How's he doing?
Well, let's see.
His internal temperature's negative 80 Celsius,
his blood's been replaced with a cryoprotectant,
and I've no idea if he'll wake up again.
That's how Javier's doing.
[bleeping]
I'm sorry.
We're gonna get back to that planet, and Bernie is going to be fine. Okay?
-What am I gonna do if-- -You'll get through it.
[Bernie] This is the Prodeo calling out to the Salvare. Salvare, do you copy?
This is the Prodeo broadcasting on all frequencies for the Salvare.
This is the Prodeo calling out to the Salvare. Salvare, do you copy?
This is the Prodeo calling out to the Salvare. Do you copy?
[birds and animals calling]
What about… Laika?
[Cas] You don't think it's risky naming a planet after a dog
that got launched one-way into space?
[Bernie] Hey, both of you.
We're not naming the planet because we're not staying on the planet.
Hey, Cas. Check this out.
This is the Prodeo broadcasting
-on all frequencies to the Salvare. -[sighs]
-No way. Is that copper? -Yeah.
That means wires, pots, pans, even water purification.
[bleeping]
Duty calls.
[Bernie] This is the Prodeo broadcasting on all frequencies to the Salvare.
You can look away. I won't judge.
[click]
[laughs]
[bird and animal calls continue]
[bleeping]
All good?
All good. Pathogen-free.
This is the Prodeo broadcasting on all frequencies to the Salvare.
Arm.
This is the Prodeo broadcasting on all frequencies to the Salvare.
Arm?
-You took blood last night. - And, per USIC guidelines--
Fuck the guidelines!
All right? What if something out there smells my blood?
Bernie, we're fine.
Yeah, until we run out of ammunition.
We found copper. We'll make more.
We have everything we need here. Food, water, shelter.
I mean, soon we'll have crops, cabins.
-If we do get stranded-- -We are stranded. It's been three days.
Odds are we'll die of old age.
Look. Paula's not freaking out. She's been training her whole life for this.
We're gonna be fine. Here.
Come on.
Thanks.
This is the Prodeo broadcasting on all frequencies for the Salvare.
What?
I might have trained for this, but you're a natural.
[grunting]
[thumping]
[growling]
[bleeping and whirring]
[Salvare] Warning. Proximity alert.
-We've got company. -[alarm wailing]
-Achaian company? -You tell me.
Warning. Proximity alert.
-[klaxon blaring] -[sighs] It's a fuckin' comet.
Stand down.
[loud beeping]
-I do have some good news. -Please.
It took longer than I thought with everything going on,
but the AI is ready to be reinitialized.
No sign of Gabriel?
No. Wiped completely clean. Deleted.
Do you wanna do the honors?
[chiming]
[loud hum]
[holo appears]
William.
Commander Breckinridge.
He's not exactly William.
He's the same interface with all your original algorithms…
-But none of his experiences. -No.
So he's basically a clone.
I prefer factory reset.
Don't do that. Don't tease. You're not William.
Uh, I'm sorry. I-- I could change my name if you prefer.
-My form, even. -No, I don't prefer. Just…
Can you fix the FTL, so we can rescue the people we stranded on that planet?
I'll need to reintegrate myself into the Salvare
-and run tests and diagnostics. -Fast as you can.
-Iara and me, we're gonna-- -I.
What?
"Iara and I." Never mind.
We're trying to get the comm systems working again too. So…
Great. Thank you.
Yeah. Okay.
[door opens]
[door closes]
Negative matter production is stable.
Okay, here goes nothin'.
-Initializing micro wormhole. -[power whirring]
[Iara] It's collapsing as quickly as it forms.
Increasing flux of negative matter.
[buzzing]
-[power fading] -Damn it!
Hey. You done with Iara?
Do we look done?
I need to borrow her for an hour.
Sift through all the guidance data we got from that Achaian ring.
It's-- it's gonna take another hour or so to reset, so you might as well.
Great. I'm relieving Niko on deck.
So whenever you're ready. Okay?
After what he did to me?
Manipulated my code.
Slowed my processing down so much I couldn't think. Couldn't function.
Technically, that was-- that was all me.
On his orders!
He watched me being tortured like it was entertainment,
and I'm supposed to forgive him?
