"Previously on Earth 2." "Away." "We were perhaps foolish to believe there was no intelligent life here." "O'Neill wants to follow those tracks, hunt down whatever creature stole our cargo." " We have crashed onto this planet." "We have lost most of our cargo." "I just saw a man get killed by a rodent." "We have to be very careful." "We are in a new place now." "Everything is different." "Commander O'Neill died because he forgot that." "Grendler." "Stay." "Keep digging." "I have ways of coaxing them back." "Those fools will pay their toll yet." "Dig!" "Let me out ofhere.!" "I need air.!" "Get off!" ".I need air.!" "Where am I?" "What" " What the hell" "Been here three days, and some strange part of me longs for the space stations." "I have no idea why." "There was no there there." "Nothing was real." "Even in my own bed, my own unit, never felt like I was home." "Wanted to run away and start over with a whole new hand." "Twenty-two light-years from nowhere?" "Some planet dancing'circles around some scorching sun?" "And me, some nomad on a six-wheeled camel, looking for shade." "Not exactly the new hand I was lookin'to be dealt." "Vehicle, halt." "Hey, Danziger!" "Why are we stopping?" "Wasn't designed for long hauls." "It's a mining vehicle." "And damned if I'm gonna burn her out the first day." "Alonzo!" "Lonzo!" "Halt.!" "We're holding.!" "Our pilot's a different man now." "When I met him, he was fearless." "Sucked the marrow out oflife." "Kid thought he could outrun gravity forever." "Gravity caught up with him." "Brought you some painkillers." "Thanks." "You had any more dreams?" "Not gonna have them anymore." "That's done with." "How do you know?" "I mean, whatever they are, they contact you, right?" "You'rejust never gonna go to sleep again?" "Alonzo?" "Alonzo?" "Alonzo, are you listening to me?" "I've never seen anything like this." "Bess?" "Bess?" "Morgan." "Yes?" "Honey, can you help me tie this on?" "These KEVLAR straps keep coming undone." "Bess, we've got a problem." "We got a problem here, and it's big." "The cyborg." "We shouldn't have one of those things with us." "It's not safe." "Morgan, what are you talking about?" "Yale is as nice as can be." "Yale!" "Exactly!" "They're defective, remember?" "Morgan, we didn't have Yales where I grew up." "We had school." "Nobody had Yales, Bess, except the richest families." "A kid in my sector had one till his memory wash failed." "The cyborg jumped 41 stories." "They had to scrape him up off the station floor." "These things- they're loose cannons, Bess." "They were supposed to have been recalled when I was a kid." "All the Yales." "The entire personal tutor project." "How come this thing's still around?" "Let's load 'em up, folks." "We're movin' out." "None of us knows what they did to that kid Ulysses- those creatures that stole him underground." "Maybe we're too afraid to ask." "Come on, Uly." "You've walked enough." "It's time to get in." "It's okay, Mom." "I'm not tired yet." "The boy certainly has your stubborn streak, doesn't he?" "I didn't ask if you were tired, Uly." "When'd you last get your vitals taken, huh?" "I want them taken every hour." "Fifteen minutes ago." "Good." "We're picking up a hitcher, Zero." "With the setting of camp at the end of each day... come the new unknowns life on the stations never prepared us for- the coming darkness, chill of night, the terror of sleep." "Hey, bring those solar shields." "How will the Terrians visit us next?" "From below our feet?" "In our dreams?" "Will they reach out to our children?" "Here's a piece." "A puny one." "We should have loaded up on wood before we left the last place." "They had good wood." "Better fortunes over there." "Dad, I'm just gonna be with Zero.!" "Okay." "Race ya." "When the Terrians were keeping me, they taught me all about... their cool Terrian stuff." "Like" " Like the way they can stretch their arms really long... so they don't have to get up if something's too far away for them to reach." "Sticks like this one, but longer, they use for destroying their enemies." "Really cool." "But it's a little cold down there." "And-And the way their caves, they wind around... so that they can confuse their