, get the other probe and reactivate it. "How do I do that?" she asks. "Just slam 'em in the ground and kick 'em, or somethin'!" The group are spread out, and all three slam their probes into the ground. After a few seconds of nothing, the probes all rise up to the sky, reactivate, and the Darnaz Triangle reverses the effects of the magnetics, restoring everything to color. As the Old Woman puts it, "What was lost, is now gained". John calls the others to check something out -- the lost Darnaz temple, and the priests, have somehow reappeared much to all their surprise. The Old Woman says that the Darnaz Triangle must have trapped part of the past when it created the magnetic summers. Jool explains excitedly that these are the same priests that were here 12,000 cycles ago. It looks as though they don't know what has gone on, and John asks "do they stay or do they go". D'Argo thinks the decision should be Jool's; she's the instructor here now, so she goes to greet the priests. Granny meanwhile seems a little miffed they ignored her for the task, and her crucial input in the whole endeavour. Jool says goodbye to Chiana, then goes to John and says everything they've found proves their species are linked. John wishes that he could stay, but Jool knows he can't, because of Aeryn. He tells her to take care, and D'Argo goes over asking if he's the last; Jool tells him she can't convince any of them to stay. D'Argo tells her she's the only one that can, as she's not being hunted by Peacekeepers. She says that the priests will need help; they have 12,000 cycles of catching up. She tells D'Argo she is so sorry for not defending him earlier when unfairly insulted by Vella. Maybe he wasn't Vella's intellectual equal but he has more courage, integrity, and honor than a dozen Vellas, and she should have said that to her. They exchange a lingering kiss, and D'Argo leaves. Braca tells Grayza that they've retrieved the satellite probe; it must've been a lure. "I will find them again and when I do, they will pay for this humiliation," she vows. She tells Braca that if she hears any gossip, anything at all about what happened on Arnessk, he shall answer for it. Braca swallows down hard, as fear creeps into his eyes. Everyone is on D'Argo's ship, except John who is being towed in his module. D'Argo says that at least Jool won't be hunted anymore by the Peacekeepers; "Unlike us" Chiana adds. "She could stay on Arnessk, have a goal, something to fight for," D'Argo continues. "Unlike us". Sikozu asks if they've heard anything from Moya, but they haven't as yet. Rygel sarcastically points out how good things get in their current situation. The Old Woman points out that John has a purpose. John asks her why she nearly killed him. She tells him that she couldn't let him tell Grayza about the probes, "Better you, one dead, than millions." John again asks her name. This time he finally gets an answer : "Utu-Noranti Pralatong," she replies. "Well Noranti, you're quite right. I do have a purpose." + +John Crichton lies on a bed, his face bloodied and water dripping. It's dark, and Moya looks worse for wear, with sparks flying around. We hear Aeryn's voice. "You did it, John. All the fighting has stopped. There's no more dying. And all of a sudden, three is not such a scary number. But no matter how wonderful this is, I will not accept it as a trade off for losing you." In space, near a ringed planet, is a fleet of Scarran ships. A squadron of Peacekeeper ships is on the assault, and destroys a Scarran Dreadnought. Rygel is swimming around the bed of the sea on Qujaga, collecting crystals and swallowing them. After grabbing all he can find, he bobs his head up above water, and is hauled onto a boat by Ka D'Argo. Noranti is also on board, along with two aliens who look like those who crystallised Crichton and Aeryn Sun. "So often I've proclaimed having a belly full of Crichton and Aeryn. Never thought it'd be so literal," Rygel says as he throws up. One of the aliens asks Noranti what they called their species, and she picks up a crystal, licks it, and says one is Crichton, a "hoo-man", and as she licks another clean she says it is Aeryn, a Sebacean. Rygel confirms to D'Argo he has all the pieces, saying he sifted the sand at the bottom with his bare hands. "Look at my nails!" he proclaims. One of the aliens says to the other, Caa'ta, that the Leviathan ship has returned and their transport is approaching. Caa'ta orders the concealment canopy lowered, and the ship and the transport approach an island which appears. On Scorpius' command carrier, Braca tells him that they've received another communication from Peacekeeper Strategic Command; it's Grand Chancellor Maryk, again. Scorpius turns on his communicator, to an angry Maryk. "Where the Hezmana in my orders did you find the phrase 'pre-emptive attack'?!" Scorpius keeps his head, as always, saying the Scarrans were amassing for an onslaught they all knew was coming, a conflict that they could not win. He says that by challenging them before they are prepared, they stand a fighting chance. Maryk is still not happy, saying Scorpius was sent there to gather surveillance. Scorpius rebuts his words. "With all due respect, sir, I was sent here to perish at the vanguard of this inevitable conflict. I simply refuse to participate on their terms, or yours!" Maryk says that because of his actions, the Scarran Empire has declared war against the Peacekeepers. "Do you know what that means, Scorpius?" he asks. "We are now officially engaged in the last war of our era! Congratulations." Moya's transport lands on the surface, and D'Argo goes to greet them. Chiana leaps out into his arms. The Diagnosan gave her new eyes, so she can see again. Stark comes out of the pod, saying they found a Diagnosan, as it falls out of the transport behind him. "What's wrong with him?" D'Argo asks, and he's answered by a familiar face -- Grunchlk. "There's nothing wrong with him, he's fine!" Grunchlk assures him. D'Argo says he though he was dead, but Grunchlk says hardly at all. Inside a building, the Diagnosan is putting the crystals of Crichton and Aeryn into a device which has them floating around in mid-air, joining back together. Noranti tells him to be careful, as the crystals are people's lives. D'Argo says this had better work, to which Grunchlk replies they are lucky to have him. He says that Diagnosans are at a premium now that there's a war on. "What war?" D'Argo asks. Chiana tells him that the Peacekeepers and Scarrans declared war against each other. D'Argo asks if the Peacekeepers knew what they were getting in to, but Grunchlk says the Scarrans didn't give them much choice; they were already taking the galaxy by force, system by system. In space, a Scarran vanguard has breached the Peacekeepers defences, and is assaulting Scorpius' command carrier. Sikozu says that they've drawn them in sufficiently; the trap is set. Over comms, Scorpius tells Braca to initiate the plan exactly as he instructed. Braca tells the pilots to turn of their navigation systems and fly manually from here. Sikozu tells him to fly straight in; their targeting telemetrics will be corrupted by the ambient magnetics. Braca leads the attack on the head Scarran Dreadnought, but all Peacekeeper armada ships are talking heavy fire. Back on the planet, Crichton and Aeryn are reconstituted in the same position they were last seen, still kissing. As D'Argo breathes a sigh of relief, the pair draw their pulse pistols. "Lower your weapons," Caa'ta orders. Crichton asks how long, and D'Argo informs him it's been sixty solar days. "Where?" asks Aeryn, to which Chiana replies they're still on the water planet. Caa'ta again tells them to put their weapons down, to which Crichton asks, "Bad guys?" "Yes and no," D'Argo replies, "They did help us put you back together." Chiana tells them they said it was an accident that Crichton and Aeryn were crystallised. "Last warning," Caa'ta insists. The pair hand over their pulse pistols, and as they walk away Crichton says to Aeryn, "You said yes!" "I did," she replies. He says they've had sixty days, and asks if she has any regrets. "No, it's going really well," she replies. "Hey, we're gonna get married!" Crichton shouts, to which Chiana and D'Argo say "Congratulations!" On the command carrier, Braca tells Scorpius he was correct; their pilots and guns were no match for the Peacekeeper squad. Scorpius signals his silence, and tells them to prepare to withdraw. "What?" Braca asks in shock. Scorpius tells him that the rest of the armada is to continue to engage the enemy to cover their escape. "But sir, we're winning!" Braca tells him. Sikozu reaffirms that without this Carrier, the remaining units will be destroyed. Scorpius tells them they have their orders, and despite Braca's continued objection, he is adamant. "He is alive Sikozu," Scorpius says, lifting her onto one of the controls. "John Crichton is alive." "One more time, begin again," Caa'ta tells Crichton. Crichton begins the story again. "Once upon a time, there was a boy named John. And John was an astronaut. He lived in a far away place called Earth, which is so far away, you've never heard of it. One day, when John was out doing astronaut