2.14 - Beware of Dog

A parasite is brought aboard Moya and the crew acquires a creature known as a Vorc to hunt it down. But there is no sign of the parasite and the only danger seems to be from the Vorc itself.

D'Argo and Chiana are busy, Rygel. - Zotoh Zhaan
What? They ran out of places to defile up here so they had to do it in a Transport Pod? - Dominar Rygel XVI

Our parasite problems are solved! - Chiana
Rygel has decided to leave us then, has he? - Aeryn Sun

I hate critters! - John Crichton

D'Argo, you're in no condition for sex. - Chiana
Yeah. Might kill me, huh? - Ka D'Argo

That was a warning shot! - Chiana
Yeah? Ten is more than a warning. - John Crichton

Sorry about the mess. - Aeryn Sun, John Crichton

John is in his quarters, mumbling to himself and staring at a chessboard while playing with a ball of some kind. Aeryn steps in and asks what he is mumbling about and he tells her he is just thinking. She asks what he is thinking about.

Flashback: John is in the Aurora Chair. Scorpius is standing behind him with a large, needle-like spike.
"Something to remember me by!" says Scorpius as he slams the spike into the back of John's head. John screams in agony.

Aeryn continues to ask John what is wrong with him but he insists that he is all right. He picks up a metal rod and leaves.

Meanwhile, Rygel is asking Zhaan where Chiana and D'Argo are. Zhaan says they have learned that supplies in this system are often infested with parasites so Chiana and D'Argo are looking for something to use against the parasites in case they have brought some on board. At this point a noise is heard and a crate falls over in the maintenance bay. Rygel jumps.

A transport pod arrives and Chiana and D'Argo exit with a covered crate which they take to the maintenance bay where they find Aeryn. Chiana says their parasite problems are solved and uncovers the crate to reveal a cage holding a small alien creature with a large head and ears. She calls it a Vorc and lifts it from the cage.

D'Argo says they have learned the Vorc will attack the parasites and Chiana says that the last ship the parasites got loose on was found with everyone dead and only cocoon-like egg sacs left behind. Aeryn suggests jettisoning the food to be safe but Chiana insists that the Vorc will kill the parasites, at which point the Vorc pees all over D'Argo. Chiana drops the Vorc and it runs away, Chiana following.
"Yep." says Aeryn, watching with amusement. "That's impressive."

Elsewhere, John is playing golf in the corridors with the pole and ball he was playing with earlier. He hears a noise in a grate and, looking through it, is surprised when a creature of some kind lunges at the grate from the other side. John fires his pulse pistol at it but misses.

Later, Aeryn, D'Argo and John are searching the compartment looking for whatever John saw. Aeryn thinks it may have been the Vorc but John doesn't think so; it may have been one of the parasites. John asks Pilot to provide some DRDs to help search and Pilot agrees.

In the main chamber, Zhaan is putting supplies away when something knocks over a container. She looks behind the containers and the Vorc jumps out at her.

Chiana arrives pushing the Vorc's cage. She and Zhaan try to capture the Vorc to put it back into the cage but it gets away and runs to the entrance where it is grabbed by Aeryn. Unfortunately, it then bites Aeryn, who drops it, and it runs off down the corridor.

John is still searching for the creature he saw and is asking Pilot for more help. Pilot says he doesn't think they will find anything as Aeryn has told him that John has been acting strangely and they think John is just playing some kind of game. John disagrees but stops talking when he sees Scorpius! He draws his pulse pistol and follows Scorpius to the cargo bay. There, he startles Rygel by nearly shooting him. Rygel wants to know what is happening but John says he thought Rygel was the creature he saw earlier.

Chiana and D'Argo are looking for the Vorc. Chiana wants to quit but D'Argo says they need to see what the parasite looks like so they need to keep following it. Chiana gets angry and stalks off.

Aeryn enters her quarters and steps in a pile of Vorc poop. She then sees the Vorc on her bed. She tries to chase it off but it runs over and attaches itself to her leg. She calls for Chiana or D'Argo to come get it before she shoves it out the airlock.

The Vorc suddenly seems to get a scent and runs off. D'Argo yells for Aeryn to follow it.

