We open on a montage of scenes from earlier in the season, ending with Peter’s collapse on the stairs outside the police station and his segue into his dream.

Manhattan hospital room, two weeks later. Peter lies on a bed, taped up and I.V’d. We see his dream sequence again, bits of it are skipped and bits are repeated in a jittery replay. A new character is seen, rough and bearded. In the hospital room, Nathan stands staring slump-shouldered out an observation window, his back to his brother. Their mother walks over and caresses Peter’s brow.



Solitary Prison Cell. Niki stands facing the back wall of the cell. The door opens and a guard asks if she’s got her mind right yet. He enters nervously, backed by three others. He sports two black eyes, a broken nose and scrapes and bruises on one side of his face. He holds his baton ready. He’d rather she rotted in her cell for a few more weeks, but she’s entitled to a visit from a lawyer. When ordered, she holds out her hands. Her wrists are cuffed and she’s dragged from the cell.

Kitchen, Bennet house, Odessa TX. Mr. Bennet cooks something in a frying pan while Claire watches a news report on a T.V. nearby. Union Wells high school is finally reopening after Jackie’s death. The reporters have driven her crazy. Her father reminds her that she doesn’t have to talk to them, but Claire is more worried about the other kids asking questions she can’t answer. She knows her memory loss is due to post-traumatic stress, but is surprised that she can’t remember anything. Bennet believes amnesia is a blessing. Claire asks, and Bennet tells her that he found her outside the stadium terrified and traumatized. Claire accepts this, since she can’t remember anything, and rises to head off to school. She flashes her father a smile, which fades as she walks away. After she’s left, Bennet removes his glasses and wipes something, either tears or sweat, from his troubled face.

Hidden Complex, Primatech Paper Co., Odessa. Bennet replaces his glasses as a light comes on in a room beyond protective glass. Sylar lies illuminated inside, sprawled out on his bed. His eyes are open but glazed and he’s slack-jawed, unaware of the cockroach that crawls past. A man in a lab coat reports that they’ve examined Sylar’s genes, and although they’ve identified the sequence related to telekinesis, they’ve found no clues to his other aptitudes. They’ve given him enough “glycimerine” to kill an elephant, but gotten no closer. If they continue at the same pace, Sylar will be dead in a day. Bennet likes the idea, but his bosses haven’t authorized that so the scientist is just going to have to dig deeper. The scientist looks disturbed by the thought, but leaves without comment.

Parking Lot, Primatech. Audrey and Matt watch from their car as a S.W.A.T. team arrives with sirens wailing. Audrey has her doubts about the wisdom of raiding the place, but Matt is confident Sylar’s inside. Later, inside the warehouse, the team leader reports that they’ve searched the place and found nothing suspicious: just paper. Matt spies Bennet and demands to know where Sylar is. Bennet has no idea what he’s talking about. Matt stares at him, concentrating, but we see the Haitian standing nearby, and Matt gets nothing. Audrey calls him off, congratulating him sarcastically. Bennet mutters “Oops!” and smiles in amusement as Matt stomps away in frustration.

Metropolitan Museum of History and Technology, New York. Hiro watches a video about dinosaurs, warning the herbivores on screen about the approach of a couple of T-Rexes. The video mentions going back in time, at which Hiro grows sad. Everything he’s read about the sword tells him that it is in the museum. Ando joins him and they wander through the exhibits. Ando doesn’t understand why they’re looking for the sword when they have Hiro’s mission to complete. It’s only three weeks until the bomb goes off. Hiro explains that he needs his powers to stop the bomb, but they’ve been fading ever since he failed to save Charlie. The sword will restore them. They wander into a hall of Japanese artifacts and Hiro stares at a statue of Samurai armor. The handle of the sword, marked with the half-helix symbol, sticks up from the back of the armor. He’s found it.

Hospital room, Manhattan. Peter’s dream continues in flashes. Nathan sits in a chair, his head in one hand. Mrs. Petrelli paces. Simone enters carrying a vase of flowers, which she hands to Mrs. Petrelli. She sits on Peter’s bed and runs a hand across his forehead. He’s burning up. Mrs. Petrelli calls it “persistent idiopathic fever.” It’s the doctor’s way of saying they’re stumped. She’s got the best doctors in the world, and all they can tell her is they don’t know what’s wrong in four different languages. It’s his heart. They don’t know how much more it can take. Peter’s twenty-six years old and he’s going to die of a heart attack. Nathan protests, but she’s not going to stand there and watch him die. She storms out of the room, and through the window, we can see her arguing with someone at the nurse’s desk. Simone touches Peter’s forehead again, and wishes she knew what was going on in there. Nathan says that, just before he passed out, Peter said he was absorbing too many powers. Simone defends herself. Peter wanted to see that painting. Nathan doesn’t understand why she showed it to him after Nathan said not to. She knew he’d follow it. He should never have been in Texas. He can’t believe she really believes in stuff like future paintings, the cheerleader and the bomb. Simone says only that Peter believes it. Nathan stands up, pulls on his jacket and demands to be taken to see the artist. Before they leave, he kisses his brother and mutters, “I love you, man.”

