“The ghost of a man comes back to haunt himself before he has died. What’s that all about?”
Ben and Eugene try to make sense of the Troubled Spirit.
As the moon drifts through the vast, empty tracts of space, the Alpha’s amuse themselves with a little musical concert. As the music fills the halls of Alpha, an experiment is being conducted. Dan Mateo and three other scientists conduct a seance-like experiment in an effort to communicate with plants.
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Something goes wrong though and Mateo slips into a trance. The head of Hydroponics, Warren, tries to break up the experiment and a bizarre, windy force is unleashed on Alpha. Mateo collapses and is taken to the medical center.
Mateo awakens and appears to be fine. He tells Dr. Russell that he experienced cold and dread during the experiment, but that his work must continue. She sedates him so he can get a good night’s sleep. Later that night, a bizarre figure beckons to and terrifies Dr. Russell, but there is no one there.
Mateo returns to work where he threatens Warren. Minutes later, Warren is killed by the ghostly figure.
When Helena examines the body, she realizes the spinal cord has been crushed – not possible that it was caused by a blow. She concludes it must have been done by fear, unimaginably concentrated fear.
Well, not “unimaginably” because she just imagined the idea.
Bergman has been studying readings and concludes that a psychic energy force was unleashed by Mateo’s experiments. Mateo scoffs at the idea. They were just using technology and a seance to link their mental energies to try to communicate with plants. He doesn’t buy the “psychic” nonsense.
But first, they need to convince a skeptical command staff. They’re scientists, dammit, and they don’t believe all this supernatural stuff. Bergman assures that that he doesn’t believe its supernatural. Just paranormal.
Well, that’s OK, then, say the skeptical scientists.
Meanwhile Mateo tries to rebuild his machine. he’s right, dammit, talking to plants could be the edge to survival the Alphans need in space and his work must continue. His girlfriend tries to stop him, so the ghostly creature kills her.
Mateo now accepts that he is somehow to blame.
They hold another science seance, this time with everyone on the command staff. As Mateo lapses into a trance, the mysterious figure appears. It is Mateo, scarred and disfigured. He speaks and says that he used to be Mateo, but that they killed him and he will take revenge on them. Mateo wakes up and they touch, and the ghost disappears.
Bergman convinces Koenig that, they will need to handle thing exactly like a haunting, and they will need to perform an exorcism.
Just like that. Only, not at all like that.
Instead, they lock Mateo in the Medical Center and surround him with death rays. He is strapped into a chair and pumped full of chemicals that will cause him to rage uncontrollably. The hope is the death rays will destroy the apparition. it contains it, for a time, but Mateo wakes up, breaks free, battles with his ghost and the ghost pushes him into the death ray, killing him. The apparition “dies” too, and fade away. Mateo’s death is identical to the scars on the apparition. He has come full circle.
Afterwards, Koenig is philosophical: “Life after death, maybe, maybe not, but a man’s ghost haunting himself before he’s even dead. What’s that about?”[/expand]