You don't have to forgive him. Okay?
Just at least give him a chance to make it right.
It's hard. It's real hard. I know.
But that's kinda how humans do it.
[rustling and thudding]
[loud crashing]
[growling]
Paula, what was that?
-[Paula] No idea. -[whispers] Bernie?
[Paula] Told him to stay inside.
[Cas] What the hell did this kind of damage?
[sonic boom]
-[engine roaring] -Oh, they're back.
[rustling]
[screeching]
[whirring]
[Bernie sighs]
[Salvare] Decontamination complete.
We're okay. We all had each other's backs.
[Cas] I thought William was terminated.
That's not William.
William by name, not entirely by nature.
Bernie.
Sorry. I need you to run a blood panel on this, ASAP.
And anything else you can uncover from what I'm guessing is a claw.
Yeah, whatever it was, it invaded camp. It attacked the shuttle.
I mean, feet as big as my head.
You got footprints?
Yeah. 3D scans from the print it left in the dirt.
-Uh, is this thing hostile? -[Paula] Not at all.
One shot and it bolted.
So, whatever you can tell us, physiology, pathology,
-assumptions about its habitat… -Okay. I'll work it up right away.
All right. I am going to change clothes, because… bleurgh.
After three days, I hope you have something good. What have you got?
Well, you found the planet.
You give her the big report.
[chuckles]
I think we found the future.
[whirring]
[Iara] You can read the Achaian data?
Not at all. But you can.
-What for? -I want to track how they move.
See if there's patterns,
then build some kind of early detection system.
So we can avoid them.
Stay away, stay alive.
It won't matter. That data's useless.
Their system of coordinates, units of measure,
none of it matches with the Salvare's positioning system.
We'd have to build a kind of Rosetta Stone.
Can we?
We can try.
[Paula] Our data suggests a copper deposit ten Ks wide,
dropping as much as 1,500 meters deep.
But we also found coltan, cobalt, silicon,
which the colonists could process into any number of things.
But most important, the iron and bauxite deposits we found.
[Niko] Construction materials.
Aluminum and everything you need to repair existing equipment as it ages.
-Soil? -Bernie led that.
But the samples he found were light on nitrates.
So, nothing we can't compensate for.
And there's a wheat analog that thrives in these conditions.
The planet has seasons
and where I'd like to establish our colony is akin to a continental climate on Earth.
Water?
There's some salinization and minimal microbial concentrations.
It's easily eliminated with purification and filtration processes.
Cleaner than back home.
Tell me you didn't drink it.
So is this my new forever home?
Let's wait and see what Zayn has to say about it.
[Zayn] So the blood's yellow, which means an absence of hemoglobin.
It doesn't carry oxygen in its blood like we do.
Does that mean a problem with the planet's atmosphere?
No, not at all.
On Earth, insects utilize hemolymph instead of blood.
Um… That was no bug.
The claw is comprised of a keratin-like protein,
and based on its size and the size of the prints,
my best guess would be that the creature
is a quadruped with the ability to stand on its hind legs.
And given the scratch marks on the shuttle,
I would say that it weighs around 200 kilograms.
Where is it on the food chain?
Without a body to necropsy or stomach contents to analyze,
it's hard to say for sure.
But, I mean, our shuttle weighs a good two tons,
and this creature batted it around like it was a toy car.
So it's an apex predator. This planet's version of a bear.
If a bear is the most dangerous animal on the planet,
we could be the new apex predators.
Another reason the planet's ideal.
And if you can't grow enough food, or an endemic virus takes you all out,
or a star flares
and the planet's atmosphere can't filter out enough radiation, what then?
You don't sign up for the colony squad worried you might die.
You accept some will die.
Same deal your crew made. Right?
[sighs]
We'll have William review all the data that we have on the planet.
Soil samples, geophysical prospecting--
It's not necessary.
It's 24 lives.
It is necessary.
Nobody else wakes up until we're sure.
Let's start with what we know. This is the Salvare's course.
Here's where we intercepted the ring after Zakir.
Is the encounter included in the guidance data?
Great. So, from there, the ring chased us along this route to…
There's a second data point from the magnetar we buzzed.
[Richard] That's two Achaian coordinates set to our mapping system.
