The Outer Limits (1995–2002): Season 1, Episode 4 - The Second Soul - full transcript
When an alien race makes first contact with the Earth, they request only one thing: Earth's dead. It seems the alien beings exist in a gaseous state that will come to an end if they are not given host bodies to occupy. The bodies of the dead will serve that function. One year later, Dr. Michael Alders is in charge of the program to provide the aliens with bodies. He considers them them to be parasites but carries on as best he can. When his best friends, Karen and James Heatherton die and are included in the program, his discomfort grows. When he learns however that the aliens have transported potentially toxic gases to Earth, he assumes the worse.
(announcer)
This is the news special
with david aftergood.
It's 3:00
on what might well be
the most important afternoon
in the history of this world.
Humanity's first contact with
an extraterrestrial species.
Sources tell newsline
this broadcast is
a result of weeks of
communication between
U.N. officials
and representatives
of an alien race identifying
themselves as the N'Tal.
That's a live satellite feed
of the alien mothership
in orbit,
where the N'Tal
have said they will speak
to the people of earth.
With us is Secretary of State,
Randall Kelly,
who is like all of us awaiting
this first direct message
from the N'Tal.
Mr. Secretary, despite all
the radio diplomacy,
we've heard that
the secret service
will not let you
or the president come into
direct contact with the N'Tal.
What does this bode
for the safety
of the entire planet?
David, I've heard
these rumors
and that's all they are.
The N'Tal have never given
any indication
of hostile intent.
Pardon me, Mr. Secretary.
We're receiving
the transmission.
(aftergood)
We're seeing some sort
of vapor.
I don't know, uh,
a gas or something.
Wait, something is happening.
(Kadmis)
I am Kadmis,
the sole surviving
member of the peerage,
the ruling council
of the N'Tal.
This is Secretary
of State Kelly.
On behalf of
the united nations
and the United States
of America,
i offer our warm greetings
and welcome to the N'Tal
from the people of earth.
I wish we were coming
to you as explorers,
adventurers seeking out
other life forms
for the pleasures
of mutual discovery.
Instead, we come
to you as refugees.
Exiles from a planet
rendered uninhabitable
by our own negligence.
We've come to earth
seeking help.
What--what do you need
from us?
Your dead.
Give us your dead.
(male narrator)
There is nothing wrong
with your television.
Do not attempt
to adjust the picture.
We are now controlling
the transmission.
We control the horizontal
and the vertical.
We can deluge you
with a thousand channels
or expand one single image
to crystal clarity
and beyond.
We can shape your vision
to anything our imagination
can conceive.
For the next hour,
we will control
all that you see and hear.
You are about to experience
the awe and mystery
which reaches from
the deepest inner mind
to The Outer Limits.
[whooshing]
(narrator)
Contact happened
exactly one year ago.
And the world
changed forever.
The line between
life and death was blurred,
crossed, then totally erased.
Not through
devine intervention,
but another force
from the heavens.
A force greeted not with
rapture, but with fear.
[siren wailing]
[people shouting]
(woman #1)
Grave robber.
(woman #2)
Get out of here!
Dead trader!
How could you?
Giving off dead!
Body snatcher!
(woman #3)
Grave robber!
Dr. Alders,
what's your reaction
to this demonstration?
My reaction to being
spat upon
is about what yours
would be, I imagine.
Excuse me.
(aftergood)
It's been a year since
the arrival of the N'Tal,
but the controversy
surrounding them
refuses to die.
On this edition of newsline...
[sighs]
Just the way I like
to start out my day.
Oh, nancy.
Dr. Alders,
are you alright?
I'm delightful. Tell Jeffrey
I'd like to see him.
He's on his way in.
Our first guest today
has a unique perspective.
Her name used to be
cheryl mcrae.
She died of an embolism
2 months ago
and was reanimated
shortly thereafter.
Your name now is...
Call me Jaru.
[knocking on door]
Jaru, protests against
the N'Tal have intensified,
and many of
the reanimated N'Tal
have received death threats.
What are
your thoughts on this?
(Jaru)
Those people are afraid,
and fear translates here
as it does throughout
the universe into hatred.
Don't they have justification
for their fear?
Your people are,
by nature, parasites.
We prefer
the term, symbiote.
I've had enough of this.
Whatever you call it.
New status report.
That's good.
Ok.
2000 bodies
processed last week.
A third eliminated
right off the bat,
internal injuries
too extensive.
Another third, cancer, aids,
other blood-related diseases.
That's only 600
suitable body donors.
That's not good.
Well, there is a guy
in Davenport, Iowa,
who is volunteering
his body.
Only trouble is,
he's still alive.
[both chuckle]
Well, he's not alone.
There's a whole cult of them
now in new mexico.
They think if they bond
with the parasites,
they'll be elevated
to a higher spiritual level.
[chuckles]
Well, suicide rate
has gone up
since the aliens arrived.
I don't want to think
about this, Jeffrey.
What else?
Councilor Kadmis would like
to speak with you.
He says he has more concerns.
(Kadmis)
Michael, you must understand,
my people cannot exist
without host bodies
for more than 1 or 2
of your years.
There are 200,000 N'Tal
in this ship,
and of them, I estimate,
a third will not survive
longer than 6 months.
Councillor, most deaths
in this country
are the result of major trauma
or systemic disease.
It's not our fault that
your science can't regenerate
more than 1
or 2 organs at a time.
I'm not placing blame,
Michael,
just trying to impress you
with the urgency
of our situation.
Consider me impressed.
You've helped save
tens of thousands
of N'Tal already, Michael.
It's not that we
don't appreciate your efforts.
I don't need appreciation.
The president asked me
to do this job.
I am doing it.
I saw the protests
outside your office
this morning, Michael,
are you unhurt?
I'm fine.
I'll fax you
the current status report
within the hour.
Alders, out.
