A man, Stephen Guthrie, runs through the swamp. He pounds on the door of the Kipp house, yelling for hope, and Tressa and Will answer the door. Guthrie begs them to not "them" get him and collapses in exhaustion. Will realizes that Guthrie has a head injury, and Guthrie says that there was a big light in the sky above where he was driving. He explains that the alien leader was going to get him, but he hit him with his car first.
On the road, Swamp Thing tries to free himself from where he's trapped beneath Guthrie's car. His severed arm lies nearby.
Tressa tends to the unconscious Guthrie, and Will goes out but finds nothing. She says that Guthrie needs medical attention, and he has no ID. There's nothing but static on the phone, and Tressa tells Will that he'll have to go into town for help. Will refuses to leave Guthrie alone with the man, but she insists that she can take care of herself.
Swamp Thing realizes that he's lost too much blood and has to get into the swamp. He starts to pull himself free from the car.
Will takes a radio and tells Tressa to call him if Guthrie gives her any trouble.
Swamp Thing heads for the swamp.
Tressa goes back to the living room and Guthrie grabs her and demands to know who she is. He asks where he is, and says that he has to complete his mission. Tressa pulls free and tells him to lie down and conserve his strength, then asks who he is. Guthrie gives his name and says that he's a salesman, and he doesn't remember anything else at first. Then he starts talking about the aliens after him, and insists that they're out there. Guthrie says that the aliens are after him but he can't remember anything before the light. Tressa figures that he had an accident, and Guthrie tells her that the alien leader was enormous and like a man.
Swamp Thing staggers through the swamp and finally collapses in exhaustion. he realizes that the damage is too great for even the swamp to heal him.
in her office, Tressa tries to contact Will on the radio, and hears an APB about an escaped mental patient: Guthrie. He's considered unstable with possible violent tendencies.
Will finds Guthrie's car and Swamp Thing's severed arm. He calls Tressa and tells her what he found, and she figures that it's Swamp Thing and tells Will who Guthrie really is.
Guthrie looks through the house and stares at himself in a mirror.
Will tells Tressa to lock herself in the office and he's coming back, but she tells him to find Swamp Thing. Once she signs off, Guthrie comes in and asks who "Alec" is. He says that he only has his mission and he has to terminate the renegade. Guthrie starts talking about how he followed the renegade across 43 light years of space to Earth, aims a gun at Tressa, and says that he has directives to terminate because he's a Destroyer.
Following the trail of Swamp Thing's "blood", Will calls for his friend.
Guthrie says that he has no specific directive to terminate a human unless they interfere in his mission. Tressa tells him that he was in a hospital before the accident, and Guthrie says that he was looking for the alien in the mental hospital. But the renegade transformed back earlier and ran off, and Guthrie chased him. Tressa insists that Swamp Thing isn't the one Guthrie is looking for, but Guthrie says that he must kill the betrayer. She warns that he's dangerously ill, and Guthrie tells her that no one on Earth can help him. He talks about dying so far from home, and says that on his world the plants evolved intelligence and his adapted human metabolism that he took on as a disguise is killing him. Guthrie insists he has to finish his mission before he dies.
Will finds Swamp Thing.
Guthrie says that the metamorphosis is irreversible and fatal, and figures that Tressa is humoring him. She asks if he's killed anyone before, and Guthrie says that he's sure he has. Tressa peppers him with questions about his planet, and Guthrie finds a photo of Jim. He says that he has a son as well but he's not allowed to see him and that drives him to madness. Tressa offers to do something for Guthrie and asks where his son is, and Guthrie says that he lives 43 light years away and Destroyers are forbidden to contact their families because it makes them weak. Will calls on the radio and says that he's found the injured Swamp Thing. He tells Tressa to get there to the boat so they can take Swamp Thing to his cave. Guthrie pulls out the mic and tells Tressa to take him to Swamp Thing.
Swamp Thing tells Will that he's dying and says that he doesn't want the teenager to watch him die. Tressa and Guthrie arrive in the boat and Will calls Tressa over. He's built a sled to drag Swamp Thing, but Guthrie takes them both prisoner. Swamp Thing has no idea who Guthrie is, and Guthrie says that he betrayed his race and the sentence is death. The creature insists that he isn't from Guthrie's world, but Guthrie says that Swamp Thing has committed crimes against the state. Swamp Thing says that he should worry about what is killing him, and Guthrie rants about how they've killed off their animals and squandered their resources. When Swamp Thing came to Earth, he found that animals ran the planet. Swamp Thing says that Earth is a planet in crisis as well, and it makes no sense for a renegade to come to Earth looking for answers. He explains that the plant life on Earth is dying for the same reasons, and Guthrie realizes that Swamp Thing failed in his "mission".
Guthrie remembers that he left his planet because he was dying and came to Earth to find the answers. He tells them that they have to run before the Destroyer arrives to kill him. Swamp Thing tells Will that he's almost gone and they should leave him. Will refuses to accept that, but Swamp Thing tells him that his only chance is to be alone and concentrate on getting well. Guthrie says that he'll stay with Swamp Thing, and Tressa leads Will away.
Guthrie lies down next to Swamp Thing and says that Earth will be safe when he dies. Swamp Thing says that he knows that Guthrie is an alien, but Tressa and Will knowing wouldn't help them or the planet. Guthrie tells Swamp Thing that he failed but he sees hope in Swamp Thing. He calls him friend, and Swamp Thing calls him "friend" as well. Swamp Thing explains that he didn't watch Tressa and Will to watch him die, and Guthrie transfers the last of his life energy to Swamp Thing to save him. The creature heals his injuries, and the dying Guthrie tells him not to lose his battle.
Written by Gadfly on Nov 12, 2017