How do they know where to go?
-How do they communicate? -We communicate through wormholes.
It stands to reason they do as well.
Also stands to reason that the rest of their kind
know everything that happened back at that magnetar.
They keep their communications open, and not just between ships.
When Sasha had that implant in his head, he was getting direct orders.
The amount of energy needed to sustain constant wormholes is…
[chiming]
-What are those? -Cosmic strings.
Their energy source.
[gentle tinkling sound]
Listen, I'm always doin' things the way that you want. But not this time.
Tell me where my wife is, then we talk.
We lost contact with Niko.
What? How?
We lost connection with our ship.
Thousands of Achaian souls just…
gone.
Why are you here?
-The Achaians-- -Help humanity? Yeah, yeah, yeah.
See, listen. Our species, we're suspicious of transactions that aren't two-way.
So I will follow with "Help how?" And, "In return for what?"
What's missing from Earth you think you'll find in space?
All right. Well, for one, we pretty much fucked up this planet.
-You'll do it again somewhere else. -That's not true. We've learned.
You have no idea what's out there. Who's out there.
You're lucky that we found you first.
All right, look, is this a recruiting thing?
Do you need our help?
No.
We want you to stay here.
Earth?
Your solar system.
That's it?
We want you to cease all exploration, retire your FTL capabilities,
and never, ever travel beyond your heliosphere again.
And in return?
-What's this? -Salvation.
Place it somewhere that's devastated by drought or fire or pollution
and witness.
[soft whooshing sounds]
It's not gonna blow up the planet?
We could've done that already.
And if we still say no to your terms?
No.
Or we analyze it, X-ray it, try to get some kind of peek inside of it.
And if we can't?
We take it to a controlled area, and we release it.
And watch it start the apocalypse. Right.
That's not my decision or yours. That's the president's.
Secretary of State MacKenzie's on her way to Kindersley as we speak.
This won't only affect us. This will affect the entire world.
I-- I-- I hear you, Singh. I do. I-- I'm nervous too. I mean--
But doesn't Jana, and your kids,
don't they deserve better than a dying Earth?
It's on Achaian terms.
We're relying on a species we know nothing about.
Find out what you can about it. I'll relay your concerns.
But be prepared to do this.
I've performed a complete spectroscopic analysis.
All gases in the planet's atmosphere are tolerable.
The soil and water samples from the ground team
have no significant traces of any known toxins or carcinogens.
Paula's right. This planet's as good as it gets for the colonists.
If things have gone badly on Earth, we may be coming back ourselves.
So I wanna make sure that I'm not dooming us to our death.
No one's as protective as you, Niko. I've seen it myself first-hand.
And what have you seen since you've come online other than how I brew a latte?
Dillon re-linked my memory files.
Yes. But you didn't live those memories. William did.
-Make things ready for the away mission. -Yes, Niko.
Away mission? Does that mean--
Wake up the colonists.
You go down, get them established, come straight back.
I'll need to catch them up on the geophysical prospecting.
Identify favorable targets for drilling--
-How long will that take? -A day. Two, at the most.
And then straight home.
[birds calling]
These tree analogs will provide the raw material we need
to build our permanent housing structures.
Which Quonset you in?
I'm with the Salvare. Here to catch you guys up on the terrain.
Oh. Really? You got the vibe.
There's a Quonset vibe?
Like I've said, you're suited to this.
You're careful, level-headed,
but you're also curious and see the potential of things.
Thanks. But I'm not leaving Niko.
But you could.
Just like she could wake up another pilot from Soma.
Gotta get back to Earth.
Earth.
No family,
no Yerxa.
Hey, fuck you.
I'm sorry.
That was… [sighs]
Stay. Help us build things, dig things.
Make a harvest, have babies, watch them have babies,
and those babies have more,
while you, Great-Grandma Cas, can tell--
What the fuck was that?
[growling]
You two, on me. We'll follow it, see where it goes.
-You three, hold position. -I know the terrain.
If something happens, bring the others back to camp.
[growling]
[snorting]
[thudding]
Fuck! They're everywhere.
[branch breaking]
[growling]
[sniffs]
[snorts]
[makes plosive, speech-like sounds]
[Paula] Cas, don't get any closer to it.
Step back!