[laughs]
♪ ♪ [piano playing]
Last time I remember
you having 2 drinks
before dinner
was back in the old
frat-house days.
Well, I don't plan
to make a habit of it,
but it's been
a bitch of a day.
I don't know which are worse,
congress or the leeches.
I thought they were
the same thing.
Leeches? The N'Tal?
Now, that's a new one.
Well, what would you
call them?
They're parasites.
On their home planet,
they took over the bodies
of the most promising mammals.
Dominated a sentient species
for god's sake.
I didn't know you
hated them so much.
♪ ♪ [piano playing]
In pre-med we studied
certain diptera.
Flies which lay eggs
inside cattle and sheep.
Sometimes in open wounds.
The larvae hatch,
then feed on the flesh,
literally eating
the animal alive.
The first time I saw
the N'Tal take over
a human body,
I thought of that.
I can't help feeling
we're just cattle to them.
Well, how would you like
your hamburger cooked?
[laughs]
Why'd you take this job?
Well, I'm an oncologist.
I've fought death
all of my life,
most of the time
I've lost miserably.
The N'Tal don't just
cheat death, they defeat it.
Their cellular regeneration
is limited,
but the potential is enormous.
And they allow me
to study it in hopes
that it might someday
be adapted to living humans.
It's too important not to do.
But that doesn't mean
I have to like
the miserable leeches.
Oh, they're not leeches.
They're more like ghosts.
Ghosts who come back to life.
Hmm.
Yeah.
Sanitarium in upstate
new york, fire broke out,
43 fatalities,
smoke inhalation,
mostly requiring
minimal regeneration, luckily.
Yeah, lucky bastards.
[sighs]
(Kadmis)
No, we have been
over this before, Michael,
bodies with neurological
defects are unacceptable.
The N'Tal inhabiting them
would suffer from
the same mental deficits
as the original owners.
Yes, they would.
So what, for god's sake,
isn't that a small price
to pay for life?
Don't tell me about
the price for life, Michael.
I just watched
my oldest friend
die before my eyes.
Damning me with
his dying breath.
I know only too well
what the price can be.
I'm sorry. I didn't know.
Your friend?
There was no body
available for him?
There were bodies,
but there are also
other N'Tal
younger, stronger,
better able to
make the transfer.
It's not an easy thing
deciding who must live
and who must die.
[phone beeps]
Nancy, please don't
interrupt me. I am...
Ok, put him on.
Jim, what?
Michael, I, uh,
I need your help.
Jim, what is it?
What's wrong?
A car, it um,
ran a red light
and sideswiped us.
Jim, is Karen all right?
Michael, you gotta
help me, man.
Just help me.
My god.
Michael? What is it,
what is wrong, Michael?
There's an old
commendatory prayer that says,
life is eternal
and love is immortal,
and death is only a horizon.
And a horizon is nothing
save the limit of our sight.
Karen Heatherton is beyond
the limit of our sight,
but never beyond
the limits of our heart.
♪ ♪ [church organ playing]
[people chattering]
[cries]
Michael, for god's sake,
can't you do something?
Mike, uh, at least
let me see her again.
I know it won't really
be her, but I just want
to see her breathe again,
walk again.
Jim, you can't.
Policy prohibits
relatives seeing--
You make the policy,
you're my best friend.
You can make an exception
for me, come on.
Please,
don't let my last memory
of her be like--like this.
Let me remember her
like she was.
That's all I'm asking.
One last look.
[gasps]
[heart beating]
I gotta go talk to her.
It's against the rules.
Forget the rules.
I wanna go talk to her.
Jim, no.
Councilor, I'm sorry
to have been out of touch
these last few days.
No apologies
necessary, Michael.
I heard about your friend,
I'm very sorry.
Thanks.
If it's any comfort to you,
her death was
not entirely in vain.
Thanks to her sacrifice,
someone else will live.
That is no damn
comfort at all.
I'm--I'm sorry.
I did not mean to--
Tell me, Kadmis.
What do your people
really know about
death anyway?
One host body dies,
you go on to the next.
For how long?
And how old are you,
Kadmis?
In earth years?
Just an estimate.
It would likely be
measured in centuries.
You're the ultimate
disposable culture.
Cast off your bodies like
you would a suit of clothes.
Except this time
the parasites get a taste
of what true death is like.
It is a little late
in the game,
but you finally learned
what mortality is.
Well, excuse me,
for not giving a damn.
You call us parasites.
Perhaps we are.
That is our nature,
but you tell me, Michael,
are we really so different
from you?
You've wiped out dozens
of species, plant and animal,
in your drive to dominate
your world.
What do you call it?
Natural selection?
And how many millions
of your own species
have died in the name
of your manifest destiny?
Like your original natives
of your own continent
who were slaughtered
for the simple misfortune
of having been there first.
Perhaps we are more alike
than you'd like
to believe, Michael.
We cannot help being
what we are
any more than you can.
We've made mistakes,
tragic mistakes,
just as you have,
but you have the benefit of
learning from our mistakes.
The knowledge we bring
can help reverse
the ecological damage
to your world
so that in the future
your people will not have to
flee to the stars
to search for another home.
Michael, the most either of us
can do is to hope
that our intelligence
triumphs most of the time
over our instincts.
This was a mistake.
I shouldn't have spoken
with you this soon--
Both of us have been shaken
in recent days.
And you are right,
death is new to us.
Few of us have been
this close to it before.
It is frightening to feel it
hovering so near.
Kadmis?
Are you all right?
I have been
without a host body
for close to 2 years.
But surely you're
on the list?
Yes, but I have
no special privilege.
Michael, do you suppose
that human souls
and those of N'Tal
go to the same place
when they die?
I don't know.
If they do, I shall look
for your friend,
and tell her
how much she is missed.
[bird chirping]
Oh, hi.
Hi.