enemies." "True?" "True?" "Dad.!" "Mom.!" "Dad.!" "Oh, God." "Sweetheart, are you all right?" "Oh, look!" "The guy's delirious or something." "Finally made it." "Knew you would get here." "Shh." "Just rest." "We're here." "It's okay." "We're here." "Hey, buddy." "Hey, listen to me." "Are you the only person here?" "Is there anyone else?" "Dry." "Water." "Here, here, here." "Shh." "Here you go." "Mmm." "Nobody here." "All alone." "But you've come for me." "I knew you would come." "Yeah." "Shh." "Just rest." "We're here, friend." "We're here." "Your mom was stupid if she thought we were the only people here." "Shut up." "You're the stupid one." "You are." "I thought you children were told to be in your beds!" "Now, did you think we were joking?" "Did you?" "No." "I cannot overstress the seriousness of you both... following your directives here." "Everything here is life and death." "Do you understand?" "Who is he, Yale?" "We don't know." "We are trying to find out." "He's obviously very hurt." "Are the Terrians gonna come up when we're sleeping... and come get us?" "No." "No." "I'm not scared." "Even if they do, the Terrians are my friends." "Go to bed, Uly." "Good night." "Good night." "The stranger travels light, carries only a story." "Name's Gaal." "He says he was an astronaut, Pontel 7 project." "His cold-sleep timer malfunctions, ship's dragged into this sun's orbit, crashes." "Guy thinks he's headed home, but wakes up here." "No people for a billion miles." "Stranded 15 years on this unknown planet." "Just the horror ofloneliness to keep him company." "Now he's found us to welcome him." "Someone should tell him I'm not the welcoming kind." "Can't sleep either, can you?" "Come again?" "You." "This godforsaken planet won't let you sleep either." "How did you know?" "I know." "I can feel a kindred spirit." "Is it the Terrians?" "Have they found you yet?" "Do the monsters visit in your dreams?" "How do I get them to stop?" "I wish I knew." "You didn't come here to rescue me, did you?" "We had no idea you were here." "We came to found a colony, build a hospital for the children who can't survive on the space stations." "And your son was one of these children?" "Yes." "We, uh-We're preparing to move eastward." "We have no intention of being in any one place for too long." "Our hope is to traverse this continent and be establishing a colony in New Pacifica... within 11 months." "We can't offer you a way home for some time." "I wish we could." "We would like you to come with us." "Leave here?" "I should like that very much." "God, 15 years, and no other humans." "I mean, can you even picture what that must have been like?" "I imagine he doesn't really know how long he's been here... because the days are so much shorter here and the years so much longer." "And him being a Pontel 7 astronaut, just-just lost like that." "Yale?" "What is Pontel 7?" "Galactic exploration project." "One-man vessel exploring an 11-light-year radius from Earth's sun." "It was essentially a pork barrel." "Made the defense contractors happy for a couple of decades." "Mission was scrubbed in 2168." "Three dozen missions, and not one shred of usable reconnaissance data." "Basically charting meteors." "Wow." "You know a lot, Yale." "Hi." "Um, last night when you came to us so bruised and beaten" "How did you get so hurt?" "Grendlers." "Uh" "Grendlers are what I call 'em anyway." "Slobbery rodents wouldn't blink to rip the arm from your shoulder." "And they could." "Guess you haven't had the pleasure." "No." "Uh, I" " I think I've seen one of those things." "Short, squat, ugly things?" "Hi." "I'm Morgan Martin, Deputy Secretary of Interstellar Development." "How are you?" "Guess you've seen one then, friend." "Last night, when I saw the lights from your camp," "I thought it was a mirage." "My rescue was here finally, after all these years." "Then two of them ambushed me." "Cleaned me out of everything I had." "We had a cargo pod." "Everything we brought was stolen- an aircraft, vehicles." "That's the Grendlers' way." "Traders by nature, but not above a little larceny." "Julia?" "Could you come up here?" "Um" " Uh" "Excuse me." "Poor little thing." "Well, I guess she does it out of hunger." "What?" "Who?" "The little