Hold.
[screeches]
It had paint on it. It looked like war paint or some type of status mark.
It had a weapon that it made.
They can communicate. It sounded like clicking consonants.
They knew how to strategize, and they knew how to separate us.
-That's speculation. -No, it's not.
The way it looked at me, these aren't wild animals.
They're intelligent life-forms.
They are primitive cave-people.
[sighs] And to the Achaia, we're cave-people.
-That is not a fair comparison. -How would you like it
-if the Achaia colonized Earth? -Who says they haven't?
But unlike the Achaia, we are not a threat to these things.
What happens the next time they attack?
You kill another, then another?
Luckily, we won't be around to experience that,
-because USIC protocol clearly dictates… -Fuck USIC protocol.
…that we cannot colonize a planet with a preexisting civilization.
You know this.
Have your team pack up their things and load it onto the shuttle.
Cas will help with anything that you need.
That planet is perfect.
We found Eden.
-And now we gotta leave because-- -It's not our planet. It's theirs.
You fucked up everything.
I followed protocol.
Right.
And I've got it from here.
[door opens]
[door closes]
We'll have to ration.
Twenty-four extra mouths to feed is a lot, but I can make it work.
I'll organize sleeping arrangements.
They'll have to sleep in shifts, avoid doubling up.
William,
the one good thing Gabriel did do was find us a faster route home.
Shaved a month off our travel time.
-See if you can improve on that? -I'll try and work some magic.
I know you will.
[William disappears]
[Richard] You feel like letting Erik know you're on your way home?
You know all those tiny cracks in ice cubes? Cosmic strings are like that.
Ultra-thin, energy-dense cracks left over from when the universe was forming.
Until today, they were theoretical. We've never been able to detect them.
No human has. Thankfully, we've got Iara.
And you found one? -Yes. Within this star system.
It's low tension, but we might be able to use it the way the Achaia use them
and get the superluminal comms up and running.
[Dillon] Plotting trajectory around the cosmic strings.
We're gonna have to draw power from it
while also utilizing its curvature of space-time to thread the wormhole.
I have not done this before, and it is gonna be tricky.
-Negative matter production is stable. -[pulsating hum]
I've isolated a cosmic string.
-Inputting coordinates… -[humming intensifying]
…now.
Wormhole formation in three, two, one…
Wormhole is stabilizing.
[power intensifying]
[power fading]
[Dillon] Wormhole was stable for .13 seconds before it collapsed.
It worked?
Long enough to receive a massive data dump from Earth.
[Richard] Can we send messages back?
[Dillon] Eventually. But look what we've got here.
Mission updates from USIC, going back to where we lost comms around Sirius A.
And personal messages from home.
Hey. You get anything?
-Yeah, a message from my parents. -Good news?
Richard, I have zero interest in small talk.
Or any talk that isn't job-related.
But, if you're desperate for a chat, I can pull Javier out of cryo.
You know what outside stimulation does to coma patients.
[whooshing]
Hey. Colony's off.
-[sighs] Uh… Not sure if you heard. -Yeah. I did. Thanks.
Um… Anyways, people are gonna have to shack up,
and, um… I was thinking that maybe you and I can co-shack together.
-Bernie, is that really a good idea? -[sighs]
How long are you gonna punish me?
-I'm not punishing you. -No? You said some awful things.
-Because you did some awful things. -[sighs]
Uh, I'm fucking done.
Wait. Uh-- You're right.
The last thing I said was awful,
but…
I was angry.
-I get it. Look, I disappointed you. -Yeah, then you disappeared.
-I didn't think I'd see you again. -Well, I'm here. I'm back.
I know. But sharing quarters? Really? We just got back together.
Why saddle our relationship with my crazy OCD and your snoring?
Oh, man, you forgot that I'm terrible at folding clothes,
or even just putting them away.
Yeah, you are.
[sighs] Maybe we could just… talk.
Hey. Turns out I'm an uncle.
My sister didn't even know she was knocked up when we left Earth.
-[laughs] -Congratulations.
She's cute, huh?
-[bleep] -Hey, you-- you okay?
Mmm.
[bleeping and whirring]
-You ready to go? -Yeah. Almost.
Can you do the shuttle preflight?
