Fissures (Episode 207)

As two technicians tested a new interdimensional pathway from New York to Bangkok, a strange glowing light appeared, then hid inside a control panel. One of the men stayed behind to make some adjustments and was attacked by a creature, which was attracted by the energy emitted from the technician's power tool. Da'an (Leni Parker) and Major Liam Kincaid (Robert Leeshock) interviewed the surviving technician to establish the cause of his co-worker's death. In the background was a TV tuned into an interview with U.S. President Thompson (Barry Flatman), who was discussing his platform with newswoman Catherine Shaw (Ona Fletcher). Suddenly, the broadcast broke up as a power outage hit, but this went unnoticed by Liam and Da'an who were engrossed in their own discussion. On board the Taelon mothership, President Thompson warned Agent Ron Sandoval (Von Flores) about the spreading power blackouts hitting all parts of the country. Sandoval bluntly asked Zo'or (Anita La Selva) if the Taelons were responsible. Zo'or denied the accusation. Meanwhile, Liam went to Augur (Richard Chevolleau) and tested his theory that the blackouts were only occurring in cities with portal terminals. Augur agreed that this was too much of a coincidence. Captain Lili Marquette (Lisa Howard) told Sandoval and Zo'or that Earth's engineers were tracing the crisis to an incompatibility as Taelon systems meshed with human systems. She added that the engineers were racing to put a series of buffers in place in an attempt to restore power. Liam met with Dr. Park (Janet-Laine Green), who was examining the dead technician's body. They found small puncture wounds in his flesh consistent with bite marks. Following a hunch, Liam went to the portal terminal to inspect the crawlspace where the technician died. He removed the facing on a power unit and found it infested with tiny glowing creatures feeding off the power source. Liam took one of the creatures to Augur and they examined its strange biology. They started to suspect that the creatures had arrived from another dimension and that they would destroy every power source on Earth, including the energy-based Taelons. As the power crisis spread globally, President Thompson and the Taelons tried to reassure Earth's people and their governments. But there was an obvious crisis of confidence as world leaders started to demand the removal of Taelon systems from their countries. Sandoval still harbored suspicions that the creatures were part of a Taelon plot and he commanded Lili to help him access top secret files.

When she was almost caught scanning through Taelon security files, Lili grew increasingly confused and concerned by Sandoval's orders, realizing he was following his own agenda. Meanwhile, Liam and Augur tried to trace the true origins of the creatures, which Da'an had told them were unknown to the Taelons. As these creatures grew and multiplied in horrifying numbers, they devoured Earth's energy sources, wreaking havoc and causing hundreds of deaths. Liam and Augur devised a plan to return the creatures to their own dimension, using a space shuttle to draw them into a portal. On board the mothership, Sandoval informed Zo'or of the creatures' threat to the Taelons. Zo'or ordered the mothership sealed, but his orders came too late. The ship was already infested with creatures which began to kill off the Taelons. To protect themselves, the Taelons had to stop emitting energy by putting themselves into a near-death state of "Sahmbaad." Sandoval swore to protect the Taelons in their vulnerable state and to captain their ship until the creatures were destroyed. But Sandoval was still following his own secret agenda, and Lili caught him using strange equipment on Zo'or's silent body. Liam got clearance to land on the mothership and he retrieved one of the craft's huge power coils -- the strongest power source on Earth. He hooked it up to the shuttle, then he and Lili piloted the machine down to New York City where they hovered above a skyscraper and activated an energy stream into one of the interdimensional portals. Betting that they could channel the creatures back to their dimension by baiting them with the power from the mothership coil, they saw the creatures slowly begin to arrive. But the shuttle itself was being destroyed by the creatures and the stress of the huge power coil. Lili slid down a rope to safety onto the roof, but Liam had to stay on board the dangerous craft to keep the portal open. Once all the creatures had been drawn to the shuttle, Lili gave the "all clear," and Liam jumped to safety as the shuttle exploded into a million pieces. Lili returned to the mothership to confront Sandoval about his covert activities, but he admitted nothing, and demanded her continued obedience. As she spied on him from the bridge, she saw that Sandoval had copied Zo'or's handprint, giving him access to the Taelon leader's personal files. She was left to wonder where Sandoval's loyalties lay.