In Arcane's lab, the crown prince examines a mutant and then tells Arcane that it's safe to come in. When Arcane enters, the crown prince tells him to come to him. He says that if he's been infected then Arcane will want to kill him, and he has inhaled enough mist to kill ten men his size. The crown prince admits that he never knows what his mentor will or won't do, and Arcane suggests that the crown prince test his self-control against the captive mutant. The crown prince approaches the mutant but the mutant doesn't attack him, and suggests that the infection might take a while to work or that he might have failed.
Arcane examines the formula and asks if he took the brain tissue from a live brain. The crown prince admits that he didn't, and Arcane tells him to test the mist made with the living brain tissue on himself. After his student inhales it, Arcane says that he doesn't feel any murderous rage. Arcane tells him to not throw it away, and to keep it in his lab.
Tressa is riding her bicycle along the path and sees Jim's bike on the side. She stops to call to her son, and goes into the swamp to look for her son. Swamp Thing watches her go past.
The crown prince goes out into the swamp and opens the jar with his creation. As Swamp Thing watches, the crown prince prepares to dump the substance and swamp's guardian yells at him to stop. Jim is fishing nearby and hears Swamp Thing, as does Tress. Meanwhile, Swamp Thing takes the jar from the crown prince and demands to know what it is. The prince says that it's toxic waste and says that he's looking for a cure to hatred. Swamp Thing wishes him luck, sets the jar on a stump, and prepares to destroy it.
Tressa arrives looking for Jim, and Swamp Thing quickly hides. The substance boils, giving off red fumes, and Tressa is caught in the gas. She staggers back as the fumes dissipate, and Jim runs up. Tressa doesn't remember anything and leaves with her son.
When Tressa and Jim return home, Tressa tells Jim that she's going into Houma to shop at an art gallery for a friend's wedding gift. She goes to shower and rubs at her skin, and then wavers briefly before getting in the shower. Afterward, Tressa goes downstairs and passes Jim on the stares. He stares at her balefully for a moment and then goes to his room.
Arcane drives into Houma and sees Tressa looking for the art gallery. He goes over and greets her, and invites her to dinner. Tressa tries to put him off but Arcane suggests that they have a midnight supper at her place. He looks at her and then withdraws in shock and says that he'll see her later. Arcane goes to his car and calls the prince, and tells him that something unusual happened and they need to meet.
At the art gallery, the owner Mrs. Spritzler is wrapping Tressa's purchase. Tressa starts to sweat and Mrs. Spritzler has her turn on the nearby electric fan. When she breathes in the pheromones that Tressa is giving off, Mrs. Spritzler grabs a knife and charges at Tressa. Tressa trips her and runs out, and she passes a worker who also goes berserk. Mrs. Spritzler runs out screaming and wielding the knife, and the worker attacks Tressa as well. Tressa runs while Arcane and the prince watch, and Arcane demands to know how Tressa became infected. The prince explains that Swamp Thing took it from him when he chose to get rid of the formula.
Tressa runs down the road and comes to a gardener, and he goes berserk as well. She runs into her house and chains the door shut, and the gardener tries to come in through the windows. When he breaks in, Tressa runs out the door and into the swamp as Swamp Thing watchers. The plants attack Tressa, and Swamp Thing tells them to let her go. She collapses and Swamp Thing realizes that the plants are infected. Meanwhile, the plants pull Tressa back toward a nearby cliff. When Swamp Thing goes to help her, he's unable to get close because of the pheromones. He tells the plants to spare Tressa, and they finally do.
Arcane and the prince arrive and Swamp Thing grabs Arcane. He says that Tressa must not die and demands the antidote. Arcane explains that the prince created the serum, and admits that the prince did so at his command. Swamp Thing takes the two men to his crude lab and orders Arcane to command his student to make the antidote as Jim arrives. The prince does so, while Arcane tells Swamp Thing that someone will have to get close enough to Tressa to give her the antidote. Swamp Thing says that Jim can do it, and is counting on Jim's love for his mother to resist the infection. Jim admits that sometimes he doesn't love her, but Swamp Thing tells the boy that he always loves her even if he doesn't like her.
The prince gives Jim a jar with the antidote, and Jim takes it to Tressa. She tells him to stay back, but he resists the pheromones and gives her the jar. Tressa inhales the fumes and is cured, and she and Jim hug as Swamp Thing looks on in satisfaction.
Written by Gadfly on Jun 6, 2017