"Communion"

Episode 204
(aired the week of 10/20/1997)
Case # 24-5208

Log line: An alien abduction leaves a man with the power to control living cells.

Synopsis: Scientist Alan Tremblay develops human pheromones for the multi-billion-dollar perfume industry, but his real scientific interests lie in wheat research, which he hopes will put an end to world hunger. When he leaves his lab late one evening, a blinding white light from above washes over him.

Tremblay comes to his senses the next morning. Disoriented. Confused. Lying on the ground next to his car. Helping himself up from the pavement, he is puzzled to see that a patch filled with seedlings and wildflowers has popped up in an otherwise vegetation-free parking lot. The OSIR arrives to investigate several reported UFO sightings in the area. Scanning the lab parking lot for any abnormalities, Axon discovers peculiarly high levels of radiation. The team also notes that the patch of plant growth next to Tremblay's car is in the shape of a human body.

Tremblay is less than helpful when the OSIR questions him about his whereabouts during a UFO sighting the previous night. He recalls going home, but his memories are cloudy: he can't even remember what he had for dinner. Flashbacks - of being aboard an alien ship and of extra-terrestrials giving him an unusual psychic ability to control living cells - begin to come to Tremblay, ruining his ability to concentrate on his work. Tremblay's boss, Ms. Whitney sends him home for some rest.

When the OSIR visit Tremblay at home, they find him on the floor, nearly catatonic. Looking for answers, they subject Tremblay to questioning under standard hypnosis and monitoring. They confirm that he has virtually no access to his memory of the previous night. A look at his computerized brain map also indicates an area that seems "blocked out."

Hendricks suggests a procedure involving the injection of a synthetic neurotransmitter to break down the mental block limiting Tremblay's access to memories of the UFO encounter. It appears to work until Tremblay suffers simultaneous brain hemorrhaging and heart failure. Resuscitation efforts appear doomed to fail. But, suddenly, his heart returns to normal... and, as the OSIR watches the monitor in astonishment, his brain literally undoes the damage from the hemorrhage and heals itself.

After this harrowing experience, Tremblay refuses any more testing, but continues to form a bond of trust with fellow scientist Axon. When they shake hands, the physical contact triggers a mental flash; Tremblay tells Axon he has a dangerous parasite living inside his body. When Hendricks confirms Tremblay's handshake diagnosis via a complex series of tests, Axon is convinced that Tremblay's psychokinetic powers are real.

Tremblay learns that his boss, Ms. Whitney, has fired him rather than allow his spate of problems to further jeopardize the completion of their project. So he uses his newfound powers to physically alter his appearance - to match that of Praeger - in order to get into the lab and confront her.

Tremblay (now looking like Praeger) enters his former lab and comes upon Whitney trashing his beloved experimental wheat specimens. Thinking she's seeing Praeger, Whitney is confused when her former employee erupts in a fit of rage about "his" experiments. When Praeger/Tremblay unmorphs his appearance to reveal his true identity, Whitney - overcome with fear - lunges at him. Grabbing her wrist to protect himself but with his new cell control power unchecked, Tremblay unleashes through touch a massive cellular reconfiguration on Whitney: cancer-like black growths appear on her skin, consuming her to death.

When local police take the real Praeger into custody for Whitney's murder, the OSIR team struggles to uncover the truth and free their colleague. But when all signs lead the OSIR and police to Tremblay, the man - set on learning to control his gift - will stop at nothing to return to the beings that empowered him.

Starring:
Matt Frewer - Case Manager Matt Praeger
Barclay Hope - Peter Axon
Nancy Anne Sakovich - Lindsay Donner
Colin Fox - Dr. Anton Hendricks
Soo Garay - Dr. Claire Davison
Dan Aykroyd - Host

Guest Stars:
James Allodi - Alan Tremblay
Suki Kaiser - Ms. Whitney

Written by: Peter Mohan
Directed by: John Bell