things, a big blue wormhole gobbled him up and spat him out at the far end of the universe. Things were looking grim in Mudville, till our hero met an amazing living ship, made some nice new friends, and he hooked up with his dream girl. We could've lived happily ever after, but the Peacekeepers raped, chased and tortured us for years on end. And two months ago, we got our asses shot off again. This time it was the Scarrans, big reptiles, oooh! And Moya, our living ship, limped her way to your happy planet for a little R & R, because, we figure, it's empty! Hey, no one is gonna bother us." We see Crichton and Aeryn in the boat, with Crichton proposing and Aeryn accepting. "Next thing me and the future Mrs Crichton are having a private moment when you guys fly by, boom bada-bing, squiggly line, squiggly line, crystallised. And it's two months later." But the aliens still look rather confused. On Maryk's command carrier, one of his men tells him that Scorpius has powered down his homing beacon, so they have no way of tracking him. Maryk tells them to broadcast an order, highest priority. The Peacekeepers are to fire upon his command carrier the moment it's spotted, with no hailing, and no offer to surrender. He wants Scorpius and all that fly with him erased from existence. A heavily pregnant Commandant Grayza tells Maryk that Scorpius is many things, none of them good, but never a coward. Maryk says that he has initiated this war and then turned and run, asking her how she defines cowardice. She asks the Grand Chancellor to consider her counsel on this carefully, "Hatred of the Scarrans is Scorpius' sole consistent trait. There is something else." Maryk says that perhaps there is, but his orders stand. The Diagnosan is examining Aeryn, while Crichton holds her hand and speaks to her. He tells her that they're done, they're checking out. "Next Ferengi we see, we run, no questions later. From this moment on, my one concern, my life, is you and our baby." The Diagnosan starts speaking, and Grunchlk translates, telling them that the Diagnosan doesn't know what they're talking about -- there is no baby. As Crichton and Aeryn are shocked, Grunchlk says that if there was a baby before, it isn't there anymore. The Diagnosan says that Aeryn never was pregnant, but she is adamant that she was. Crichton has a thought, and says that they were in pieces, thousands of pieces. They go to D'Argo, who tells them that Rygel said he got every piece off of the ocean floor. When D'Argo says he carried the pieces up in his stomach, they quickly leave. With Rygel on the table, Grunchlk congratulates him on being pregnant. Aeryn and Crichton are not happy, but the baby is doing just fine. Rygel is less than pleased himself, and Crichton grabs hold of Grunchlk, telling him to take the baby out of Rygel and put it back in Aeryn. The Diagnosan won't do it, saying it can't come out until the end of the first quadmester. "First quadmester?" Rygel asks, "Get me a drink!" Everyone is sitting around eating, and Chiana asks Rygel what it feels like to have the baby in his stomach. Noranti joins the group, and Aeryn asks Rygel what it really feels like to be pregnant. "Like having a parasite, a large parasite that's growing," he says. One of the local aliens comes over, but is not happy. Crichton asks what they did to piss off the locals, and D'Argo says they're paranoid. Stark tells them they're not paranoid, he's been talking to many of them, and they are ruled by fear, so much so that their fear extends to not talking about it. D'Argo says they shouldn't exacerbate it by staying longer, but Crichton says they don't want to fly into the Armageddon beyond the concealment canopy. D'Argo says he'll ask them to stay, but they won't be happy. In the meantime, Crichton says they'll get married. On the lead Scarran ship, War Minister Ahkna tells Emperor Staleek that they've received a deep space comms from an unexpected source, with an unexpected message. It's about John Crichton. The sender knows his location, and says the Peacekeepers don't have them yet. Staleek says they will send a full battle contingent, not for one man, but the knowledge he possesses. Crichton tells one of the lead aliens, Muoma, that it's generous of her to marry them. Caa'ta, who follows them, says their petititon to remain on the planet has been denied, and on conclusion of the ceremony they will all leave. Crichton asks who they're hiding from, to which Caa'ta replies, "Everyone." Stark shouts that Aeryn is coming, so Crichton gets everyone in position. Noranti comes around the corner, throwing petals in front of Aeryn, who has a flower in her hair. "You look great!" Crichton says. "You owe me!" she replies. "I know." Muoma asks if there's a particular invocation they'd like her to use, to which Crichton begins to recite "Dearly beloved, we are gathered here", but they're interrupted by the command carrier flying low. Muoma is distressed that they seem to know exactly where they are, despite the concealment canopy, but Caa'ta says they've been betrayed. As the aliens all get inside their temple, Crichton tells Stark and Noranti to go with them and convince them it's not the crew's fault. Aeryn tells Chiana to hid Rygel and guard him with her life. A small ship leaves the command carrier. Stark and Noranti hurry into the temple, when Noranti spots something on the side, saying it's familiar. When she gets inside the temple, she realises that the aliens are Eidelons. The ship from the Carrier lands on the surface, and Scorpius and Sikozu step out. Scorpius apologises if this is a bad time, but says they need to talk. He signals that he found Crichton using their mental link. Crichton goes inside his head, where Harvey is dressed as Einstein writing complicated equations on a blackboard. Crichton asks how Scorpius found him, to which Harvey says Scorpius is like god. "He does not play dice with the universe." He says that Scorpius' mysteries unravel slowly but everyone knows what he's really after; a wormhole, and in Crichton's case, the wormhole weapon. Crichton says he can find wormholes, navigate them even, but cannot make a wormhole weapon. Harvey says that is true, but he does know where to obtain the knowledge. John writes an obscene message on the blackbord, telling him to make sure Scorpius gets that message. Scorpius asks Crichton how he's been, saying he has been busy. Scorpius says that the Scarrans will prevail in the war unless he helps them build a wormhole weapon. Crichton says that there's only two problems, that he can't do it and that he doesn't think the Peacekeepers are any better than the Scarrans. Scorpius says that he will find no serenity during this conflict, and tells Crichton to examine his choices. "You're not listening. Wormholes, no. Weapons, no. Killing, no. Crichton, no!" he replies. Crichton is again in the same position, lying injured on a bed on Moya. We hear Crichton's voice. "You wanna see it? The thing you've been chasing my ass all over the universe for? Torturing me, my wife, my friends for? You wanna see it?" "Yes," replies Scorpius in the voice over. "Say please." "Please." "Pretty please," Crichton says. "Pretty please," Scorpius replies. "With cherries on top." "With a cherry on top," Scorpius says. "Happy birthday, now get out of my sight." D'Argo returns to the planet, greeted by an erratic Stark, saying "Eidelons, Jool, Arnessk, peace!" He tongues Stark, and asks Noranti what he's talking about, but she says the same thing. He asks Muoma, who tells him that they are the last Eidelons, as all others were hunted to extinction. Their ancestors possessed the means to influence peace, but it has not survived to their generation. Caa'ta says that thousands of cycles ago, their ancestors' temple was destroyed and they were all slaughtered. Muoma says that Arnessk was the centre of their spiritual power, where there was a temple upon which the building they are in was modelled. She says that today, Arnessk is lifeless, but D'Argo says they have been there. From Moya, Pilot shows Noranti, Aeryn and Crichton the images of Arnessk that Jool gave them before they left. Noranti explains to Aeryn, who was not present when Moya's crew last encountered them, that the ancient Eidelons were believed to be dead for 12,000 cycles, however they were actually suspended in time, and when they reversed the device holding them, they came back into existence. She says that there's no doubt today's Eidelons are a direct descendent of the peace-making Eidelons of Arnessk. She says the ability to influence peace is latent in these Eidelons, and suggests that the ancient Eidelons could re-ignite this power in the current group. Crichton asks Aeryn if he's going insane, because the crazy lady is starting to make sense. Aeryn says she thought they were finished, but Crichton says that it's because of Scorpius. If they run, he will find them before they wake up. "This is not our fight," Aeryn says. Crichton agrees, but says as long as there's a war everyone will be after him because he has the knowledge of the weapon that would easily win the war for either side. "You know every time we get involved" Aeryn begins. "I know, people die," Crichton says. He asks