Sanders house, Las Vegas. Micah fiddles with some electronics as D.L. enters with a plate of breakfast. Micah gives him a hard time: mom always kept the peanut butter at room temperature, not in the fridge. D.L.’s got his own way of doing things. As they talk, he notices a cut above Micah’s right eye. Micah got into a fight with some kids at school who called his mom a psycho killer. Micah braces himself for the lecture about not fighting, but D.L. instead sits down beside Micah. He knows how hard it is, how much Niki means to Micah. He puts his arm around Micah, wincing from the old bullet wound. The doorbell rings, and D.L. leaves to get it. It’s a fat man in a suit, Aaron Malsky. D.L. was told to expect him. D.L. leads him into the house where he hands him the metal suitcase containing Linderman’s money. Niki’s confession took care of most of the charges, and Linderman’s taken care of the rest. D.L.’s a free man. D.L. wants assurance that he and Linderman are done. Malsky assures him that’s not the case. Even though Linderman’s got his two million dollars back, D.L. still took something from him and Linderman reserves the right to have D.L. pay him back for that. Malsky leaves, and D.L. hits a window frame in frustration.

Japanese Exhibit, Metro Museum. Hiro tells Ando about Takeso Kensai, a powerful but savage man who found a sword that allowed him to control his power, and who rose to become a great leader. Hiro hopes that the sword will allow him to control his power as well. Ando notices that the symbol on the sword is a combination of the characters meaning “great talent,” and “godsend,” like Hiro’s power. Hiro figures that he’s like Kensai, and that his power will return when the sword is his. Ando is shocked when Hiro decides to they should take it.

Suresh Apartment, Brooklyn. Mohinder and a man in a suit study his father’s map. Mohinder’s glad the bureau finally decided to take the list he sent them seriously. The man nods. They took it seriously because so many of the people on it have been showing up dead. If they didn’t have records showing Mohinder in India when some of the victims were killed, the two of them would be having a different conversation. Mohinder’s father compiled the list by using the human genome project to track a unique genetic marker. Mohinder’s been trying to find them, to warn them about Sylar. The Bureau hasn’t been able to find anyone named “Sylar,” but they were able to find a “Sarah Ellis” whose name was on the list. Mohinder tried to find her in Los Angeles, but couldn’t, and before the Bureau man asks, he insists he’s never met her before. The Bureau man holds out a photograph and Mohinder reluctantly takes it. He’s surprised to see that the woman pictured in a prison mug shot holding a slate with the name “Sarah Ellis” is Eden. Shaken, Mohinder admits that he knows her by the name Eden McCain, and that she lived next door. He hasn’t seen her in a couple of weeks. The Bureau man explains that they fished what was left of Eden out of Lake Ramsey, in Sudbury, 100 miles outside of Ontario. Local law ruled a gunshot wound to the head as suicide. Mohinder is stunned. Last they had spoken, Eden had said she needed to confess something to him, now he’s not sure whether she was a friend or not.

Primatech Paper, Odessa. Audrey’s superior talks to Mr. Bennet while Audrey and Matt wait nervously. As she approaches, Matt tries pre-emptive protest. Bennet has Sylar somewhere in the building, maybe in a secret room somewhere. Audrey’s boss doesn’t buy it. Instead, she holds up a tape that shows Matt sitting in a car in the parking lot every day for two weeks. She’s surprised that Matt didn’t think anyone would notice. They’re lucky Bennet’s not planning to sue them. She’s also surprised that Audrey went along with this. Matt protests that Bennet abducted him and others, including Ted Sprague. Audrey’s boss recognizes the name as that of the man with radioactive hands, a description she dismisses sarcastically before telling Audrey that she’s benched. Audrey leaves. Matt follows. It can’t be over, but Audrey’s had enough. She believed in Matt’s ability, she liked him. She felt sorry for him, and that clouded her judgment, but now they both have to get back to reality. She storms off, leaving Matt behind. Matt turns, rushes over to Bennet and pins him against a stack of paper barrels. Matt has no idea how Bennet pulled it off, but he’s not going to rest until he knows what’s going on. Bennet wishes him luck and walks away.