Um, is he around?
No, he's in the cold room.
Didn't I tell you that
this morning?
Uh, yeah you did, sorry.
Um, do you mind if I wait?
Oh, no, not at all.
Come in.
Can I get you something?
No, I'm fine, thanks.
That's a nice jacket, nance.
Oh, thank you.
Yeah.
[door closes]
[beeping]
Ravil? Is that you?
[bird cawing]
♪ ♪ [playing]
[all chattering]
(Jim)
You don't cut it,
you pick it up
with your hands.
I wasn't sure. Thank you.
You look familiar.
I saw you in
the observation room
when I made the transfer.
Jim Heatherton.
She was your wife.
Would--would you mind
if I joined you
just for, uh, a moment?
Uh, I'm not a crackpot.
Uh, a crazy person.
I just had to see you.
I had to see--
If I look like her?
If I sound like her?
Maybe, I might be her.
I suppose.
I don't blame you.
But I'm afraid
the answer is no.
My name is Llanar Dy Na.
I'm a botanist.
I was born on a planet
12 light-years from here.
I've no memory of ever being
on this world of yours
as you can tell by my
restaurant etiquette.
I think you should go now.
Thank you for talking to me.
You must have loved her
very much.
Yes, very much.
I'm sorry.
Just what the hell did you
think you were doing?
I know, I'm sorry.
It was stupid.
It transcends stupid,
it was actionable.
We promise these people
complete confidentiality,
privacy, precisely to avoid
things like this.
Was she pissed off?
No, concerned.
And feeling a little betrayed
by this agency
which I damn well
can't blame her.
How did you get her address
in the first place?
I, uh, used your computer.
You used--
I don't know what the hell
got into me, ok?
I just-- I went
a little nuts.
Look, I had to see her.
I had to talk to her.
We have known
each other 20 years.
I don't remember you ever
lying to me before.
Mike, I'm sorry.
I never meant to hurt you
personally
or professionally.
If I've done either of
those things, I apologize.
I just couldn't
help myself.
Now, it's out of
my system, ok?
I've seen her, it's not Karen,
I know this.
I accept this.
And I'm ready to move on
with my life.
Good.
Because so help me
if you ever do anything
like this again--
I won't.
I won't.
I've asked you
to leave me alone.
Now my only recourse
is the law.
Your law.
(vila)
Dr. Alders?
I'm calling
for councilor Kadmis.
I regret to say that
councilor Kadmis is too ill
to speak with you now.
Too ill?
He's being looked after,
but in the interim I will be
your liaison with the N'Tal.
My name is vila.
Will Kadmis be all right?
The only thing that will
help him now is a host body.
That is more under
your control than mine.
If you cannot find
a way to accelerate
this tortuously slow process,
the consequences
will be on your head.
Not ours.
Hey.
I've got good news
and bad news.
Well, good news
would be a novelty.
Well, the good news is that
she's not suing us yet
for breach of confidence
or invasion of privacy.
Llanar?
Yeah.
She just filed a complaint
against your friend, Jim,
for stalking her.
Did they arrest him?
No, but judge bertoldt
has issued
a restraining order
prohibiting him
from going anywhere
within 500 yards of her.
Stupid.
[phone ringing]
(Jim on answering machine)
This is Jim, leave a message.
Jim, this is mike.
Call me.
I'm sorry, mike.
Do you wanna go over
the donor status list?
Ok. Later.
[beeps]
I've got the disks.
Karen?
I'm--I'm sorry.
It's Llanar.
Dr. Alders, I'm sorry
to disturb you so late.
Is this about
Jim Heatherton?
Yes.
I've just had him
arrested
for violating a restraining
order against me.
He needs help, dr. Alders.
I'm not his wife.
I will never be his wife.
You're his friend
and I was hoping
that you would help him
understand that.
I've tried.
As unnerving as it is
for you and him,
it's just as unnerving to us.
When we take these bodies,
we can't access
on a conscious level
the memory
from the previous...
Tenant.
Inhabitants.
But sometimes in our dreams
we get bits and pieces,
fragments of memories.
A lover's face,
a child's laugh.
You think you live
with ghosts?
We live ghosts
every day, every night,
every minute
for the rest of our lives.
♪ ♪ [piano playing]
she's not Karen.
Look, Jim,
I-I-I've talked with her,
looked in her eyes,
Karen is gone.
Michael, do you think
that it's natural
that your loved ones
should die
and then come back
to remind you of everything
that you've lost?
Is that right?
I don't think
that's right.
Jim, you need help,
therapy.
You've gotta make some effort
to deal with your grief.
No, it's more
than that, man, ok.
I think that there's
something happening
with the aliens.
What do you mean,
happening?
I mean, meetings.
I mean, reanimated aliens
getting together
and exchanging data,
planning something,
I don't know.
Look, Jim--
I know it sounds weird,
but I'm telling you
I'm not making
this up, all right?
I watched her
for an entire week,
and I saw her give other N'Tal
these things,
electronic equipment.
This weird liquid in vials
and they're up to
something, ok?
Now,
maybe they're not
getting enough bodies
or maybe they're planning on
taking more bodies--
Jim, stop it.
Don't you see
what you're doing?
You know that she's not Karen,
so you're creating
a conspiracy, a reason
to be around her.
Well, maybe i...
Maybe.
Jim, as your friend,
if--if you truly want
Karen to rest in peace,
let me get you some help.
[chuckles]
[computer keyboard clicking]
[phone ringing]
Hello.
(jacobs)
Dr. Alders? I'm det. Jacobs
with the district of columbia
police department.
Yes.
I believe you know a man
named james Heatherton?
He's not in jail
again already?
No, sir.
I'm afraid he's dead.
It appears to be a suicide.
By the trauma to his spine,
I assume he hung himself.
This was addressed to you.
It's how we knew to call you.