girl." "Stealing extra rations, hiding them in that satchel of hers." "Stealing food rations?" "Well" "I guess her father will reprimand her in time." "Hey, get away from that!" "Sorry, kid." "You can't have everything." "Play by the rules." "Give it to me!" "No!" "Let it go, Morgan." "It's not hers!" "It's all of ours." "You can't keep secrets from us." "We're all in this together." "Oh, my God." "Oh, my God." "It got me." "One of those varmints.!" "Bess!" "Bess." "Morgan?" "Morgan?" "Morgan?" "Morgan.!" "What's happening to him?" "Morgan!" "Julia!" "He's got toxins everywhere." "He's lost his heart rate." "Cardio-vert.!" "That's not working." "Cardio-vert!" "Come back to me, Morgan!" "Morgan!" "I" "Let me give it a shot." "Let me give it a shot." " What are you doing?" " An old-fashioned military method." "Danziger." "We-We've lost him." "We've lost him." "Danziger." "That's enough." "That's enough." "Please.!" "Morgan.!" "Your husband will pull through." "Please don't say that, Gaal." "He's dead." "There are secrets of this planet you do not yet understand." "He's not dead." "I've been stung by these rodents a dozen times, and I'm still here to tell the tale." "What are you talking about?" "The worst effect their stings have on humans is to put them into a state of coma... for a short while-maybe a day or two, at the best of my estimation." "He will wake up." "Give him time." " You mean it's not fatal?" " I guarantee it." "Oh, my God!" "Our commander was stung two days ago." "We thought he was dead, and we buried him." "The chances that Commander O'Neill was still alive, buried under five feet of earth?" "Probably six million-to-one." "But we weren't going back for him." "We were going back for ourselves." "We couldn't live, not knowing." "Oh, my God." "Oh, this can't be happening." "My worst fear." "Grendlers got here first." "Preliminary resonant scan of the area show no sign ofhuman body warmth, at least not aboveground." "Let's organize a search party immediately, okay?" "Sure." "How are we doing?" "It's amazing, the strength coming back to his lungs." "The levels are almost normal." "Think I'm, like, maybe becoming part Terrian or something, and we could ask the Terrians to help us, you know, find Commander O'Neill?" "And I could ask them... 'cause they think I'm probably their prince or something, and I could just command them." "You were sick for a very long time, Ulysses Adair, and I want you to take it easy." "You don't want to end up back in your immuno-suit, do you?" "No." "He really is showing strength." "His mother wants him resting." "I'll be back soon." "Where'd you go?" "Hmm?" "I saw you coming back from the north this morning." "North, south, east, west." "I was out looking for your good commander." "Unsuccessfully, I might add." "Uh-huh." "Well, do me a favor, will you?" "Anything." "Next time you decide to go wandering off, let somebody know." "Keep us from worrying about you." "Of course." "The Grendlers, you know, they're like ants- strong, ruthless, can carry seven times their own body weight, crush a man's skull with one hand if they wanted to." "I've managed to trade with some of them over the years." "May I have your permission... to try to contact them in the search for our good commander?" "How do you plan on doing that?" "Well" "I speak their language." "Bess?" "Yes?" "I know you probably don't care, but" "I just want to say I feel bad." "I mean, I didn't mean for anything to happen." "I... just thought the Koba was my friend." "You're right, True." "I don't care." "I hope Morgan gets better." "Thank you." "You're a smart person, True." "I'm trusting that you don't have to learn your lesson a third time." "No, ma'am." "Can I wait here with you?" "Whoa!" "Easy there, buddy." "Here." "I'll teach you how to run better." "You gotta bend your knees." "That's important." "Bend' em." "Lift them up nice and high, like that." "Okay, good." "Now, when you see a rock, you gotta see it before you get there and jump over it." "That's coordination." "And you move your arms, all right?" "Lift your knees." "Ready?" "Okay, let's go." "That's it." "That's it." "Move your arms." "Lift 'em up there." "Lift 'em up." "Jump over those rocks." "Attaboy." "That's