Union Wells High school, Odessa. Claire follows Zach to the bike rack. Zach’s surprised that she’s talking to him in public, but then she’s been “body snatched,” so. . . She just wants to talk. Zach backs off. He’s sorry to hear about the death of Jackie, her best friend. Claire disagrees. Someone else was her best friend, but she lost him too. Zach looks confused and asks about homecoming. Claire is torn between the truth and the lie for a moment, but then shrugs and admits she can’t remember much. Zach thinks that’s weird because he can’t remember much lately either. Claire wonders if they could be friends. Zack doesn’t think so.

Interrogation Room, Prison. Niki sits with her lawyer. He thinks her outbursts are hurting her case. Niki’s getting tired of them too. She just wants to do her time in peace. The lawyer stumbles over telling her that the D.A. is pleading special circumstances and asking for the death penalty. Niki’s stunned. It would help if she cooperated and told the D.A. where the money was. Niki denies knowing that. Jessica manifests long enough to tell Niki, out loud, that the lawyer can tell she’s lying. Niki reasserts herself, begging the lawyer, who looks apprehensive, not to pay any attention to “her.” Jessica wants to know who she’s going to have to screw to get out. The lawyer wants to know if they’re trying for an insanity defense. Multiple Personality Disorder is a difficult sell. Jessica doesn’t care. She has time to demand a shrink before Niki resurfaces and denies she’s crazy. The lawyer rises hastily and blunders out of the room.

Museum, New York. Hiro and Ando approach the case containing Takeso’s armor and sword. A security guard stands nearby, and he and Hiro stare at each other uncomfortably for a minute before Hiro asks directions to the gift store. The guard points. Hiro bows and says “thank-you,” before he and Ando go up to the case. Ando’s nervous. Stealing isn’t in the bushido code. Hiro dismisses that concern. It’s only one antique, whereas if he doesn’t have his powers, the whole museum will go up in the coming explosion. It’s a good trade for the museum. Hiro concentrates. A moment later, Ando wonders if he’s got it. Hiro’s power didn’t work. Ando worries that Hiro needs the sword in order to get the sword. Hiro concentrates harder. When he looks around, he sees everyone moving in slow motion. It’s good enough. He opens the case. An alarm bell begins to ring very slowly. Hiro struggles a moment with the ties on the sword, then frees it and scrambles from the room into the hall of the dinosaurs. He turns and finds himself face-to-face with a life-sized model of a Carnotaur. The camera pulls back as Hiro wields his sword, making humming noises like a light-saber, to mimic the scene in Isaac’s painting.

Cut back to Ando, who stands confused and alone in front of the samurai case. Alarms ring. Ando hastily retreats, finding Hiro down the block from the museum with the sword in hand. He thinks that was amazing. Hiro chides him for doubting his ability. With the sword in hand, there is no limit to what he can do. Hiro holds the sword in front of him and sweeps the blade from its scabbard only to discover there is no blade. In its place is a short wooden stick with a label on it indicating that the replica is courtesy of the Linderman group. Hiro is crushed, and the two of them turn back to the museum to return the sword.

Isaac’s studio, Manhattan. Simone enters, followed closely by Nathan. Isaac was obsessed with the thought of someone coming with a bomb to explode New York. Nathan sees the painting on the floor. Simone nods. Then he vanished and someone took his paintings. She turns to see that all the paintings are on display in the gallery. She doesn’t understand. He’s been gone for weeks. Isaac wanders out of the back room, toweling off after a shower. Simone is struck dumb in surprise. Isaac wants to wait for her shock to clear so he can tell if she’s glad to see him, but goes ahead and kisses her on the cheek. Nathan, embarrassed, wanders off to look at the paintings. Simone recovers enough to remark on how healthy Isaac looks. Isaac got back a few days ago, but wasn’t sure when to call. He was at a clinic. He can’t remember much about it, but when he woke up, he was in Texas and clean. Simone is impressed, but not enthused. Isaac can paint without the drugs. He’s clean, and it’s because of Simone. He still loves her. Simone doesn’t know how to respond, and Nathan chooses that moment to draw their attention to the painting of the exploding man. He wants to know if Isaac talked to Peter. Isaac just painted what he saw. Nathan’s shaken. The last thing Peter said before he collapsed was that he was the source of the explosion. Nathan may not understand everything, but the paintings he sees of Peter flying and exploding can’t be real, can’t be connected. The world doesn’t work that way.