[police radio chattering]
[camera clicks]
"The dead are among us,
we are the dead.
"Man wasn't meant
to live like this.
"My only fear in
doing this is that
"when I get to
the other side,
"Karen isn't there.
[sighs]
"Say a prayer, mike,
that it isn't so.
Thanks for being..."
Does that sound like him?
Yeah.
Was there any indication
that it wasn't suicide?
Nothing.
Do you've reason to
believe someone may have
wanted to kill him?
[sighs]
I don't know.
I am not convinced
he's a good candidate
for reanimation.
Have them do it over.
We could do it
over a dozen times--
Then do it a dozen times.
Send it back!
Hey, you're the boss.
I'm sorry. I didn't mean to
bite your head off.
Oh, forget it.
It doesn't matter.
If he was my friend,
I might do the same.
Jeffrey.
Do you trust the N'Tal?
Don't you?
I don't know.
Before he died
Jim said he saw
groups of N'Tal meeting,
exchanging data,
electronics devices.
He thought they were
planning something.
Some sort of
conspiracy goin' on.
Then he shows up dead.
Exactly.
So, this morning I did
a little diggin' of my own
to see if any N'Tal have
made visits to the earth
for purposes
other than reanimation.
And they haven't.
But several transport shuttles
have left the mother ship
transferring
electronics equipment
to a company called
synergistic technologies.
Hey, that's owned by
a reanimated N'Tal, isn't it?
You know, I have
a friend in customs.
I bet I could wangle
a copy of the cargo manifest
for those transports.
Jeffrey, be discreet.
We don't know what
we're dealing with.
It could turn around
and deal with us.
The equipment's going
to a warehouse
on the south side.
I haven't been able
to get a look inside.
There's too many workers
during the day
and it's locked by night.
One of the things I did
overhear is that
there's going to be
some sort of a meeting
held there this friday night.
Did your friend at customs
come up with anything?
According to
the cargo manifest
the transports contained
air filtrations systems,
gas spectrometers,
and pressurized tanks,
containing various rare gases,
some terrestrial, some not.
And some of these
in certain combinations
can be toxic
as hell to humans.
Deadly, but mostly
asphyxiants,
not likely to cause
a lot of cellular
deterioration.
My god.
Michael, what the hell
do we do?
Nancy.
(nancy)
Yes sir.
Get me Secretary
Kelly's office.
Right away.
The last pathology report
on Jim Heatherton came in.
Same conclusions
as the previous 3.
We just can't stall it
any longer, mike.
I don't want to know
what happens to the body
after it leaves here.
Is that understood?
Understood.
Let me see if i
understand this, doctor.
These gases can be
deadly to humans
in some combinations,
but you have
absolutely no proof
that they're
intended as weapons.
Oh, no, sir, but--
The N'Tal's natural form
is in fact gaseous
isn't it, doctor?
Might these gases
not be something
necessary to their survival?
No, sir.
Once inside a human body,
the N'Tal's physiology
becomes entirely human.
Mr. Secretary, there are
meetings going on,
equipment is being
transferred.
All out in the open,
from what you tell me.
And what better way
to avert suspicion?
Looks like you're the one
who's being clandestine,
skulking around like something
out of a mystery novel,
searching out foul play.
But, for god's sake,
at least alert the F.B.I.
And have them look into this.
Doctor, your private feelings
about the N'Tal
are well-known.
I wouldn't call you
a bigot.
Maybe xenophobe
is more accurate,
but like it or not,
humankind is no longer
alone in the universe.
You, all of us,
have to get used to that.
This does not--
As for the charges
you're making,
they're more than serious,
they're libelous.
Before I can so much
as whisper it to anyone
at the F.B.I. or N.S.A.,
I'd need one hell of a lot
more evidence
than you've given me.
Good day, doctor.
They're afraid.
They've always been afraid
of the N'Tal.
That hasn't changed.
Yeah, but would
the government really
let the N'Tal get away with
mass murder out of fear
of something worse?
Well, I hope not,
but I really don't know.
[sighing]
This is everything we've got.
If I don't return
from this meeting tonight,
you get this
to the president.
Use my name and I hope
it's still worth something.
What are you,
what is that for?
If my body turns up,
I don't intend to qualify
for reanimation.
[people chattering]
(woman)
All right, let's go.
Eds.
[door shuts]
Michael?
What are you
doing here, my friend?
Who are you?
How do you know me?
It is i. Kadmis.
You will not
need that here.
Come.
[people chattering]
(Llanar)
Welcome, all of you.
[crying]
It's all right.
In fact, may I hold her?
It's for her
and others like her
that we've created
this place.
She's human,
so very, very human.
Within the space
of a single generation,
there shall be
no N'Tal left.
Our children, and our
children's children
shall all be human.
And when those of us who
emigrated here finally die,
the N'Tal shall cease
to exist, as a race.
But we can bring
our children here
to show them
where their parents
and their grandparents
came from.
Show them
the small bit of beauty
that used to be N'Tala.
Perhaps they will learn
to appreciate the beauty
of this planet,
our adopted planet, earth.
And hope they learn
from our mistakes.
Now let us all prepare
to honor our past
and pray for our future.
(Llanar)
Welcome home.
The atmosphere
isn't quite the same,
and as you can see
some of the plants
and vegetation are native,
others have been genetically
altered to resemble
those indigenous to N'Tala.
And as they say here on earth,
it's the thought that counts.
[all laugh]
I never thought about
what it meant for you
as--as a race.
Neither did we.
Until it was too late.
And now amidst this beauty,
let us bid farewell
to our past and to the world
of our birth.
Dr. Alders,
would you do us
the honor of joining us?
I--I don't deserve to.
No, Michael.
None of us
is innocent here. come.
You know, it takes
a long time
for the old ways to die,
but I think
we should be happy
that they do eventually die,
don't you?