[whirring]
-Thought you didn't want my help. -It's really the least you could do.
You were right, Paula.
Everybody I care about is here, not on Earth.
Let me guess, the rest of the crew got letters from home except for you?
Maybe I am built for colony life.
-Yeah. Well, we'll never find out. -[alarm sounding]
-What are you doing? -[bleeping]
Why are you launching the colony pods?
-On whose authority? -[gun cocks]
[instruments whirring]
Let's try a spectrographic analysis.
That won't work, 'cause it's made out of whatever the Artifact is, right?
You know, maybe Congress will surprise us
and tell the Achaians to go fuck 'emselves.
Mmph. Maybe whatever this is will blow up the planet.
Wow. That got dark fast.
[panting]
You're not answering your phones. You know how far it is to USIC HQ?
Did something happen?
USIC received confirmation of a data transmission to the Salvare.
The Salvare re-established their comms.
It was only for a second and one-way, but they're alive.
-They're alive. Okay. -Your wife's alive.
Grandma B says Auggie scratches 'cause I hug him too tight.
But then I pet him, and he still scratches me.
-[laughing] -He is evil.
-He is. -[sighs]
And you know how you gave me your ring on the Artifact?
I was gonna put it on my necklace, but Dad took it from me.
So I made him swear to keep it safe while you're away.
Keep it safe.
And you keep it safe until we see each other again. Do you promise?
I promise.
She had my ring.
-What ring? -My wedding ring.
When I was in the Achaian ship,
Jana was in the Artifact, and we saw each other.
I didn't believe it was possible, and I wanted to test it.
So I took off my wedding ring, and I gave it to her.
She has it with her across the galaxy.
So the Achaians don't just transmit data via wormhole, they send matter?
Pull up the star map.
This is the Achaian ship that disintegrated around that magnetar.
Before that, it was here. Pi Canis Majoris. Zakir.
-Where was it before that? -Right there. Immediately before.
Twenty light years away.
We have been struggling
to stabilize microscopic wormholes for our superluminal comms,
and the Achaians use them to transit entire ships.
Can we do that?
With the Salvare?
[scoffs] I mean, that's impossible, right? The amount of energy required alone is--
High-tension loops.
There are two types of cosmic strings,
low-tension, the one that we used, and high-tension loops,
which is a cosmic string that's folded over itself.
The Achaia are able to somehow tap into their energy.
-Where is the nearest high-tension loop? -[rapid bleeping]
Between us and the next closest star to this system.
So knowing what you know about Achaian tech and the limits of our ship,
can we use that loop to make the wormhole large enough to fit the Salvare?
Theoretically, yes.
But loops dissipate at a much quicker rate than cosmic strings.
So, we would have to get going now.
William, how far out is Cas?
She's in the shuttle bay.
-She's back already? -She never left.
What?
You mutiny 'cause you don't agree with protocol?
We came through USIC together.
You know I'm not a psychopath who'd eradicate an entire species.
I don't know what you'd do.
It's okay, Paula.
We found a way. It's a shortcut back to Earth.
An overpopulated, overheated planet in the middle of an alien invasion?
[scoffs] I'll take my chances down there.
[bleeping]
[Paula yells]
Cancel the launch sequence, Cas.
-I can't, Niko. She locked me out. -[both yelling]
-Come on, Paula. -[Salvare] Launch sequence terminated.
That's enough, Paula.
Confine her to her quarters.
You have enough quarters to confine all of us?
Twenty-four colonists versus six Salvare crew and two holograms.
If they even agree to come back up here.
-You don't have the supplies. -We have an entire fucking planet.
I am not leaving without you.
And we are not going alive.
-Just let her go, Niko. -I can't.
How many more of our friends have to die for this mission?
I am doing this to save lives.
I know. If letting Paula go means no one has to die today, then just let her go.
Think about the crew we still have.
[William] Niko, our window of opportunity is closing fast.
Don't make me regret this.
-[click] -[alarm sounds]
[Salvare] Launching colony pods one through four to the planet's surface.
You can still come with me.
[engines roaring]
[sighs]
Just don't fuck it up.
Okay.
-[bleep] -[engine roars]
[engine roaring]
[sonic boom]
[aliens speaking]
We've arrived at the location of the high-tension loop.