Hiro and Ando enter the studio to tell Isaac that the sword wasn’t real, and Linderman owns the real one. Nathan’s surprised to hear Linderman’s name, and sticks his head out from around the paintings to see Hiro on the landing. Nathan’s expression collapses in shock. Hiro’s face lights up and, in recognition, he exclaims, “Flying man!”

Abandoned Oil Derrick, Odessa. Claire wanders through the structure. She doesn’t know if she’s been saved, or if she still needs to be saved. The Haitian, leaning against a beam nearby, figures she’s been saved for now. She wants to see Peter, but the Haitian vetoes her. She’s not supposed to remember Peter. He’s being watched, and if Claire were to contact him, her father would know her memory was intact. Claire’s nearly in tears. Nothing in her life has been real. Her father doesn’t work for a paper company, and the Haitian admits that her “biological parents,” were just people who worked for her father. Claire needs something. Zach was the only person she could trust and the Haitian took him from her. The Haitian disagrees. Her father did that, not him. Claire can’t stand being so alone. She begs for him to restore Zach’s memory, but he can’t. His gift doesn’t work that way. Claire doesn’t think it’s a gift, she thinks it’s her own private freak show. The Haitian grows stern. Their abilities are from God, and should be respected accordingly. He walks away. Claire watches him go, then eyes the structure around her thoughtfully.

Isaac’s studio, Manhattan. Nathan and Hiro stand at the window looking out over the city while Hiro describes the explosion he witnessed in the future. Nathan notes that his English has improved since their meeting in the diner. Hiro admits he met a waitress in Texas who taught him many things. Nathan congratulates him then summarizes Hiro’s story. Hiro confirms it. He’s come back to stop the explosion, and Nathan’s supposed to help. Nathan’s not so sure. Hiro is, because Nathan is “Flying Man!” Nathan demands Hiro keep his voice down, and wonders who would cause a bomb to explode in New York. Hiro theorizes that it’s a “billan.” Nathan, confused, is drawn into a funny exchange during which they agree that the word is “villain.” Nathan leads them to the painting. Hiro figures that he and Nathan have power. Maybe the exploding man has power too. Nathan nods. He thinks he can help.

Isolated cabin, Nevada. Ted Sprague sits alone in the cabin, releasing flares of light from each of his hands. He looks worried.

Abandoned Derrick, Odessa. Claire and Zach approach the structure. Claire reminds him that they, and the video camera, have been here before. Zach kids that she’s auditioning for America’s Next Top Model. Claire laughs. He made that joke the first time. She just wants him to keep the camera on her. Zach doesn’t understand why she doesn’t just use a tripod. Claire doesn’t want to be alone, and she knows he can keep her secret. He did once before, when they were best friends. Zach nods without believing. He wonders why she’s videotaping herself, but figures he asked that question before. Actually, he didn’t, but Claire tells him the first time was for her biological parents, so that she could show them what she could do, what she was. Now she’s not even sure they’re alive. This time, it’s for her, so that she won’t forget no matter what happens. She tells him not to forget. He promises he won’t, but she tells him that he said that before too. The following scene mirrors the one in the pilot episode. She walks over to the derrick and climbs up to a gantry. Zach indicates that he’s ready, and raises the camera to watch as Claire throws herself from the railing. He runs over to her as she stands up and pulls herself together, snapping bones back into place. She looks at the camera and says, “This is Claire Bennet, and as far as you know, that was attempt number one.”

Prison, Las Vegas. Niki sits on one side of a glass wall. D.L. and Micah sit on the other. She doesn’t know how long she’ll be in. Jessica came out, tried to escape and hurt one of the guards. They’re sending her to a psyche institution for evaluation. D.L. doesn’t think that’s bad. It’ll help her deal with Jessica, maybe get rid of her for good. Niki shakes her head. D.L. doesn’t get it: Jessica’s real. She’s not just in Niki’s mind. D.L. reaches through the glass and takes her hand to calm her down. He wishes he had kept Linderman’s money to help her out. Niki shoots down the idea. If he had kept it, then their troubles would never be over. Micah takes the phone. Niki assures him his father’s going to take good care of him. She needs him to be strong because she’s not very strong right now. Micah doesn’t think that’s fair and comes close to crying. Niki turns and pleads with a nearby guard to let her give her son a hug. He refuses, and she rises from her chair, begging. The guard grows nervous and slams his baton against a table to show she’d better back off because he means business. Niki tries to persuade him one more time, but when he raises the baton to knock her back, her expression changes and she grabs the baton, snapping it in half. She stares in horror at what she’s done as the door opens and a half-dozen other guards flood in, pushing her to the wall and cuffing her.