Aeryn what the odds are of the Eidelon plan working, but she says not good. "Not good is the best odds we ever got," he replies, knowing that this slim chance is still a better option that giving the wormhole weapon to the Peacekeepers. The transport pod returns to Moya, where Muoma, D'Argo, Caa'ta and Pikal enter Pilot's den. Muoma asks if they will transport Pikal and Caa'ta to Arnessk for an introductory delegation. D'Argo says they could take many more, but Caa'ta says centuries of hiding do not die easily, and they remain skeptical of the crew's motives. Muoma says she knows that Pilot's and Leviathans are peaceful to a fault, so asks if the beings they ferry are trusted. Pilot says he trusts them implicitly, so Muoma entrusts Pikal and Caa'ta to his care. Back on the surface, Grunchlk tells Aeryn that they will find the rest of the equipment they should need to remove the baby from Rygel on Moya, while Noranti takes a device from there. Aeryn says that the Diagnosan should go with them, but Grunchlk refuses. Noranti said the device is so elegantly designed that anyone could use it, and leaves the device with her. Aeryn asks where Noranti is going, and she says she knows more about the Eidelon's than they do themselves, so she will stay on the planet with them. Aeryn asks Grunchlk if she can do the procedure herself, but he says no. Crichton returns to Moya to find Scorpius and Sikozu waiting. Scorpius says they were invited, and D'Argo says they need him. They are flying through Peacekeeper controlled space during a war and Scorpius is a command carrier officer. Scorpius says he was most recently in command of a full armada, and D'Argo says he knows all the passcodes, but will keep him away from Crichton. Crichton leaves, telling Scorpius that Aeryn and Rygel are off limits. Crichton and D'Argo go onto Command, where Pilot tells them he can get them to Arnessk by refining their position from Moya's databanks as they go, and also they've received a transmission from the Royal Palace on Hyneria. It's Rygel's cousin, Bishan, who overthrew his rule. Rygel asks what is happening, and Bishaan says that the Scarrans have already taken their outer territories. Millions are already dead, and Rygel is a direct descendant of the Royal lineage. If the Hynerians will unite under anyone, it would be him. Bishan tells Rygel that he must return. The transmission ends, and Rygel tells Aeryn that if Bishan thinks he will return to a shared throne, he is deluded. Aeryn tells him he is not going anywhere. Pilot tells everyone to prepare for starburst. Stark enters the room where Chiana is with Pikal, and bows down. He tells Chiana that Eidelons are remarkable negotiators, though she says the Scarrans won't be reasoned with. Pikal says they will, and splits his head apart to reveal a third eye. Stark says it's an antenna to feelings. Pikal says that history leads them to believe it's substantially more, all while Chiana thinks it may have other uses. Pikal says they used to be able to create an energy field that allowed people to see reason, but Chiana says they can't do the trick anymore. Rygel is sleeping, as Aeryn and Crichton look on. Crichton says they really need to get married, now. On his command carrier, Maryk is feeling Grayza's bump, saying the baby has a strong kick. He tells Grayza that they are outnumbered and outgunned, and their population has grown adverse to hardship. He says they've lost every battle since the start of the war. He seeks her opinion on a truce. She says the Scarrans would not accept a truce, only surrender. She says a surrender is only an option when all is lost, to which he asks what the signs are that all is lost. "A military leader that broaches surrender," is her answer. Ahkna tells Staleek that Crichton has departed the water planet, and her contact has provided coordinates to their destination, where he seeks to end this conflict. She does not know if his plans involve a wormhole weapon, though says Scorpius travels with them. Staleek asks if the Leviathan is guarded, and Ahkna tells him it is not, but Peacekeepers guard the water planet. Staleek tells Ahkna to engage the enemy there, defeat them and subdue the unhabitants, while this Decimator will follow Crichton, to settle old scores. Sikozu lights some candles with her finger, while D'Argo asks Crichton if he thinks the Eidelons can stop the war. Crichton says that if they can't, they have to find a new galaxy to live in. D'Argo implies that Crichton should use a wormhole weapon if it doesn't work, but he says he can't. Stark and Chiana bring Rygel to Command, where he is unhappy at the prospect of marrying Crichton and Aeryn. Aeryn pulls her gun on him, saying he is ruining her wedding. "Honey, you're pointing a gun at the baby," Crichton says. She puts it away, and Rygel begins his words. But as he reminisces of old times, Moya comes under attack from Tregans. Aeryn tells Rygel to hide, while everyone else prepares to stop the assault. Pilot says Moya is being pulled in by the Tregan ship. Scorpius says that he's counted at least seven three-man craft coming towards them. Sikozu says it will all be over in half an arn, while Crichton asks Scorpius if the Tregans work with the Peacekeepers. He takes with him, saying they'll try to convince them to leave, but if they fail, the others should have an outstanding plan b. Aeryn tells Sikozu and Chiana to find Pikal and Caa'ta and keep them safe. Stark says he can best help by staying out of their way, while Aeryn and D'Argo work together. Scorpius tells Crichton it may not go as smoothly as he hoped, as his departure from Peacekeeper service was less than sanctioned. A Peacekeeper tells them to stay where they are, which prompts Scorpius to try and persuade them he is out there on special service to the Grand Chancellor. The accompanying Tregan Chief is less than willing to leave, saying their orders are to commandeer any ship not broadcasting a Peacekeeper ident. Scorpius says that would put their mission in jeopardy, but the Tregan says his mission is over. Scorpius asks who is in charge, who he should be addressing and who will take the blame. The Peacekeeper tells the Tregan to release the harpoons, and asks for Scorpius' command codes. The command codes fail, prompting a shootout in which Crichton uses Scorpius as a shield. He asks what Scorpius did, to which Scorpius replies he deserted his post. Crichton remarks that it's amazing what a man will do when he's in love. As the shootout moves to Pilot's den, Crichton tells him to duck. Caa'ta tells a wandering Pikal to hide, as his mission is important. Chiana tells Sikozu of three opponents walking parallel to them; she can see through the walls with her new eyes. D'Argo and Aeryn hide behind some containers, and then shoot some Tregans. When some enemies attack Caa'ta, he is only partially successful, and falls himself. In Pilot's den, Scorpius tells Crichton they need a release transmitter, which is over on the head Tregan. Crichton continues to fire, prompting Scorpius to say Crichton enjoys it. The Tregans are about to execute Pikal, when Sikozu and Chiana attack them. D'Argo tells Aeryn that she never struck him as the type who would want children, but she says Crichton wants it so badly, so she does. D'Argo says she will come round when she sees the little guy in person. "I hope so," she replies. Chiana and Sikozu overcome the Tregans they were fighting. Crichton makes a run for it, with Scorpius covering, but the enemies fall down Pilot's chamber. Pilot says there are no more Tregans aboard, but they are still being reeled in. Crichton says they can't release the harpoons because the transmitter went down, but Sikozu finds another on one of the Tregans they killed, and disengages the lines. Moya does an emergency starburst under fire from the Tregans. Aeryn finds Rygel, who successfully escaped. Pilot apologises for not detecting the Tregans, saying he was so preoccupied with other duties that they snuck up, but they have arrived at Arnessk. The transport lands, and Crichton searches through the woods. He gets lost, but is being watched. When he finds the entrance to the temple, he's caught in a trap by a returning Jool. She pounces him and starts kissing him, saying the more they were apart the more she knew he'd realise he was meant to be with her. But Aeryn arrives on the scene, and Rygel tells Jool to get her own fantasy as they're having his baby. In the ancient temple, Jool tells Crichton to show indifference and respect, and not to embarrass her. Crichton whistles, and it echoes around the temple. Hierarch Yondalao says the acoustics are to lead them in prayer, and Jool apologises for Crichton's behaviour. He ushers Pikal forward, as one who claims to be their descendants. Pikal says that his people have lost the ability but not the desire to influence peace. Yondalao says he shall confer with the other conciliators, and notify them when the matter can be reassessed. Scorpius says he told Crichton it was a waste of time. Jool says that she knows these travellers are honourable, and he knows her, so asks why he sends them away. Yondalao says he does not, he just requires time to examine the issue. Stark