Elsewhere in the ship, Chiana hears a sound and follows it.

Aeryn loses the Vorc and she and D'Argo began to search for it. D'Argo is concerned about the parasite but Aeryn thinks there is no parasite and that the locals made the story up to get Chiana and D'Argo to buy the Vorc. D'Argo asks where she is and she tells him she last saw the Vorc it was heading towards the maintenance bay.

About this time, Chiana calls from the maintenance bay. She and Rygel are being menaced by the same creature John saw earlier.

Chiana manages to get a metal rod from one of the workbenches and attacks the creature with it but it slams her to one side and she falls to the floor. D'Argo rushes into the maintenance bay and the creature attacks him, biting him in the neck. D'Argo fires at it but misses. The creature escapes down the hallway and D'Argo collapses to the floor.

John rushes in and finds Rygel beside D'Argo, stroking his face. John checks to make sure that Chiana is all right then kneels beside D'Argo. D'Argo tells John the creature he saw was real then goes into convulsions. John, Chiana, Rygel and Aeryn, who has just arrived, all attempt to hold him but cannot stop the convulsions. Aeryn yells for Zhaan.

Later, in the medical bay, Zhaan and Chiana examine D'Argo. Zhaan says he is getting worse but can't yet determine what is wrong with him. Chiana is frustrated but Zhaan tells her to leave her alone so she can examine D'Argo. Chiana calls for John.

Aeryn and John are searching another level when they find the Vorc. Chiana says the Vorc is useless but John points out it was heading for the maintenance bay when she and Rygel were attacked so it may have been on the trail of the creature. He also says that it probably couldn't attack a creature the size of the one they saw but that it could help them find it. He tries to get the Vorc but it snaps at him. He leaves, asking Aeryn to get it.
"I hate critters!" he mutters to himself.

Back in the medical bay, D'Argo regains consciousness but Zhaan discovers he has been poisoned. She starts to try to find an antidote.

DRDs are searching through Moya and John is watching on a viewer on Command. Zhaan tells him that they need the creature alive so they can analyze its venom to find an antidote for D'Argo. Suddenly, an image of Scorpius appears on the viewer.
"You'll never see it coming, John." says Scorpius. "Yes..." John stares in disbelief.

Zhaan has taken D'Argo to Moya's neural cluster where he is now floating in the center of the chamber. Zhaan tells him that the energies here will help strengthen him and keep him alive. She also says that the poison is designed to paralyze muscles and that his heart and lungs are affected.

Rygel appears and D'Argo tells him he is too early; he is still alive. Rygel says he has come out of concern for a shipmate but D'Argo says he is just afraid to be alone.

Aeryn is with the Vorc which suddenly seems to detect the creature. It takes off and Aeryn follows, John chasing after from Command. Pilot says the creature seems to be trying to get to the neural cluster chamber where D'Argo, Rygel and Zhaan are and seals off the area.

Chiana sees the creature and fires on it several times, but misses. John arrives and knocks her down to stop her shooting. He says that they need the creature alive and so need to use sleep grenades. They argue with each other a bit but are interrupted when Pilot says the creature is heading for Command. Both run in that direction and John asks Pilot to close all the doors to Command, sealing it in.

Aeryn, Chiana and John arrive at Command, open the door and start searching. John is distracted at one point when he seems to see Scorpius but he continues his search. Unfortunately, all he finds is the Vorc. It looks at the three of them for a moment then suddenly opens its mouth wide and seems to turn itself inside out, becoming the creature! The three stare for a moment before throwing their gas grenades and knocking it out.

The Vorc-creature is taken to Zhaan who examines it but is unable to find any trace of poison in it. Everyone is confused. Zhaan speculates that it is only poisonous in its other form but John points out that it was in this form when it attacked D'Argo and Aeryn points out it bit her in its Vorc form and she wasn't poisoned. Zhaan asks how long it would take them to get back to the planet they got the Vorc from and Pilot says 36 arns. Zhaan says D'Argo won't live that long.

In the neural cluster, Chiana is holding D'Argo. She blames herself, saying that she brought the Vorc on board but D'Argo reminds her that they both brought it on board.