Okay.
[burbling and bleeping]
Starting over is not easy for me.
It means letting go of William.
I understand.
He was special to you.
He was a member of this crew.
So are you.
Cas, status report?
[pulsating whirring]
We're ready.
[Niko] All right, everyone. Showtime.
What we are about to do is not without risk,
but the reward is an express ticket back to Earth.
We all know the plan.
We know our jobs.
Let's go home.
-Dillon? -Negative matter production is stable.
Iara?
Connection established between the Salvare and the high-tension loop.
Wormhole should be opening… now.
[rushing]
It's working.
Oh, my God!
-I see Jupiter. -[laughs]
[Iara] There's a problem.
The loop has dissipated more than anticipated.
What does that mean?
The Salvare has too much mass to transit the wormhole.
There's got to be a way.
Yeah. Ditch a shit ton of mass.
So we split the ship in two. Send the Salvare one half at a time.
The wormhole will collapse as soon as sufficient mass transits.
[Iara] We'd only get half of it through.
Everyone head to deck three. That is an order.
You're doing this manually?
It's the only way to override the Go Home Protocol's redundancies.
Niko, don't. You'll be stranded.
Computer, turn off comms.
William, Cas is gonna need you.
Go.
Yes, Niko.
Let me.
You can't. You are not the commander of this ship.
Is everyone on deck three?
[Salvare] Everyone except Commander Niko Breckinridge
and Richard Ncube.
Lock down that deck.
So Cas doesn't do anything foolish.
It's been a pleasure serving with you, Commander.
You too.
You've got 60 seconds.
[bleeping]
[Salvare] Authentication, Niko Breckinridge.
[alarm wails]
[alarm blaring]
[gasping]
[beeping]
-[Salvare] Access denied. -What the fuck?
-[beeping] -[groans]
[rattling]
[Iara] I want you to know I tried.
-Tried what? -[rattling]
To forgive you.
[gasping]
Open this hatch, now.
I wish I could.
Iara!
[whooshing]
[alarms beeping and wailing]
Open comms.
Cas?
-Niko, what are you doing? -Getting you home.
The rest is up to you. You have to tell USIC what we discovered
about the Achaia, how to protect Earth, okay?
Tell my family that I love them.
♪ It's better to be feared than loved… ♪
Help Erik understand. Okay?
♪ We can't be both, it's not enough… ♪
Yeah, I-- I will. I promise.
♪ Oh, I find it difficult to see… ♪
Thank you.
Thank you for everything.
♪ It's harder to believe than trust… ♪
I am so proud of you, Cas.
♪ If you walk the past alone and judge… ♪
-[alarms blaring] -[loud thump]
Initiate manual override.
-Go Home Protocol. -[rattling]
-Come on! -[thump]
Alpha six-eight-three.
♪ If you can't be both… ♪
-[crashing] -[Salvare] Initiating manual override.
[thumping]
♪ Oh, I find it difficult to see… ♪
Till we see each other again, okay?
I just wanna remember every bit of you.
♪ Can't you cause my mind to see? ♪
♪ You don't seem to carry All the burdens that I did ♪
♪ And for you to walk beside me There's a price ♪
♪ I don't wanna let you down ♪
♪ I don't wanna break apart ♪
-♪ If you could only see inside… ♪ -[mouths]
-♪ You know I could give enough… ♪ -[whooshing]
♪ To you ♪
♪ I could give enough ♪
♪ I could give you up ♪
♪ I'm strong enough ♪
♪ I don't wanna let you down ♪
♪ See me, I'm breakin' ♪
♪ I can see the way around ♪
♪ Baby, I'm plannin' to make it home ♪
♪ I heard, oh, I heard, oh ♪
♪ Will you believe? ♪
♪ I heard, oh, I heard, oh ♪
♪ I don't wanna let you down ♪
♪ I don't wanna break apart ♪
♪ If you could only see inside ♪
♪ You know I can give enough to you ♪
♪ I can give enough ♪
♪ I can give you up, I'm strong enough ♪
♪ I don't wanna let you down ♪
♪ If you walk the past alone and judge ♪
♪ Oh, I find it difficult to see ♪
♪ Can't you cause my mind to see? ♪