approaches, asking what there is to examine, as Pikal is an Eidelon like him. Yondalao says they have awakened from 12000 cycles of sleep, and asks what pertinence they can have to their galaxy now. When Stark grabs his robes at his feet, Yondalao calls out, "Peacekeepers, do your duty," and Aeryn drags him back. Aeryn asks to speak, and says they understand his reasons for caution, but asks what could be more pertinent in this time, or any, than the ability to inspire peace. Yondalao asks how, even if Pikal is Eidelon, how he can help that cause. Aeryn says that while they are few, Pikal's people are many and with their teachings, could become a great force for peace. Yondalao says that while her counsel is sound, he must still meditate upon it, and asks the Peacekeepers to clear the temple. Crichton walks forward, loading up his gun, and his test shot reflects around the temple. Yondalao asks if they are assassins, but Crichton says he's just the guy without a brain. He goes round, the room, points to Stark and says the lion needs courage, Scorpius, the tin-man, needs a heart, Rygel, Toto, wants an easy birth, and Pikal, Dorothy, is just looking for a way home. He says they won't be here tomorrow, so urges Yondalao to look at Pikal, as he is Yondalao's heir. The Eidelons pray, as Yondalao asks if Pikal agrees to accept the great responsibility that the ability to inspire peace carries. Outside the temple, Aeryn tells Crichton it should work, and the Eidelons should be able to stop the war without wormholes. Rygel appears to ask if they can go back to Moya yet, but Aeryn tells him to go and get Stark. Crichton asks if it's just him, or is Rygel getting bigger. Aeryn says that it's a geometric pregnancy, which means that the baby will be born in a matter of solar days. A stunned Crichton says they don't have a name, but Aeryn says she's already picked one, and says something in Sebacean that's incomprehensible. Crichton says she made a joke, but she simply responds that soldiers don't have a sense of humour. As she walks away, Crichton says, "You better have my dinner ready when I get back on that ship now," to which she just raises her arm. Aboard the command carrier, Maryk orders a retreat and regroup of one of their squadrons. When his Lieutenant asks how the Scarrans move so quickly and effectively, Maryk answers that they've been planning it for many cycles. He says he has a desire to turn it around in due time. Grayza is looking on, but doesn't seem too satisfied with his answer. Back on Moya, Aeryn is helping Pilot by verifying Moya's hull integrity. Sikozu joins her on Command, and Aeryn mentions that she is back so soon. She tells Sikozu to inform Scorpius that her opinion won't change if they keep asking; she believes peace is a better option than trying to build a wormhole weapon. "With all due respect, Aeryn," Sikozu says, "Crichton is your inferior, so why would you bear his child?" Aeryn says she should leave, off this ship. Sikozu says she didn't mean to offend her. She adds that when she first met Scorpius, she thought he was her inferior, but she has since learned there is a reservoir to his abilities that continues to overshadow her own. "Same with Crichton," Aeryn answers. Sikozu asks if she views Crichton as her superior. "No, as my equal," Aeryn replies, adding that perhaps Sikozu's under and over-estimations of herself are meaningless, that perhaps they're just meant to be together. Scorpius tells Crichton that the Eidelons can only inflict peace when the combatants are near, adding that the Scarrans would destroy them before they get close enough to have any impact. Crichton says that in that case, he won't mind them doing there thing, but Scorpius says at the same time he should be making the weapons. Crichton says that's only a means to his end, and asks what Scorpius really wants. He says that peace achieved during conflict can last a lifetime. Scorpius suddenly hears something, and says he has a highly developed survival sense which is telling him to leave. Aeryn comms Crichton, telling him a Scarran warship is closing in on the planet at maximum speed. "Stryker or Dreadnought?" Crichton asks, to which Sikozu says it's neither; something much faster. "How much time we got?" Crichton asks, to which Aeryn replies, "More like how little." Crichton calls D'Argo, who is on his way to get them. Scorpius leaves, telling Crichton he is going to remove as much of their presence as possible, as the Scarrans will be hard enough on the Eidelons as it is. Crichton says not to worry, as they're taking them along. Crichton tries to convince Yondalao that everyone has to go, but he says that is impossible. Crichton says they don't have time, and goes to get Pikal. Yondalao says Pikal is not ready to instruct others, but says he will accompany them to instruct the others. Crichton tells Jool she should come as well, but she says she can't, as she belongs here, and tells him to go. "You always made the best mistakes," he says. On Moya, Stark tells Rygel this is not good, and Rygel, while examining the device to remove the baby, agrees, saying the device won't work. "Not you, them," Stark answers. Rygel says if he wants to worry about someone, to worry about him. Stark says the Eidelons, and starts mumbling about them dying in peace as he bangs his head against the wall in distress. Crichton arrives on Command, where Pilot says the Scarrans are close enough to have targeted them, so Moya will not initiate starburst, as they'll be hit before she's fully powered up. Jool sends a transmission from the planet, addressing the Scarran vessel, saying the inhabitants of Arnessk are peaceful, and have no weapons and pose no threat. She asks if they wish to land. The Scarrans don't respond, and Crichton says he has a bad feeling. He speaks to Jool, who doesn't flinch so as to give nothing away. He tells her to get out of the temple, as the Scarrans launch a missile which goes straight past Moya, and decimates the temple on the planet in a huge explosion killing everyone inside including Jool. The Scarrans hail Moya, saying the crew must surrender to the Imperial Forces, and non-compliance will result in the immediate annihilation of their ship. Moya attempts an emergency starburst, but the Scarrans fire and cripple her. Aeryn drags Rygel onto the transport, where Crichton, Stark, Sikozu, Scorpius and Yondalao await. Chiana and D'Argo leave in D'Argo's ship, Lo'La, as D'Argo is sure they can't pierce the ship's invisibility shield. The two ships leave, with the transport heading for the Decimator. Rygel says that when the plan fails, he should be the first one to be rescued. He says to ask Aeryn, but she says to rescue Yondalao first, much to his surprise. Scorpius remarks that Yondalao is supposed to be rescuing them, and Yondalao says that the Scarrans are unfamiliar to him, so he must first sense their fears and desires through proximity. The crew are taken to a holding cell aboard the Decimator, where Aeryn is forced to give up her concealed guns that are discovered by a security probe. Yondalao says that Stark lived amongst the Scarrans, so he knows their psyche, and asks Stark to assist him with that knowledge. Staleek and Ahkna enter the room, and the Emperor welcomes them to his flagship. "That was a temple you nuked down there," Crichton says. Staleek says it was an act of precaution, which is requisite in times of war, as is truth seeking. He turns to Aeryn and heat probes her, asking where the Luxan and Nebari that were travelling with the crew are. Aeryn says they're gone, and left before they came. Ahkna approaches Rygel and strokes his belly, saying she always assumed his highness was male. "Tumor, not long to live," Rygel says. "I would agree," Ahkna replies, as Staleek tells her to take him to separate barracks, and tells Crichton and Aeryn he finds it troubling that Humans and Sebaceans can propagate together. Stark asks how he could know Rygel was pregnant with their child, to which Staleek says the same way he knew to find the crew here. "A traitor," Sikozu says, to which Scorpius says its Grunchlk. Staleek approaches Scorpius, saying they say one traitor can always recognise another. He adds that if Scorpius hadn't facilitated Crichton's earlier escape, there would be peace now. "With you as supreme ruler?" Scorpius asks. Staleek says it's a position he knows Scorpius dreams of, as he rips out Scorpius' coolant system. Staleek tells Crichton that he is alive for only one reason; he will have the wormhole knowledge Crichton possesses, or War Minister Ahkna will pleasure herself torturing the Hynerian and the abomination in his belly. He says Crichton has one arn to decide, and leaves. Aeryn asks Crichton for options, and they agree wormhole weapons are not an option but Crichton says he can give them the middle finger. "You don't know what you're doing," Aeryn tells him. "I never do," he replies. On Lo'La, Chiana is looking at a scan of the ship, and identifies its weakpoints. D'Argo tells her that Rygel has invited them to Hyneria, and he thought he could do some work with his hands, plant some food and make some wine. Crichton goes to Staleek, and says he can't give him wormhole weapons. Staleek