So, will you help us?
Help us say goodbye.
Please.
(narrator)
What if you were to wake up
to a different world
tomorrow?
A world of invaders.
Would you raise your voice
with the aliens
in a chant of remembrance
and regret
bidding farewell
to a vanished world?
Or would you fight
against those
who might ultimately
help us?
This is the news special
with david aftergood.
It's 3:00
on what might well be
the most important afternoon
in the history of this world.
Humanity's first contact with
an extraterrestrial species.
Sources tell newsline
this broadcast is
a result of weeks of
communication between
U.N. officials
and representatives
of an alien race identifying
themselves as the N'Tal.
That's a live satellite feed
of the alien mothership
in orbit,
where the N'Tal
have said they will speak
to the people of earth.
With us is Secretary of State,
Randall Kelly,
who is like all of us awaiting
this first direct message
from the N'Tal.
Mr. Secretary, despite all
the radio diplomacy,
we've heard that
the secret service
will not let you
or the president come into
direct contact with the N'Tal.
What does this bode
for the safety
of the entire planet?
David, I've heard
these rumors
and that's all they are.
The N'Tal have never given
any indication
of hostile intent.
Pardon me, Mr. Secretary.
We're receiving
the transmission.
(aftergood)
We're seeing some sort
of vapor.
I don't know, uh,
a gas or something.
Wait, something is happening.
(Kadmis)
I am Kadmis,
the sole surviving
member of the peerage,
the ruling council
of the N'Tal.
This is Secretary
of State Kelly.
On behalf of
the united nations
and the United States
of America,
i offer our warm greetings
and welcome to the N'Tal
from the people of earth.
I wish we were coming
to you as explorers,
adventurers seeking out
other life forms
for the pleasures
of mutual discovery.
Instead, we come
to you as refugees.
Exiles from a planet
rendered uninhabitable
by our own negligence.
We've come to earth
seeking help.
What--what do you need
from us?
Your dead.
Give us your dead.
(male narrator)
There is nothing wrong
with your television.
Do not attempt
to adjust the picture.
We are now controlling
the transmission.
We control the horizontal
and the vertical.
We can deluge you
with a thousand channels
or expand one single image
to crystal clarity
and beyond.
We can shape your vision
to anything our imagination
can conceive.
For the next hour,
we will control
all that you see and hear.
You are about to experience
the awe and mystery
which reaches from
the deepest inner mind
to The Outer Limits.
[whooshing]
(narrator)
Contact happened
exactly one year ago.
And the world
changed forever.
The line between
life and death was blurred,
crossed, then totally erased.
Not through
devine intervention,
but another force
from the heavens.
A force greeted not with
rapture, but with fear.
[siren wailing]
[people shouting]
(woman #1)
Grave robber.
(woman #2)
Get out of here!
Dead trader!
How could you?
Giving off dead!
Body snatcher!
(woman #3)
Grave robber!
Dr. Alders,
what's your reaction
to this demonstration?
My reaction to being
spat upon
is about what yours
would be, I imagine.
Excuse me.
(aftergood)
It's been a year since
the arrival of the N'Tal,
but the controversy
surrounding them
refuses to die.
On this edition of newsline...
[sighs]
Just the way I like
to start out my day.
Oh, nancy.
Dr. Alders,
are you alright?
I'm delightful. Tell Jeffrey
I'd like to see him.
He's on his way in.
Our first guest today
has a unique perspective.
Her name used to be
cheryl mcrae.
She died of an embolism
2 months ago
and was reanimated
shortly thereafter.
Your name now is...
Call me Jaru.
[knocking on door]
Jaru, protests against
the N'Tal have intensified,
and many of
the reanimated N'Tal
have received death threats.
What are
your thoughts on this?
(Jaru)
Those people are afraid,
and fear translates here
as it does throughout
the universe into hatred.
Don't they have justification
for their fear?
Your people are,
by nature, parasites.
We prefer
the term, symbiote.
I've had enough of this.
Whatever you call it.
New status report.
That's good.
Ok.
2000 bodies
processed last week.
A third eliminated
right off the bat,
internal injuries
too extensive.
Another third, cancer, aids,
other blood-related diseases.
That's only 600
suitable body donors.
That's not good.
Well, there is a guy
in Davenport, Iowa,
who is volunteering
his body.
Only trouble is,
he's still alive.
[both chuckle]
Well, he's not alone.
There's a whole cult of them
now in new mexico.
They think if they bond
with the parasites,
they'll be elevated
to a higher spiritual level.
[chuckles]
Well, suicide rate
has gone up
since the aliens arrived.
I don't want to think
about this, Jeffrey.
What else?
Councilor Kadmis would like
to speak with you.
He says he has more concerns.
(Kadmis)
Michael, you must understand,
my people cannot exist
without host bodies
for more than 1 or 2
of your years.
There are 200,000 N'Tal
in this ship,
and of them, I estimate,
a third will not survive
longer than 6 months.
Councillor, most deaths
in this country
are the result of major trauma
or systemic disease.
It's not our fault that
your science can't regenerate
more than 1
or 2 organs at a time.
I'm not placing blame,
Michael,
just trying to impress you
with the urgency
of our situation.
Consider me impressed.
You've helped save
tens of thousands
of N'Tal already, Michael.
It's not that we
don't appreciate your efforts.
I don't need appreciation.
The president asked me
to do this job.
I am doing it.
I saw the protests
outside your office
this morning, Michael,
are you unhurt?
I'm fine.
I'll fax you
the current status report
within the hour.
Alders, out.
[laughs]
♪ ♪ [piano playing]
Last time I remember
you having 2 drinks
before dinner
was back in the old
frat-house days.
Well, I don't plan
to make a habit of it,
but it's been
a bitch of a day.
I don't know which are worse,
congress or the leeches.
I thought they were
the same thing.