Later, Aeryn and John have the Vorc-creature in a crate. John speculates that maybe the Vorc is doing what it is supposed to do. He suggests that it has two forms; one for tracking and the other for attack, and that the parasite is still out there. Aeryn asks why it attacked D'Argo in that case and wants to kill it. John suggests injecting it with translator microbes to see if they can get it to understand them. Aeryn doesn't think much of the idea but has no better ideas of her own. John pounds on the crate and the Vorc-creature turns back into the Vorc.

A DRD injects the microbes and they try to talk to the Vorc. It seems to understand them but they cannot understand it. However, Pilot interrupts to say that he is more familiar with non-verbal communication and tries to translate for them. They eventually determine that the Vorc isn't the parasite but that there is one on board. The Vorc indicates that it will lead them to the parasite and, without any better ideas, they let it free.

Aeryn and John began following the Vorc through the ship. Rygel contacts them and is upset that they have let the Vorc go again but they say they have no other choice and suggest that Rygel lock himself in his room if he is afraid. The Vorc suddenly turns into the creature and charges off, Aeryn and John following.

The Vorc-creature goes to the cargo bay with Aeryn and John following. Rygel turns out to be hiding in the cargo bay and the creature attacks him. Aeryn and John manage to chase it off again but not before Rygel is badly injured.

They take Rygel to Zhaan and she discovers that the wounds the Vorc-creature left contain the same poison that is affecting D'Argo. She cannot understand why she didn't find the poison when she examined the Vorc earlier but John says he will get the Vorc for her one way or another. After stopping to talk briefly to D'Argo, he leaves.

Aeryn and John are following a trail of blood. Aeryn comments that she knew they had hit the Vorc-creature but John suddenly sees Scorpius coming up behind her. He shoots at Scorpius, much to Aeryn's surprise. Scorpius disappears. Aeryn demands to know what is going on but they are interrupted by the appearance of the Vorc-creature.

They give chase but it eludes them. They start to split up to look for it when it suddenly appears again then runs back off. John wonders why it came back after it had gotten away, almost as if it wanted to be found. They decide that it is leading them into a trap but follow it anyway.

They enter the cargo bay where the Vorc-creature is hiding behind some crates. John approaches it and the creature charges, knocking crates aside. Aeryn steps in behind it and fires, knocking it to the ground. She starts to approach but John sees something behind her and points out a large cocoon-like thing attached to several of the crates.

In the medical bay, we see Rygel lying on an examination table. Suddenly, one of his eyes pops out and runs around on small insect-like legs. Several other insect like creatures exit his mouth and run around a bit before running back inside. The "eye" also returns to its original place.

Aeryn and John are examining the object they have found and Aeryn reminds him that Chiana said the parasites leave cocoons behind. The Vorc-creature tries to stand up and Aeryn and John warily allow it to do so. It approaches the cocoon and slashes it open with one of its claws. Rygel falls from the cocoon.
"Holy Body Snatchers!" exclaims John. "Start talking!"

In the medical bay, "Rygel" sits up from the table, growling.

Aeryn and John question Rygel. He says the creature invaded him and formed the cocoon around him then took his shape. John points his pulse pistol at him and asks how they know he is the real Rygel. Rygel farts helium and Aeryn and John look at each other then race from the room, yelling for Zhaan.

Zhaan looks up and looks around as does Chiana, who was apparently sleeping beside D'Argo. "Rygel" suddenly throws himself at Zhaan and she struggles with him. John and Aeryn rush into the room. John grabs "Rygel" from Zhaan and throws him across the room where he is shot by both Aeryn and John. His body seems to fall apart and hundreds of the small insect-like parasites start scurrying across the floor towards the others.

Aeryn starts firing at the parasites while John grabs what seems to be a fire extinguisher from a nearby table and sprays it at them. The blast from the fire extinguisher seems to freeze the majority of them and the others are destroyed by Aeryn's pulse pistol fire. The two walk into the room, crushing the remains of the parasites.
"What the frell is that!", asks Chiana.
"Sorry about the mess." say both Aeryn and John, simultaneously. They look at each other then turn and exit the room.