says he'll die, but Crichton says while he doesn't have a kilo of pure wormhole technology, he can take Staleek to a guy that does, in exchange for an undamaged Rygel. Staleek probes him, but realises Crichton is immune to the probing. Crichton says it's because he always speaks the truth. Staleek stops, and Crichton says they will go in his module, down a wormhole to the source of ultimate power, but it only has room for him and one other. Ahkna says the Emperor will never go alone with him, but Staleek says no, and tells her to set a course for the battle group at the water planet. They will leave as soon as he returns. Sikozu creates a makeshift coolant device for Scorpius, as Stark leaves Yondalao to think of how to tap into the Scarrans' morality. Yondalao tells Aeryn he will soon be able to influence the Scarrans' passions. Aeryn says that in the temple, he said "Peacekeepers, do your duty," and asks what he meant. "I had forgotten that you had forgotten," he replies. "At the dawn of our period of usefulness, 27000 cycles ago, we developed need of a guard. A race no one had quarrel with. A force to ensure harmony prevailed once negotiations had finished." "Peacekeepers," Aeryn remarks. "Apparently your forebears attempted to carry on once we vanished," Yondalao continues, "However, lacking our mediation abilities, they kept the peace the only way they could: at the muzzle of a weapon." Aeryn says that's why they're hated. "It wasn't such at the beginning. We took great care to choose a species no one had met before. We found your kind primitive, barely clothed, far removed on the galaxy's outer spiral. Having brought some of you back, your evolution was accelerated with generous alterations, until you became our trusted acolytes." Ahkna is in a room where Rygel is tied to a table, and tells a Scarran nurse that while the Emperor wants Rygel alive, she would consider it a personal favour if he should die of explainable causes. In Crichton's module, Staleek is growing weary of waiting. Harvey speaks to Crichton on a car crash test course, saying Crichton knows what he has to do. Harvey says he should just crash the module. Crichton says then everyone would die, asking if he thinks Ahkna would be a kindler, gentler soul, but Harvey says that is someone else's problem; Crichton would've done his duty. Staleek says that there is no wormhole here, but Crichton says it's just a little late. Ahkna has Aeryn brought to her, saying she's been informed they plot escape. Aeryn says they are prisoners with no weapons, but Ahkna says they have none here, but perhaps outside. "I promise you, you will never be reunited with your baby," she says. Aeryn replies, "I'm sure your mother wished the same thing." "How brave you are," Ahkna says, before going to the throne and ordering the ordnance officer to fire. Aeryn watches as the missles hit Lo'La, the Scarrans actually able to detect the invisible ship. As D'Argo and Chiana scramble to get control, the Decimator continues to fire. Aeryn tells Ahkna she can stop now; she's proved her point. Ahkna says that the Luxans are like Peacekeepers -- soon to be enslaved or dead. She orders them to fire one more, and Lo'La is destroyed. In the cell, Aeryn tells Yondalao that a Luxan can only survive in space for about a quarter of an arn. He is surprised by the Scarran brutality. Scorpius says that the Scarran blood running through his veins knows more than the Eidelon ever will, while Sikozu says there's only one path out of this prison, they must fight their way out. A wormhole appears in front of Crichton's module, and Harvey continues to try to convince Crichton to fly into the wall of the wormhole. The travel through the wormhole continues, as Harvey and Crichton drive the test car into a wall. Staleek and Crichton arrive on Einstein's iceberg, where Einstein appears saying Crichton should not have brought him here. Staleek asks who the creature is. "You can call him Einstein, and I suggest you do it nicely." Staleek goes to probe him, but Einstein knocks his hand back. Crichton tells Staleek it won't work, and he asks Einstein if he possesses the knowledge of wormholes. Einstein confirms, so he asks if wormholes can be made into weapons. Again, Einstein confirms, and Staleek says he will give him that power. Crichton interrupts, saying he can find a wormhole and fly down one, to which Einstein agrees. He asks Einstein if he can make a weapon, which Einstein says he cannot. John asks why, and Einstein says because no one should have that power. Crichton tells Staleek that if you mess with the natural order, you destroy multiple timelines. Staleek pushes him aside and says he will have that power, but Einstein freezes him in time. Einstein tells Crichton that returning here was wrong, but he says he has to protect the people he loves, and Einstein owes him for putting the crap in his head. "It may soon be prudent to remove it," Einstein replies. He disappears, and Staleek becomes unstuck. He asks Crichton if he truly cannot create wormhole weapons, but Crichton says they should get back, before Rygel damages his wife. Sikozu is trying to convince Aeryn that their best opportunity to escape is if Crichton walks through the doors. Aeryn refuses without her child. Crichton returns, saying he saw wreckage on the outside. Aeryn says they killed Chiana and D'Argo. She tells him that Yondalao is not yet ready, but Crichton says Staleek is going to give them Rygel. Scorpius says he's traded ultimate power for an unborn offspring, but Crichton says no, saying he has nothing to give, so all the chasing round the galaxy, Chiana and D'Argo dying, has all been for nothing. Sikozu says they still have no way out, but Aeryn points out Yondalao, who is now emitting a purple glow. The Scarran nurse is about to kill Rygel, but Staleek intervenes, asking whose orders override his. She says she had no choice, but Staleek kills her. He tells Rygel he will die when he orders it. Staleek finds Ahkna, and angrily tells her that if the Hynerian had died his word would mean nothing. Ahkna says that given the Luxan ship she discovered, the presence of Scorpius, and the ability of these creatures to continually resist should mean they die for the Scarrans' security. Staleek points out that Scorpius was a Commander for the Peacekeepers, and Aeryn a former pilot, so says who knows how much information could be coerced from them. She says it's not worth the risk, but he tells her to stop seeing vipers in every shadow. He grabs her, and tells her aggressively to never countermand his orders again. Chiana and D'Argo float in space, where they kiss, before she appears to lose consciousness. Staleek returns Rygel to the crew, and says that his portion of the accord has been maintained, but beyond it he promises nothing. Yondalao approaches Staleek, saying he wishes power, acknowledgement of his personal intelligence, and to gain acceptance in the upper echelon of civilisation. He says there are many paths for Staleek to accomplish his aims. "War is out path. At the peace table we know how we're viewed; brutish, ignorant," Staleek says. Yondalao says then the greatest victory would be to prove them wrong, and without the loss of a single Scarran life. On the command carrier, Maryk talks of Scorpius' obsession with Crichton, asking Grayza if she didn't tell him Crichton's weapon was a myth. Grayza says that was her belief, but this moment is not without opportunity. He says that knowing the Emperor's location allows them to negotiate a treaty before their position becomes so laughable. Grayza mixes something in his drink, and says it also gives them the opportunity to surprise the Scarran leader and decapitate his Empire. Maryk says he will not be remembered in history as the Commander under which Peacekeeperdom fell. He sips her drink, and falls to the floor. "No my love, you will not," Grayza tells him, "Because despite your station, you are weak. I say again that which I have said before. Death is preferable to subjugation under Scarran rule. They must be defeated." Chiana and D'Argo awake aboard a Luxan ship, having been rescued by Jothee. He is now a Field Officer, in charge of the ship, and is greeted by a punch from his father. Chiana asks if they shouldn't be running, but Jothee says the Scarrans can't detect them. He says they've been following the Emperor for some time, and then there they were. He says they have to take the crown head out, and D'Argo shows them Chiana's method to penetrate the ship. With Rygel laying beside them, Aeryn, Scorpius, Yondalao, Sikozu, Staleek and Crichton are sitting around talking and drinking. Stark collects the drinks from them. Yondalao asks Staleek to review the accord that he wishes them to agree to. Staleek says that at the core of the matter is the perception that Crichton can create wormhole weapons, and if he proposes an armistice to the Peacekeepers with Crichton by his side, they will assume he has bestowed a military edge upon them. Scorpius says the Grand Chancellor is no fool, and he would agree to peace. Staleek says he would propose an accord that favours the Scarrans in mining rights and trade balance, whilst allowing complete self-rule of all Peacekeeper