Leeches? The N'Tal?
Now, that's a new one.
Well, what would you
call them?
They're parasites.
On their home planet,
they took over the bodies
of the most promising mammals.
Dominated a sentient species
for god's sake.
I didn't know you
hated them so much.
♪ ♪ [piano playing]
In pre-med we studied
certain diptera.
Flies which lay eggs
inside cattle and sheep.
Sometimes in open wounds.
The larvae hatch,
then feed on the flesh,
literally eating
the animal alive.
The first time I saw
the N'Tal take over
a human body,
I thought of that.
I can't help feeling
we're just cattle to them.
Well, how would you like
your hamburger cooked?
[laughs]
Why'd you take this job?
Well, I'm an oncologist.
I've fought death
all of my life,
most of the time
I've lost miserably.
The N'Tal don't just
cheat death, they defeat it.
Their cellular regeneration
is limited,
but the potential is enormous.
And they allow me
to study it in hopes
that it might someday
be adapted to living humans.
It's too important not to do.
But that doesn't mean
I have to like
the miserable leeches.
Oh, they're not leeches.
They're more like ghosts.
Ghosts who come back to life.
Hmm.
Yeah.
Sanitarium in upstate
new york, fire broke out,
43 fatalities,
smoke inhalation,
mostly requiring
minimal regeneration, luckily.
Yeah, lucky bastards.
[sighs]
(Kadmis)
No, we have been
over this before, Michael,
bodies with neurological
defects are unacceptable.
The N'Tal inhabiting them
would suffer from
the same mental deficits
as the original owners.
Yes, they would.
So what, for god's sake,
isn't that a small price
to pay for life?
Don't tell me about
the price for life, Michael.
I just watched
my oldest friend
die before my eyes.
Damning me with
his dying breath.
I know only too well
what the price can be.
I'm sorry. I didn't know.
Your friend?
There was no body
available for him?
There were bodies,
but there are also
other N'Tal
younger, stronger,
better able to
make the transfer.
It's not an easy thing
deciding who must live
and who must die.
[phone beeps]
Nancy, please don't
interrupt me. I am...
Ok, put him on.
Jim, what?
Michael, I, uh,
I need your help.
Jim, what is it?
What's wrong?
A car, it um,
ran a red light
and sideswiped us.
Jim, is Karen all right?
Michael, you gotta
help me, man.
Just help me.
My god.
Michael? What is it,
what is wrong, Michael?
There's an old
commendatory prayer that says,
life is eternal
and love is immortal,
and death is only a horizon.
And a horizon is nothing
save the limit of our sight.
Karen Heatherton is beyond
the limit of our sight,
but never beyond
the limits of our heart.
♪ ♪ [church organ playing]
[people chattering]
[cries]
Michael, for god's sake,
can't you do something?
Mike, uh, at least
let me see her again.
I know it won't really
be her, but I just want
to see her breathe again,
walk again.
Jim, you can't.
Policy prohibits
relatives seeing--
You make the policy,
you're my best friend.
You can make an exception
for me, come on.
Please,
don't let my last memory
of her be like--like this.
Let me remember her
like she was.
That's all I'm asking.
One last look.
[gasps]
[heart beating]
I gotta go talk to her.
It's against the rules.
Forget the rules.
I wanna go talk to her.
Jim, no.
Councilor, I'm sorry
to have been out of touch
these last few days.
No apologies
necessary, Michael.
I heard about your friend,
I'm very sorry.
Thanks.
If it's any comfort to you,
her death was
not entirely in vain.
Thanks to her sacrifice,
someone else will live.
That is no damn
comfort at all.
I'm--I'm sorry.
I did not mean to--
Tell me, Kadmis.
What do your people
really know about
death anyway?
One host body dies,
you go on to the next.
For how long?
And how old are you,
Kadmis?
In earth years?
Just an estimate.
It would likely be
measured in centuries.
You're the ultimate
disposable culture.
Cast off your bodies like
you would a suit of clothes.
Except this time
the parasites get a taste
of what true death is like.
It is a little late
in the game,
but you finally learned
what mortality is.
Well, excuse me,
for not giving a damn.
You call us parasites.
Perhaps we are.
That is our nature,
but you tell me, Michael,
are we really so different
from you?
You've wiped out dozens
of species, plant and animal,
in your drive to dominate
your world.
What do you call it?
Natural selection?
And how many millions
of your own species
have died in the name
of your manifest destiny?
Like your original natives
of your own continent
who were slaughtered
for the simple misfortune
of having been there first.
Perhaps we are more alike
than you'd like
to believe, Michael.
We cannot help being
what we are
any more than you can.
We've made mistakes,
tragic mistakes,
just as you have,
but you have the benefit of
learning from our mistakes.
The knowledge we bring
can help reverse
the ecological damage
to your world
so that in the future
your people will not have to
flee to the stars
to search for another home.
Michael, the most either of us
can do is to hope
that our intelligence
triumphs most of the time
over our instincts.
This was a mistake.
I shouldn't have spoken
with you this soon--
Both of us have been shaken
in recent days.
And you are right,
death is new to us.
Few of us have been
this close to it before.
It is frightening to feel it
hovering so near.
Kadmis?
Are you all right?
I have been
without a host body
for close to 2 years.
But surely you're
on the list?
Yes, but I have
no special privilege.
Michael, do you suppose
that human souls
and those of N'Tal
go to the same place
when they die?
I don't know.
If they do, I shall look
for your friend,
and tell her
how much she is missed.
[bird chirping]
Oh, hi.
Hi.
Um, is he around?
No, he's in the cold room.
Didn't I tell you that
this morning?
Uh, yeah you did, sorry.
Um, do you mind if I wait?
Oh, no, not at all.
Come in.
Can I get you something?
No, I'm fine, thanks.
That's a nice jacket, nance.
Oh, thank you.