Later, D'Argo and Rygel are recovering in the medical bay with Chiana and Zhaan looking on. Rygel says that the parasite was hiding in a food container in the cargo bay and that it was feeding on his life essence. He also says that it would have taken over the others next. D'Argo remembers the other "Rygel" over him and wonders why it didn't take him over. Zhaan speculates that the poison affected him more rapidly than the parasite expected and that it didn't have time.

Rygel asks why they didn't recognize that the fake Rygel wasn't him and Chiana says that it was a perfect copy. Rygel is offended and says that the Vorc knew it wasn't him.

Elsewhere, Aeryn is holding the Vorc, John behind her. Pilot says the Vorc knows it is dying but that it is happy. John asks if there is anything they can do for it and Pilot says no. Aeryn tells the Vorc she is sorry and it reaches out to her with one hand, then dies. Aeryn starts to cry quietly and John holds her.

Later, John is back in his cabin playing chess against himself. Aeryn enters and asks what was going on when he nearly shot her earlier. John hesitates then confesses that he keeps seeing Scorpius; not memories but flashes of him like he is there talking to him. Aeryn asks what Scorpius says and John replies that he keeps telling him that he is going to get him. That he already has gotten him but that John doesn't know it yet.

Aeryn asks why John didn't kill Scorpius when he had the chance and John says he couldn't; something within him stopped him when he tried. Aeryn seems concerned.
"Crichton," she begins, "if you need help..."
John waves her off. "I'll ask, just like you do Aeryn." He laughs. "Don't worry, I'm not gonna lose my mind."
Then, more quietly, he adds. "It's all I've got left."

Aeryn looks at him a moment more. "All right." she tells him. She still looks unconvinced but smiles then gets up and leaves. John returns to his game.

"You'll never see it coming, John." John hears Scorpius saying. "When the trap closes, it will be too late."
"You think so?" John asks. He moves a piece on the board. "Checkmate. You lose"

John looks up and we see Scorpius sitting on the opposite side of the board from him. Scorpius tips the black king onto its side.
"That wasn't the trap I meant." he says.

John is again alone in the room.

John was placed in the Aurora Chair by Scorpius in Nerve and The Hidden Memory.

John has previously had visions of Scorpius in Crackers Don't Matter.

John was unable to kill Scorpius when he had the chance in The Maltese Crichton.

After killing the parasites, Aeryn and John both say "Sorry about the mess". Aeryn says the same thing after killing the Sheyang in PK Tech Girl. (The line was originally used by Han Solo after shooting Greedo in the cantina in the original Star Wars.)

At the start of the episode, John is playing with a ball. Scorpius plays with a similar ball at the end of Mind the Baby.

Why is John having visions of Scorpius? What stopped him from killing him when he had a chance?

Beware of Dog is a fun little episode with some interesting moments, some nice misdirection and the slow emergence of a disturbing question.

The episode starts off with things going well enough. Chiana, D'Argo and Zhaan have been to a commerce planet and apparently stocked up on supplies; there sure are a lot of crates in the cargo bay anyway. But, they are afraid that they have picked up some parasites along with the cargo and so they buy a Vorc to hunt down and destroy them. But it is the Vorc that sees to be dangerous and there is no sign of the parasite. Or, is there?

The misdirection to make us think that the Vorc is the real danger and that the parasite is really Rygel is done quite well, but there are clues that things may not be as the crew thinks they are. The big one is that there is evidence that the parasite is around before Chiana and D'Argo appear with the Vorc. At the very start of the episode, Rygel meets Zhaan who tells him about the parasite. Zhaan leaves, Rygel hears a sound and a barrel falls in the cargo bay. We then see Rygel gasp at something. (Presumably this is when Rygel is captured by the parasite.)

Note that this scene occurs before Chiana and D'Argo return with the Vorc. Of course we see "Rygel" soon afterwards and so are misled into thinking that all is well. But that one scene should have been a clue to us that the Vorc was innocent all along.

There are other clues as well. When the Vorc-creature first corners Chiana and "Rygel" in the maintenance bay, "Rygel" is screaming for help and Chiana attacks it. The Vorc simply knocks Chiana aside. It is trying to reach "Rygel" but D'Argo arrives and attacks it, forcing it to flee.