territories. He adds that Crichton will be released upon the signing. The peace doesn't last long, though, as Ahkna kills Yondalao unexpectedly, asking Staleek if he really wishes to broker peace with an enemy he is certain to destroy. Staleek tells Yondalao to free his mind of a prayer, and leaves in anger. Stark says Yondalao is passing over, and Crichton tells him to give him last rights. Stark refuses, but Crichton says he can take his gift and protect it. Stark is forced to pass him over by Crichton, Aeryn and Sikozu, and everyone is thrown back as he receives the knowledge. Rygel starts convulsing, and Aeryn says they will have to transfer the baby now. Before they can get the kit, gas begins to fill the room with gas that Scarrans use on specimens they wish to dissect while still alive. "You've ruined my life," Aeryn tells John. "I know." We return to the scene of John in the bed on Moya. We hear Aeryn's voice, with a baby in the background. "This war is not your responsibility," she says. We hear Crichton, "How am I supposed to protect you from the Peacekeepers and the Scarrans and the Tregans and the lions and tigers and bears?" "This is what you want. This is what you want," Aeryn says. "No Aeryn, it is not what I want. It's just that fate keeps blocking all the exits and no matter what I do I just keep circling closer to the flame." A wormhole weapon briefly appears, devouring a ship. + +Gas continues to fill the room, as Rygel begins to convulse. Aeryn Sun lifts Rygel up above the fumes, while John Crichton asks if the gas is combustible. Scorpius says it is at high temperatures, to which Crichton asks Sikozu if she can ignite it. She says she can, but the fumes are scrambling her receptors. Crichton helps lift her to the ceiling, where she tells everyone to find cover, and rips a flameball from her hand, shooting it towards the exit, blowing it open. Staleek asks what the explosion was, as Ahkna and his crew hurry to figure it out. On the Luxan ship, Jothee detects the explosion from the Decimator, and the ship makes itself visible, launching an attack on the vessel's weak spots. Crichton and the others leave the room through the new hole, with Scorpius carrying Sikozu. Aeryn gathers some weapons from the Charrids, while Scorpius points out that more than weapons; they need a plan. Rygel is still worse for wear, and says they have to transfer the baby now. Ka D'Argo comms in, to which Crichton asks how they are alive. D'Argo says it's a long story, but asks if they want a ride. Crichton is confused, since Lo'La was destroyed, but D'Argo says it'll be a big surprise. The Luxan ship breaks through the side of the Decimator, and the crew lead an attack, with Jothee telling Chiana to call Peacekeeper Command to confirm their coordinates. Crichton is trying to transfer the baby to Aeryn, as Scorpius and Sikozu provide cover. Crichton says he has to hurry, as he's losing a pulse. Ahkna is making her way to their position, as they continue to hold off the Scarrans and Charrids. Aeryn begins jolting as Crichton continues the procedure, but when he asks if she's okay, she tells him, "I'm pregnant." They're happy, and kiss, but Sikozu and Scorpius are running out of ammunition. Stark starts spazzing about what is now in his head, as the Luxans appear below them. They try to shoot open a hatch, but it's no use. Aeryn says it's pulse resistant, so Scorpius removes his cooling rod and throws it on the hatch, burning a hole in it. Aeryn jumps down first, and gives D'Argo a kiss. "You look great," he tells her. "I'm pregnant again." Stark goes next, then Sikozu, then Rygel is thrown down. Crichton jumps down next, landing in front of Jothee. "Holy crap! It's good to see you, Jothee?" he says to D'Argo. Scorpius is last down, and the crew move out while continuing to fire. Staleek tells his people to repair the ship immediately, as the Peacekeeper armada is sure to be on its way there. Everyone makes it back on board the Luxan ship, though one of the soldiers is shot by a Scarran. "You guys are a mess!" Chiana says to them all. The ship detaches from the Decimator, and leaves. Crichton tells Jothee he's grown, while Aeryn asks D'Argo if this was a planned reunion, which is met with silence. Crichton asks if the Luxans have any backup out there, but Jothee says the Scarrans can't maneuver or fire, so they're good to go. On the Decimator, Staleek turns to Ahkna as he hears that the Peacekeeper armada has been detected on the outer perimeter of the system, and Ahkna just bows her head in shame. As Sikozu repairs Scorpius' coolant system on Moya, she asks when they will stop following Crichton and start to impose their agenda on him. "We already have," Scorpius answers, but Sikozu says he insists he can't build a wormhole weapon, Scorpius replies, "Human insistence; nothing more than a futile attempt to avoid action they insist they will never take!" "He will help us?" Sikozu asks. "Never. But he will help Aeryn and his new child." The Luxan ship leaves Moya and D'Argo asks to speak to Jothee. He's not on the comms, though, he's still on Moya. D'Argo says that Chiana was the first person since Jothee's mother that he really cared about, and Jothee says he's glad D'Argo and Chiana are back together. D'Argo tells Jothee that trust takes time and Jothee agrees. Crichton sits in front of his chessboard, contemplating the wormhole weapon, as Aeryn lies pregnant on the bed. Stark is heavily distressed and we hear his whimpers as Crichton goes to his module. He departs Moya, and Aeryn and D'Argo try to speak to him, but he turns off his comms and flies into the wormhole that appears. On the command carrier, the Peacekeepers are watching a transmission from Braca on the planet, saying they are no longer able to defend it from the Scarran vanguard. One of the officers tells Mele-On Grayza that Grand Chancellor Maryk is dead, which she says is a great tragedy for their people, and tells him to arrange a ship-wide memorial service, then orders him to set course for Captain Braca's location. The officer says that High Command is sending the Vice-Chancellor. "Don't let the belly fool you, Lieutenant," Grayza tells him, making sure he remembers she's a Commandant, and so is the highest-ranking officer in the battle group. She says to send apologies to the Vice-Chancellor for the extra distance he will have to travel. Ahkna tells Staleek his assumption was correct; her spy informs her that the water planet is populated by a species called Eidelons. Staleek orders them to go all speed to the water planet, as Crichton is no longer their only threat. "Inform me when every single Eidelon is dead," he says menacingly. Crichton returns to Einstein's iceberg. He calls Einstein, saying it's time. "Unlock the knowledge; I have to make peace," Crichton tells him. A familiar exchange takes place. "Time?" Einstein asks. "Flies," Crichton responds. "Time." "Bandits." "Time." "Wounds all heals." "Time." "Rosemary and" "Time." "Time ends," Crichton says, and Einstein reaches out his arm. Crichton returns to Moya, where he's drowsy. Scorpius sees him in the corridor, and knows immediately that Crichton now possesses the knowledge of a wormhole weapon. Harvey speaks to Crichton, with plans for a wormhole weapon. Crichton says he didn't get this for him, but Harvey says this project is for both of them, and points out a billboard proclaiming a Harvey & John's Constructions and Engineering bringing wormhole weapons to the stars this year. Aeryn meets up with Crichton as he reaches their quarters, saying she didn't want him to go to Einstein. Crichton says she did, as everyone wanted to see the big wormhole weapon. Aeryn says she wanted to see the war ended through peace, but Crichton says that is unrealistic, and looks for his pen. "This is what you want, this is what you want," Aeryn says. "No, Aeryn, it is not what I want. It's just that fate keeps blocking all the exits and no matter what I do I just keep circling closer to the flame!" "Then pull back," Aeryn says, "This war is not your responsibility." Crichton says that she and the baby are his responsibility, and asks how he is supposed to protect them from everyone. He says that no gun is big enough. Aeryn says they still have Stark and the Eidelons, but Crichton says it's not enough, but his knowledge is. He says it will protect her and the baby. "Ah, but you see. You don't just protect me. We protect each other," Aeryn tells him. Aeryn suddenly feels a kick, and says she can really feel the baby alive inside of her. Rygel is crying, as Chiana attempts to feed Stark, who is in an apparent trance. Jothee says he doesn't remember Rygel being like this. "Toad, what's with the water works?" Chiana asks. "I miss the baby," weeps Rygel. Stark softly says that Rygel is suffering withdrawal but will recover, and adds that he is quite fine. Crichton shows Pilot some equations, saying he can't do it without his and Moya's help. But Pilot says he understands it will be used as a weapon, and it can kill tens of thousands. He asks if Crichton is capable of using it, and when Crichton says yes, Pilot says he doesn't know him as he thought. Crichton pulls out his pulse pistol, asking Pilot what