Yeah.
[door closes]
[beeping]
Ravil? Is that you?
[bird cawing]
♪ ♪ [playing]
[all chattering]
(Jim)
You don't cut it,
you pick it up
with your hands.
I wasn't sure. Thank you.
You look familiar.
I saw you in
the observation room
when I made the transfer.
Jim Heatherton.
She was your wife.
Would--would you mind
if I joined you
just for, uh, a moment?
Uh, I'm not a crackpot.
Uh, a crazy person.
I just had to see you.
I had to see--
If I look like her?
If I sound like her?
Maybe, I might be her.
I suppose.
I don't blame you.
But I'm afraid
the answer is no.
My name is Llanar Dy Na.
I'm a botanist.
I was born on a planet
12 light-years from here.
I've no memory of ever being
on this world of yours
as you can tell by my
restaurant etiquette.
I think you should go now.
Thank you for talking to me.
You must have loved her
very much.
Yes, very much.
I'm sorry.
Just what the hell did you
think you were doing?
I know, I'm sorry.
It was stupid.
It transcends stupid,
it was actionable.
We promise these people
complete confidentiality,
privacy, precisely to avoid
things like this.
Was she pissed off?
No, concerned.
And feeling a little betrayed
by this agency
which I damn well
can't blame her.
How did you get her address
in the first place?
I, uh, used your computer.
You used--
I don't know what the hell
got into me, ok?
I just-- I went
a little nuts.
Look, I had to see her.
I had to talk to her.
We have known
each other 20 years.
I don't remember you ever
lying to me before.
Mike, I'm sorry.
I never meant to hurt you
personally
or professionally.
If I've done either of
those things, I apologize.
I just couldn't
help myself.
Now, it's out of
my system, ok?
I've seen her, it's not Karen,
I know this.
I accept this.
And I'm ready to move on
with my life.
Good.
Because so help me
if you ever do anything
like this again--
I won't.
I won't.
I've asked you
to leave me alone.
Now my only recourse
is the law.
Your law.
(vila)
Dr. Alders?
I'm calling
for councilor Kadmis.
I regret to say that
councilor Kadmis is too ill
to speak with you now.
Too ill?
He's being looked after,
but in the interim I will be
your liaison with the N'Tal.
My name is vila.
Will Kadmis be all right?
The only thing that will
help him now is a host body.
That is more under
your control than mine.
If you cannot find
a way to accelerate
this tortuously slow process,
the consequences
will be on your head.
Not ours.
Hey.
I've got good news
and bad news.
Well, good news
would be a novelty.
Well, the good news is that
she's not suing us yet
for breach of confidence
or invasion of privacy.
Llanar?
Yeah.
She just filed a complaint
against your friend, Jim,
for stalking her.
Did they arrest him?
No, but judge bertoldt
has issued
a restraining order
prohibiting him
from going anywhere
within 500 yards of her.
Stupid.
[phone ringing]
(Jim on answering machine)
This is Jim, leave a message.
Jim, this is mike.
Call me.
I'm sorry, mike.
Do you wanna go over
the donor status list?
Ok. Later.
[beeps]
I've got the disks.
Karen?
I'm--I'm sorry.
It's Llanar.
Dr. Alders, I'm sorry
to disturb you so late.
Is this about
Jim Heatherton?
Yes.
I've just had him
arrested
for violating a restraining
order against me.
He needs help, dr. Alders.
I'm not his wife.
I will never be his wife.
You're his friend
and I was hoping
that you would help him
understand that.
I've tried.
As unnerving as it is
for you and him,
it's just as unnerving to us.
When we take these bodies,
we can't access
on a conscious level
the memory
from the previous...
Tenant.
Inhabitants.
But sometimes in our dreams
we get bits and pieces,
fragments of memories.
A lover's face,
a child's laugh.
You think you live
with ghosts?
We live ghosts
every day, every night,
every minute
for the rest of our lives.
♪ ♪ [piano playing]
she's not Karen.
Look, Jim,
I-I-I've talked with her,
looked in her eyes,
Karen is gone.
Michael, do you think
that it's natural
that your loved ones
should die
and then come back
to remind you of everything
that you've lost?
Is that right?
I don't think
that's right.
Jim, you need help,
therapy.
You've gotta make some effort
to deal with your grief.
No, it's more
than that, man, ok.
I think that there's
something happening
with the aliens.
What do you mean,
happening?
I mean, meetings.
I mean, reanimated aliens
getting together
and exchanging data,
planning something,
I don't know.
Look, Jim--
I know it sounds weird,
but I'm telling you
I'm not making
this up, all right?
I watched her
for an entire week,
and I saw her give other N'Tal
these things,
electronic equipment.
This weird liquid in vials
and they're up to
something, ok?
Now,
maybe they're not
getting enough bodies
or maybe they're planning on
taking more bodies--
Jim, stop it.
Don't you see
what you're doing?
You know that she's not Karen,
so you're creating
a conspiracy, a reason
to be around her.
Well, maybe i...
Maybe.
Jim, as your friend,
if--if you truly want
Karen to rest in peace,
let me get you some help.
[chuckles]
[computer keyboard clicking]
[phone ringing]
Hello.
(jacobs)
Dr. Alders? I'm det. Jacobs
with the district of columbia
police department.
Yes.
I believe you know a man
named james Heatherton?
He's not in jail
again already?
No, sir.
I'm afraid he's dead.
It appears to be a suicide.
By the trauma to his spine,
I assume he hung himself.
This was addressed to you.
It's how we knew to call you.
[police radio chattering]
[camera clicks]
"The dead are among us,
we are the dead.
"Man wasn't meant
to live like this.
"My only fear in
doing this is that
"when I get to
the other side,
"Karen isn't there.
[sighs]
"Say a prayer, mike,
that it isn't so.
Thanks for being..."
Does that sound like him?