good." "That's real good." "Excuse me." "What are you doing with my son?" "Just taking advantage of some of the wide open spaces around here." "What happened to your knee?" "Nothing, Mom." "I was running." "It's called a scrape." "I want you to go seeJulia, honey, right away." "Hey, your kid is healed, Adair." "You got your wish." "Let him breathe a little." "I am pushing him at my own speed, and please don't tell me how to be a parent." "I see how you manage your own daughter." "What's that supposed to mean?" "It means, I think I would know what kind of pets my kid was keeping." "Listen, we are all doing this for the first time." "I would stop making assumptions about how people raise their kids." "What is that?" "What is it?" "Easy." "Let me deal with the creature." "Yale, come check this out." "Mangiest-looking thing in the whole universe." "Wouldn't even wipe his mouth." "I think I'm gonna puke." "We shouldn't judge these Grendlers by our standards of good hygiene, though he's quite unpleasant." "And he's coming back." "Hey, he's coming!" "What happened?" "Your good commander is still alive." "They have him?" "That one says he knows where he is." "So how do we get him back?" "The Grendlers want to trade." "They asked for your three power generators." "Our generators?" "We won't survive without them." " I know." "I talked them down." " To what?" "One." "Morgan?" "Morgan, if you can hear me, you have to wake up now." "I need you too much." "I never would have come this far away from home without you." "We're a team." "Please, Morgan." "Please." "He moved." "He's back." "I'm... not dead, am I?" "No, you're not dead, honey." "What was that?" "I don't know, Morgan." "No.!" "Don't go, Bess." "Don't leave me, please." "Not with her." "She's good people, Morgan." "Just lay here and relax, and I'll be back in a minute." "I'm just gonna go see what that was." "No." "Shh." "Be careful." "Bess." "You shouldn't have buried me." "I don't know where they held me." "The creatures kept me from seeing." "Seems like it was underground." "That's my best guess." "Those vermin." "If I thought any of you had any guts, we'd hunt them down tonight." "Any takers?" "Why, uh-Why don't you just get some rest, Broderick?" " We're just all so happy that you're here." " Thanks to Gaal's help." "Whatever they are, I heard words." "Nothing made sense to me, but they can talk." "Incredible mimics, the Grendlers." "I taught a few of them a handful of jargon over the years." "Spread like the wind." "Come here, son." "Oh, my goodness." "What did they do to you?" "We don't really know." "They healed me." "His whole metabolism seems to have strengthened, even on the molecular level." "Well, welcome to the world of the breathing." "How are you holding up?" "Alonzo?" "Where am I?" "Who are you?" "How did you get here?" "I thought there were no other people here." "What did it do to you?" "What's going on?" "It's all right, friend." "They had you in their grip." "You were dreaming." "Thank you, Gaal." "Not at all." "Who else to rescue you from your demons?" "What the hell do you want, Martin?" "I need to know something, Commander." "Um, you know, that rodent thing... that stung you?" "It stung me too." "And for a while there, biologically speaking, it seemed like we were both dead." "What's your question?" "Well... uh, for that little time there, when you were dead," "where did you go?" "Where did you go?" "Oh, I" " I don't know." "A scary place." "There was bright light everywhere." "I couldn't see." "And there was this scratching sound, constantly gnawing." "I can't think of anyplace worse, nowhere." "Is that... sort of where you went?" "No, Martin." "I went to a better place." "I finally felt like..." "I was home." "Home." "Oh, wow." "Do you think I went to hell?" "I think you just weren't ready to die yet, Martin." "Hey, Uly!" "Whatcha doin'?" "Watching for Terrians." "Next time I see one, I'm gonna make friends with him, bring him back to the camp... so everyone can meet him." "What are you doing?" "Well, I thought I'd go for a little run." "You know,just around, take advantage of all this space." "Think it's safe?" "You sound like my husband, Uly." "I'm bringing my gear." "Hey." "You