you do if someone puts a gun to your head. "You defend yourself," he says. Pilot says no one has a weapon pointed to his head, which Crichton rebuts. Pilot says there are other options, but Crichton tells him to explain that to the tens of millions of people who will die in the meantime. Pilot asks if that's truly his concern, or if it's Aeryn and his unborn offspring he wishes to protect. Crichton says that's his family, adding that everything begins with family. Moya exits starburst, and is immediately attacked by Scarrans. They are caught in the crossfire, and Pilot reports that the Eidelon city is also under attack. Moya decides to make a hasty exit and descends into the atmosphere and crashes on the Qujagan ocean bed. Rygel asks if Moya can do this, and D'Argo says that she should be water tight. Sikozu points out that the pressure differential underwater compared to the vacuum of space is huge; they will flood. Water has begun to penetrate Moya, and Pilot says Sikozu's assessment is accurate -- many tiers are taking on water. Aeryn says they still have the Eidelons, and Crichton says they'll take a transport pod to the surface, which Sikozu says she will make watertight. As Moya begins to creak, Crichton notices that Stark is absent. Pilot can't locate him, and Chiana says he went crazy when he heard the Scarrans attacking the Eidelons. They form a search, as Aeryn goes to raid the armory for weapons. They can't locate him, and Crichton says he knows what it's like to have something in your head everyone wants, and that shouldn't have been there in the first place, vowing to get it out. The Peacekeepers report that their Carrier is approaching the water planet, where one damaged Carrier is being bombarded. When Grayza is told they haven't located the Scarran Emperor's vessel, but do still have the element of surprise, she orders them to attack all ships equally, as shock wears off quickly. While the search for Stark continues, Chiana tells D'Argo that although she often says she'll do something and then change her mind completely, she says she is going to go to Hyneria with him. "You know why?" she asks. "Because you like Hynerians." "Not so much," she answers, "but I like you," and the two kiss. Aeryn is sitting in Pilot's den, telling her baby what all the different sounds are. Pilot asks if she's alright when the baby kicks, then tells her they said no to Crichton. She says she knows. "Moya and I will have no part to mass murder," he tells her. "None of us want to, Pilot," Aeryn tells him, "but if we don't, the outcome will be worse." Pilot asks if Stark and the Eidelons aren't preferable, and while Aeryn agrees she says she's not sure they can do it. "You know we all want the same thing, Pilot. Peace." D'Argo finds Stark, who apologizes for mindlessly running. Stark says he's surprisingly fine, given the responsibility that now lies within him, reaffirming that he has Yondalao's knowledge. D'Argo tries to convince Stark they have to go, but Stark just mentions more water, as more comes crashing through the room, throwing them into the air. Crichton and Chiana run to the chamber, where Chiana finds D'Argo unconscious. Crichton finds Stark underwater, while D'Argo tells Chiana he saw the most amazing thing before he almost died: a big well of water in the ground as his nose was scraping along the floor, which makes Chiana laugh. Crichton points out the change of color in Stark's light, which Stark says is because of the Eidelon knowledge. He adds that he is not afraid anymore. Staleek arrives at the water planet, to see Maryk's ship on assault. He tells Ahkna to get them into the battle, adding that nothing matters but the Grand Chancellor's Carrier. As the crew step off the transport, Aeryn says it's beyond her why women would choose to be pregnant more than once. "They say three is the magic number," Crichton replies. "Three is a scary number," she says, as Scarran fighters swoop over the city. Chiana asks where the Eidelons are, Jothee comms his men, who come over a wall. They report that the Scarrans control the whole city, and the isolated pockets of Peacekeepers are being steadily neutralized. The rest of their men are searching for survivors. Scorpius calls Braca, who is happy to hear from him. He and some Peacekeepers and Eidelons are holding out in the great temple, with their requests for reinforcements going unheeded. The crew head to their location, as Jothee leaves to find the rest of his men. Staleek asks Ahkna why they can't immolate the city, and tells her that he wants every single Eidelon eliminated. He pushes her onto his thrown, saying that the chair becomes her. He says that reports on their arrival suggest Crichton and the Leviathan perished in the ocean, and asks if she agrees. She says she'd rather have his head as proof. Staleek says that once the Peacekeepers are defeated, he intends to oversee large galactic governance issues. "Bring me Crichton's head, and all differences between us will be resolved, paving the way for you to assume my position, Empress Ahkna." The crew can see the destruction the Scarrans' have caused, and their extermination path. Rygel tells Crichton and Aeryn he wants them to name the baby after him. "Maybe, if it's a girl," Aeryn answers. As they overlook the ocean from a bridge, Crichton says it's their meet-up point as it's a good place for Moya to pick them up with the docking web. As they walk through the burning streets, Rygel says he dreads his cities looking like this. They soon reach a spot where Crichton uncovers Grunchlk, who says he's not a traitor. Aeryn asks if he's signaled anyone else, but he says he's been trying to get away, and points to a Scarran transmitter on his back. He tries to convince the crew of his innocence, so D'Argo says they'll either kill him or take him with them, and they choose the latter. Just then, a group of Charrids and Scarrans patrols right by them, forcing them to cover. They let them go by, then move to the temple, where Braca and his men await. They give Scorpius the latest report on who is there, while Sgt. Learko has a Peacekeeper keep watch on Grunchlk. Ahkna and some troops walks the streets, reporting to Staleek that her spy is trapped in one of the city's largest edifices, with Crichton. Stark goes to train Muoma in the Eidelon ways, while Scorpius says they need a plan. Braca tells them that Grayza is focusing on other issues now that the Grand Chancellor is dead, while Aeryn says they should maintain operations silence and fortify their defences. She looks down and calls John, as a puddle has formed below her. Crichton tells her that her water broke, which means the baby's coming. The Diagnosan comes over and says it's big, but Aeryn says it's a bad time. She suggests disassembling the weaker munitions for more firepower, as Sikozu says they'll be in trouble shortly. Ahkna approaches, and tells her warriors that when they attack, the Peacekeeper female is to be left to her. D'Argo tells Crichton that Pilot said he won't be ready until dawn. Crichton goes to Aeryn and asks if there's anything he can do to help. When she asks how long it will take, and he replies on Earth it can be days, she says she has killed men for less. Grunchlk shouts that baby birthing was not part of the original agreement, and says they'll be re-negotiating. Stark tells Crichton he has prepared the Eidelons as best he can, and when they finish meditating, Muoma opens her face to reveal her third eye, and Stark shines his light into it. She receives a jolt, and says the legends are true, Yondalao's knowledge lies within her. It has completely left Stark, but she thinks she can educate the others. The problem is, there's not enough of them. Crichton comms Jothee, but Noranti answers. She's rescuing Eidelons, as Jothee put her in charge, while he went on reconnaissance. Any Eidelon that isn't dead is with her. There's over one hundred, which Muoma says would be enough if they were reunited. Crichton congratulates Stark on his good job. As the Scarran forces get into position, Aeryn is distressed, and the Diagnosan tells Crichton that the baby's turned round and is now tangled in the cord, so it must be turned. But before the Diagnosan can do it, he is shot in the head. As the gunfire continues, Crichton calls over Chiana to help Aeryn. She is reluctant, but despite her past experience birthing Talyn, he is adamant she help. Scorpius says their options are limited, as the fighting continues. Sikozu says they could break; some make it, some don't. Since Pilot isn't ready, they have to stay. Aeryn continues firing her pulse rifle as Chiana tries to turn the baby. She calls Crichton over, who convinces Aeryn to let him be the one giving cover, so she turns round and lets Chiana move the baby. Jothee comms Crichton to say they've found a big Scarran transport, and it should hold all the Eidelons. As the fighting continues, one of the Scarrans tells Ahkna he believes one of their transports has been taken, but she says they have others, so they can ignore it. As the Scarrans and Charrids charge, Scorpius tells them to fall back and fortify their positions. Chiana tells Aeryn she has to get in a nearby fountain, as it's cleaner and