The Vorc-creature does hit D'Argo on the way out but D'Argo continues to fire for several seconds before collapsing. We are supposed to think that he is suffering the effects of the wound from the Vorc but apparently he has just been poisoned by the parasite. Note that in the very next scene "Rygel" is hovering over D'Argo and telling the "Luxan" not to die. Doesn't it seem odd that Rygel would suddenly be showing so much concern over D'Argo? Especially since Chiana, who is much closer to Rygel than D'Argo is, is also lying unconscious on the floor? Obviously the "don't die" statement is being made as the parasite; it needed D'Argo to live in order to use him.

Notice that from this point onward Rygel tends to stay fairly close to D'Argo. Now, does this seem like something our usual out-for-himself Rygel is likely to do? "Rygel" continues to behave somewhat oddly throughout the entire episode but not so oddly that we are suspicious.

It should also be noted that the Vorc keeps trying to get to "Rygel". It tries to get to the medical lab when "Rygel" is there with D'Argo and Zhaan and later goes to the cargo bay when "Rygel" is there. Also consider how upset "Rygel" is when it realizes that Aeryn and John have released the Vorc again.

Finally, consider what happens when the Vorc-creature corners "Rygel" at the end. At the last second Rygel goes from whimpering in fear to attacking the Vorc-creature with a growl. Does this seem like something Rygel would do? All the clues were there but the writers did a very good job of misdirection.

There were some nice moments showing the interaction among the crew as well. It is clear how much both Chiana and John care for D'Argo, as evidenced by how upset both of them are. Especially good is an exchange where John tells Chiana to go to D'Argo and "give him a reason to live". Her response, "And do what? Watch him die?" shows her feelings for D'Argo as well. She wants to be in on the hunt, doing whatever she can to help him.

It is also worth noting that D'Argo's thoughts at this point remain on finding his son. As he is dying, what may be his last words to Chiana and John are a request that they find his son for him. He has said before that the thought of finding his son is all that has kept him alive all this time and here we see that it is still central in his mind.

We also see some more of Aeryn's feelings about John. She knows something is wrong with John and tries to get him to talk about it. Yes, one time was because he nearly shot her but she still seems to be asking out of concern for him. Her concern seems genuine and possibly more than just concern for a shipmate. She also seems hurt when he doesn't seem to want to talk to her about it.

Or, should we ask if it is because he doesn't want to talk about it, or because he can't? We are reminded that John didn't kill Scorpius when he had the opportunity to do so at the end of The Maltese Crichton and now John has admitted that it was because he couldn't. It seems to be related to his time in the Aurora Chair but what is happening to him remains a mystery at this time. The frightening part is that the effect on John seems to be increasing as time goes by. That, combined with the fact that the Scorpius John hears has told him he has already lost should be a matter of concern.

Aeryn apparently is concerned. She fakes a smile at the end but she is obviously worried about what is happening. It also seems that she has confided in Pilot that something seems to be wrong. Unfortunately, it appears that she is still unable to express her full feelings towards John and so can't reveal the extent of her concerns to him. Too bad; John may need all of the allies he can get soon.

The one jarring note to this episode also involves Aeryn. All through the episode she is less than thrilled to have the Vorc around, even to the point of threatening to shove it out the airlock. Then, when it is dying at the end, she cries for it. True, she and John did kill it when it was really trying to help them but her sudden and total change of heart seems odd. Especially considering that Aeryn is a trained Peacekeeper soldier who should be accustomed to the thought of having a friend or ally die. She has said before that showing emotion is a sign of weakness and has been very reluctant to reveal any of herself, even to John. Why the sudden display of emotionalism?

I could have understood if it was Chiana who was crying for the Vorc. After all, Chiana has always been much more open in her emotions than Aeryn and she was quite taken with the Vorc early in the episode. But she wasn't even there when the Vorc died.

Also, isn't it convenient that there was a fire extinguisher (or whatever that was) handy in the medical bay. Especially since we have never seen it before. It would have been better if it had somehow been established what it was and why it was there before having John use it. As it is, it is a bit of a deus ex machina which shows up out of nowhere to save the day.

Still, Beware of Dog is a fun episode with some nice sequences and some ominous hints of things to come. Definitely one to watch.