wanna come with?" "Just admiring." "Ah." "I never made it to Earth." "Never saw one of these land vehicles." "Well, I only got there once before myself." "Tour back in '64." "Indian Ocean." "Word is you were with the Pontel 7 project, worked for my old pal Larrabee." "Sorry, no." "Larrabee?" "Yeah, he headed up the project." "Damon Larrabee." "Had a gap between his teeth bigger than mine." "No?" "No." "Well, maybe you were before his time." "I must have been." "I was one of their nascent missions." "Ah." "Listen, what was the deal with those Pontel ships?" "What was their fuel source, antimatter?" "I've been alone on this planet for 15 years, no one to keep me company." "Actually, I count myself lucky that I've yet to go insane." "I've forgotten my days as an astronaut." "It was a different lifetime." "Ah." "Of course." "Broderick, can, uh- can I talk to you for just a minute?" " Sure." " Allow me to, um, excuse myself." "Thank you." "What's up?" "I'm worried about you." "Why?" "I'm fine." "I know that your every instinct is to be out there seeking retribution." "What are you thinking, Devon?" "O'Neill's a loose hinge, gonna go out, get himself killed again?" "Is that it?" "I know that going through what you went through- to the other side like that- must make you feel invincible or something." "What, you been talking to Morgan Martin or something?" "Actually, I have." "Well, dying' didn't make that guy feel invincible, did it?" "Just use caution." "Always." "Thank you." "Take it easy, Uly." "Wait up, Uly." "Stay where I can see you." "Uly?" "Uly.!" "Uly?" "Are you all right?" "I was waiting for you." "Oh." "Okay." "Let's get going." "I'll see you, Uly." "Bye." "Hey,you guys." "Over here." "Hi." "Hello, Ulysses." "What are you lookin' at?" "Maps, routes to New Pacifica." "I went for a run." "Mmm." "I'm sorry, Mom." "I'll take better care of myself." "I know how much you've done for me." "Will you please go get your immuno-suit?" "Immuno-suit?" "It's right inside." "Why do you have it out again?" "I mean, I'm healthy, right?" "Please?" "I'm healthy, right?" "You-You understand, right?" "We have a space problem, Uly." "We have this immuno-suit, and, uh, we don't know where to put it." "You mean I don't have to wear it again?" "No." "But now that you can take care of yourself, Uly, you have to take care of your things, and the suit is yours, and you need to find a place to put it." "I can do that." "I know you can." "Thanks." "I'll be damned." "Human?" "Just call me a magpie, Commander." "My gut told me you weren't Pontel 7." "Thought it was a pretty good story myself." "Fooled the others." "Who the hell are you?" "How'd you get here?" "Oh, I'm just a poor boy being punished, Commander." "Figured they were keeping this place a secret." "I assumed that a man of your rank" "You weren't sent here alone, were you?" "Oh, I had company." "Others like myself, who the space stations didn't want around anymore." "So here they sent us- the undesirables." "Killers, rapists." "To a penal colony." "Well, what happened with the others?" "We were craven, Commander." "Only I was just a tad more craven than the others." "I won the survival contest." "Why don't you have a weapon, Commander?" " What makes you think I don't?" " 'Cause I guess you would have used it by now." "Well, not necessarily." "Do you want to die, Commander?" "Is that it?" "Because I can accommodate you." "I've killed 26 now." "Twenty on the stations, six after I got here." "Your friends are in peril," "Commander." "In time, the women, needy of guidance, will follow me." "And the men, they will follow you." "Don't you hurt the others!" "Do it." "Help.!" "The commander... in the woods." "The Terrians." "I tried to fight them." "What?" "What happened?" "They got him." "Every day we discover only how much more we have yet to learn... about this planet, how to survive here." "Commander Broderick O'Neill learned his lessons twice." "Maybe now he knows something we don't." "New Pacifica still beckons." "For some it's the place that holds the promise of Eden." "For others it's our best hope to get home." "We don't know how we'll get there, don't know what dangers lie ahead, but at least we have a guide now."