safer for the baby. After another round of gunplay, the crew manage to get the door closed again, but Aeryn refuses to get in the fountain when they're done shooting. Scorpius orders his men about after having paid close attention to Sikozu during the last exchange. He tells Sikozu he has something for her to do, and they leave together. Crichton checks on Stark and the Eidelons, who are OK, and Muoma says it's an arn at most until first light. Chiana calls Crichton to get some raslak, which she promptly swigs herself. She tells Crichton to get Aeryn in the fountain, and then says she's done. Scorpius is in a dark corner with Sikozu, and grabs her head. "I've never met a spy more resourceful, more tenacious." He pulls a Scarran comms device from her back. She asks how long he's known, to which he says, "Long enough for you to serve as my desires." He says her desires no longer serve his needs. She tells him the Scarrans promised to free her people from their servitude, but Scorpius says they will not, and tells her that she has ruined something unique. Crichton has Aeryn in the fountain, and gets her to cut open her clothes for the birth. Crichton asks if they have a plan, but Braca says they can't withstand another assault. D'Argo agrees, and says to bring every weapon they have to go on the offensive. Scorpius returns, and Braca asks where Sikozu is. Scorpius tells him that she's on her last mission, for the Scarrans. As the firing continues, Crichton tries to get Aeryn to push. She suddenly calls for Stark, and asks him to marry them now. Rygel comes over and coughs up Crichton's mother's ring, which he'd been keeping in his stomach. Stark recites a Sheyang prayer for the dead, prompting a slap from Aeryn. When he recites a Delvian puberty rite, he gets another, so third time he just asks if they love each other, enough to be married forever. When they agree, he says they are, and Crichton puts the ring on Aeryn's finger and the two kiss. Rygel is hit by the debris from another shot, so D'Argo gives Stark a bag to carry him in. Jothee tells D'Argo he can't make it to them, as Aeryn gives birth to a baby boy. Aeryn breaks their kiss to ask if Crichton can get them out of here, and he agrees. The crew force their way out all guns blazing, causing Ahkna to order her forces to fall back, and ambush them in the street. Grunchlk is seen crawling along the floor by Sikozu, who suddenly pulls her head up and just looks at him. The crew advance through the streets, but Aeryn realizes it's too quiet, and they are ambushed amidst explosions and forced into a building. Ahkna tells her forces to supply the troops in the buildings with missiles. Braca attempts to take some Peacekeepers to a building across the street to set up crossfire, but ends up being shot in the knees. Jothee arrives on the scene in the Scarran transport, and provides some firepower from the air. After several large explosions, he leaves with the Eidelons, after saying a brief goodbye to D'Argo. Crichton and Aeryn kiss, and Aeryn rejoins the others to wait for Crichton's signal. As they move out, a sniper shoots and more Scarrans and Charrids attack. As a Scarran with a huge spear approaches Chiana, D'Argo pushes her out of the way and is skewered in the process. Chiana attacks that Scarran, after D'Argo pulls the spear out, and gets caught. As Crichton helps her, War Minister Ahkna grabs him from behind. "At least you die," she tells him, but she is shot by Aeryn. "It's a boy," she says, "In case you were wondering." Crichton says they need to get to the meeting point, and Aeryn signals to the others. As they move out, D'Argo falls to the floor. Aeryn is the first to notice, and goes over to him. "Can you make it?" she asks, to which he shakes his head. Chiana calls to hurry up, and Aeryn doesn't know how to react. She runs over, telling D'Argo to hurry, and Aeryn gets up and leaves. "Someone's got to stay here, it may as well be me," D'Argo tells Chiana. She tells him they'll fix him up, and gets continuously more distressed. D'Argo tells her to go to Moya, because the wound won't heal and can't be fixed. Stark lays Rygel down beside him, and offers to take his pain. D'Argo says no, and Chiana pushes him away. "Pain is good, it means I'm still alive," D'Argo says. Rygel places his hand on D'Argo's arm, looking somber. Stark offers to help D'Argo to the other side, but D'Argo refuses, so Stark takes Rygel and leaves. Chiana tries to get him to go, but he tells her to get him some pulse rifles. Crichton walks over, and hands D'Argo his pulse pistol. "It's gonna get ugly here soon," D'Argo says, "You better get going." "You're the closest friend I have," Crichton says. "You could've done better." "Nowhere in the universe," Crichton replies. "You've got a lot of life to lead John. Do big things." Crichton nods, and D'Argo takes his hand. "Do me a favor," he asks, "Chiana" "I'll look after her. I'll take care, nothing's going to happen to her," Crichton tells him, but D'Argo is quick to tell him, "Go away; I want to speak to Chiana!" The two laugh, but Chiana comes over telling them not to laugh, and pushing Crichton away. "D'Argo, please," she says, "Don't die." "We all die," he replies. He forces her to take his Qualta Blade, and asks Crichton to take her. "Don't leave me," Chiana says. "I'll find you," he replies. "I love you." "I'll find you," he repeats. "First Scarran you see," Crichton says as he grabs Chiana, "You tell him who his daddy is!" Crichton pulls Chiana away as she screams. Moya ascends to the surface, and tells the crew they'll only get one chance at this. Crichton tells them all to prepare to jump, as it'll be safer to fall into the docking web than be scooped up. Rygel tells Aeryn to give him the baby, as he'll be safer that way, since Rygel will be hovering. Aeryn hands him over, telling Rygel, "I trust you." We see and hear D'Argo's last stand, as he tells the attackers, "I'm your daddy!" With that, everyone climbs the wall and jumps into Moya's docking web. Moya escapes the atmosphere amongst the fighting, and tells the crew Jothee is safe. Chiana is distraught over the loss of D'Argo, while Crichton and Scorpius head to Command. On entering, Crichton is met with the wormhole weapon, which Pilot had the DRDs build to his specification, and it is operational. Pilot says they can't run because Moya is too damaged. Crichton tells Jothee to cut loose, and doesn't answer when he asks if everyone is safe. Chiana stabs D'Argo's Qualta Blade into one of Moya's controls, and goes to attack Rygel. She says that she doesn't care now D'Argo is dead, and Pilot is shocked by the news. Aeryn asks Crichton if there's any other way, and he doesn't see one. He says it's worse than she thinks, but she tells him to do what he has to do. Crichton gets inside the device, and forces Scorpius to say "please" and "pretty please" to see it. Crichton fires the weapon, and what begins as a small black hole begins to grow faster and faster, consuming all in its path. It takes in the ships, and even begins to rip apart the planet. Neither Grayza or Staleek listen initially, ordering their ships to reverse while continuing to fire. But when they realize that their ships can't move, they begin to listen, though they do not believe Crichton will go through with it. Crichton tells them that wormholes only make total annihilation, and that people make peace. When the rest of the crew says how they would rather be destroyed by the wormhole than live in the war, Staleek and Grayza agree. But when Crichton climbs in the machine and stops it, Einstein appears and removes the knowledge from his mind. He falls out of the device seemingly in a coma, and Aeryn is distressed. As he lies unconscious in a bed, Staleek and Grayza sign the peace treaty in the presence of the Eidelons, and Scorpius who is beaming with glee at both leaders. Stark visits Crichton, saying that he leaves every one of their encounters changed, and this time is no different, as he has found his own internal peace. He removes his mask, revealing that he no longer has the light, and leaves his mask with Crichton when he leaves. Chiana tells Jothee that she is still going to Hyneria and offers him D'Argo's Qualta Blade, which Jothee doesn't take at first. He does eventually take the blade just before the scene changes. Crichton has one last Harvey vision, as Harvey says his goodbyes, since his eradication program will wipe out his existence. Aeryn tells Crichton that it almost took losing the baby to fully understand motherhood, and she loves it. But she says she will not take it as a trade-off for losing him, and rests the child down next to his father. Crichton wakes up, and starts talking to the baby, as Aeryn looks on with joy. Crichton and Aeryn take their baby to a room with a window, where they talk about the stars and naming them. Aeryn says that they want to give him a name that means courage and strength, so they've chosen the name D'Argo Sun-Crichton. Crichton tells him that they don't know what is in store, but he will never walk alone, and god willing will never know war. He lifts D'Argo up towards the expanse of space and the stars in the window, and says "this is your playground." +