Yeah.
Was there any indication
that it wasn't suicide?
Nothing.
Do you've reason to
believe someone may have
wanted to kill him?
[sighs]
I don't know.
I am not convinced
he's a good candidate
for reanimation.
Have them do it over.
We could do it
over a dozen times--
Then do it a dozen times.
Send it back!
Hey, you're the boss.
I'm sorry. I didn't mean to
bite your head off.
Oh, forget it.
It doesn't matter.
If he was my friend,
I might do the same.
Jeffrey.
Do you trust the N'Tal?
Don't you?
I don't know.
Before he died
Jim said he saw
groups of N'Tal meeting,
exchanging data,
electronics devices.
He thought they were
planning something.
Some sort of
conspiracy goin' on.
Then he shows up dead.
Exactly.
So, this morning I did
a little diggin' of my own
to see if any N'Tal have
made visits to the earth
for purposes
other than reanimation.
And they haven't.
But several transport shuttles
have left the mother ship
transferring
electronics equipment
to a company called
synergistic technologies.
Hey, that's owned by
a reanimated N'Tal, isn't it?
You know, I have
a friend in customs.
I bet I could wangle
a copy of the cargo manifest
for those transports.
Jeffrey, be discreet.
We don't know what
we're dealing with.
It could turn around
and deal with us.
The equipment's going
to a warehouse
on the south side.
I haven't been able
to get a look inside.
There's too many workers
during the day
and it's locked by night.
One of the things I did
overhear is that
there's going to be
some sort of a meeting
held there this friday night.
Did your friend at customs
come up with anything?
According to
the cargo manifest
the transports contained
air filtrations systems,
gas spectrometers,
and pressurized tanks,
containing various rare gases,
some terrestrial, some not.
And some of these
in certain combinations
can be toxic
as hell to humans.
Deadly, but mostly
asphyxiants,
not likely to cause
a lot of cellular
deterioration.
My god.
Michael, what the hell
do we do?
Nancy.
(nancy)
Yes sir.
Get me Secretary
Kelly's office.
Right away.
The last pathology report
on Jim Heatherton came in.
Same conclusions
as the previous 3.
We just can't stall it
any longer, mike.
I don't want to know
what happens to the body
after it leaves here.
Is that understood?
Understood.
Let me see if i
understand this, doctor.
These gases can be
deadly to humans
in some combinations,
but you have
absolutely no proof
that they're
intended as weapons.
Oh, no, sir, but--
The N'Tal's natural form
is in fact gaseous
isn't it, doctor?
Might these gases
not be something
necessary to their survival?
No, sir.
Once inside a human body,
the N'Tal's physiology
becomes entirely human.
Mr. Secretary, there are
meetings going on,
equipment is being
transferred.
All out in the open,
from what you tell me.
And what better way
to avert suspicion?
Looks like you're the one
who's being clandestine,
skulking around like something
out of a mystery novel,
searching out foul play.
But, for god's sake,
at least alert the F.B.I.
And have them look into this.
Doctor, your private feelings
about the N'Tal
are well-known.
I wouldn't call you
a bigot.
Maybe xenophobe
is more accurate,
but like it or not,
humankind is no longer
alone in the universe.
You, all of us,
have to get used to that.
This does not--
As for the charges
you're making,
they're more than serious,
they're libelous.
Before I can so much
as whisper it to anyone
at the F.B.I. or N.S.A.,
I'd need one hell of a lot
more evidence
than you've given me.
Good day, doctor.
They're afraid.
They've always been afraid
of the N'Tal.
That hasn't changed.
Yeah, but would
the government really
let the N'Tal get away with
mass murder out of fear
of something worse?
Well, I hope not,
but I really don't know.
[sighing]
This is everything we've got.
If I don't return
from this meeting tonight,
you get this
to the president.
Use my name and I hope
it's still worth something.
What are you,
what is that for?
If my body turns up,
I don't intend to qualify
for reanimation.
[people chattering]
(woman)
All right, let's go.
Eds.
[door shuts]
Michael?
What are you
doing here, my friend?
Who are you?
How do you know me?
It is i. Kadmis.
You will not
need that here.
Come.
[people chattering]
(Llanar)
Welcome, all of you.
[crying]
It's all right.
In fact, may I hold her?
It's for her
and others like her
that we've created
this place.
She's human,
so very, very human.
Within the space
of a single generation,
there shall be
no N'Tal left.
Our children, and our
children's children
shall all be human.
And when those of us who
emigrated here finally die,
the N'Tal shall cease
to exist, as a race.
But we can bring
our children here
to show them
where their parents
and their grandparents
came from.
Show them
the small bit of beauty
that used to be N'Tala.
Perhaps they will learn
to appreciate the beauty
of this planet,
our adopted planet, earth.
And hope they learn
from our mistakes.
Now let us all prepare
to honor our past
and pray for our future.
(Llanar)
Welcome home.
The atmosphere
isn't quite the same,
and as you can see
some of the plants
and vegetation are native,
others have been genetically
altered to resemble
those indigenous to N'Tala.
And as they say here on earth,
it's the thought that counts.
[all laugh]
I never thought about
what it meant for you
as--as a race.
Neither did we.
Until it was too late.
And now amidst this beauty,
let us bid farewell
to our past and to the world
of our birth.
Dr. Alders,
would you do us
the honor of joining us?
I--I don't deserve to.
No, Michael.
None of us
is innocent here. come.
You know, it takes
a long time
for the old ways to die,
but I think
we should be happy
that they do eventually die,
don't you?
So, will you help us?
Help us say goodbye.
Please.
(narrator)
What if you were to wake up
to a different world
tomorrow?
A world of invaders.
Would you raise your voice
with the aliens
in a chant of remembrance
and regret
bidding farewell
to a vanished world?
Or would you fight
against those
who might ultimately
help us?