Suresh apartment, Brooklyn. Mohinder enters, dejected, and stands over Mohinder-the-lizard’s aquarium. He has no idea what Eden fed the lizard. Bennet, standing in the shadows, tells him it’s crickets: lots of them. He crosses the room, holding a pistol in his right hand. Mohinder recognizes him and wonders if Bennet is there to kill him. Bennet is non-committal. He sits at the desk and sets the gun down on a book. He’d like to just talk about Eden. She worked for him. Mohinder corrects him on the name, but Bennet says that she gave up that identity a long time ago. She was a good person. Mohinder doubts that word can be applied to spies. Bennet insists she was special. Mohinder picks up on the word and demands to know what her ability was. Bennet will only say that she used it wisely. Not everyone with ability deserves it. Mohinder grows angry, wondering who Bennet is to judge. . . who Bennet is. Bennet holds up his hand to stall the outburst. Bennet made a mistake. He should have approached Mohinder at the beginning. Mohinder laughs. Bennet’s been bugging his phone, spying on him at home and in his cab. Bennet figures he and Mohinder need to help each other. Mohinder realizes that it’s actually Bennet who needs Mohinder. . . or at least Chandra’s work. Chandra knew more than Bennet’s people. Bennet reluctantly concedes the point. Chandra’s formula doesn’t work, but he generated a list. Who’s on that list is of grave importance. Mohinder wants to know what Bennet is going to do with the list, but Bennet wonders whether Mohinder is nervous about who has the list because Mohinder is on it. Bennet pulls back. The abilities can go terribly wrong, but if Mohinder works with Bennet, they can control that. Mohinder doesn’t bite. Once he figures out the list, the first thing he’s going to do is warn the people on it about Bennet. Bennet tries persuasion one last time, but Mohinder is not interested. Bennet rises suddenly and grabs the gun. Mohinder backs away. Bennet pauses, considering his options, then holsters the gun and pulls out a business card. When Mohinder changes his mind, he should call the access number Bennet scribbles on the back. Mohinder takes the card uncertainly, and Bennet sees himself out. The card is for www.primatechpaper.com.

Parkman house, Los Angeles. Matt wanders into the dining room and sees a gym bag on the table. Janice stands in the next room, not looking at him. She wants to know if he’s back. She took out the suitcase that morning, but hadn’t packed it yet. Matt shrugs non-committally. She knows they’re in trouble and most of it is her fault. Matt interrupts her. They need to start talking, to start being completely honest with each other. Janice nods, and attempts to speak, but Matt talks over her. Something’s happened to him, something completely. . . Janice nods again. Although she looks sick at the thought of what she might hear, he should just say it. Matt does: he can hear people’s thoughts. Janice is taken aback. He means like a psychic, sort of. It started a few weeks ago, and that’s why he’s been working with the F.B.I. He knows she doesn’t believe him, so he sits her down and tells her to think of a number between one and million. She laughs in disbelief, but he urges her to bring it on. . .

Hospital Room, Manhattan. Peter lies in his bed, the dream still replaying in his mind. On top of the usual elements, we see a bearded vagabond laughing at him from across the street. The same man is seen in some flashes taking money from a wallet that he has just taken from a purse. Also, in this version, as Peter begins to glow, Nathan comes up to him and they talk. Peter took “his” power, and he can’t control it. Nathan wants to help, but Peter knows he can’t. Even so, Nathan’s not leaving him. Peter’s glow intensifies until he explodes. This time we see Nathan and Simone disintegrate, the explosion filling the street and blowing across the city. In a replay from Hiro’s future visit, we see buildings blasted to powder as the explosion levels everything. Peter sits up in his hospital bed, thrashing and screaming his lungs out.

Hospital Hallway, Manhattan, some time later. Nathan approaches Peter’s room and notices the bed is empty. Mrs. Petrelli stands at a desk nearby, stuffing a book into her purse. Nathan wants to know where Peter is, but Mrs. Petrelli has no idea. He woke up raving and said that he had to get away. Nathan can’t believe she let him go. Mrs. Petrelli corrects him. She did not “let” Peter go, and when she sees him again, she’ll kill him. Nathan sends her home. He’ll take care of this.

Isaac’s Studio, Manhattan. Simone walks in with Hiro. She excited and can’t believe he’s the Hiro Nakamura from Isaac’s comic book. Hiro points out all the similarities in his future issue, including the car. Simone holds up a few panels and compares the drawings there to Hiro’s face. Finally, she forces a laugh that’s a little hysterical. The world is insane and she’s tired of fighting it. She gathers up the canvas of Hiro and the Dinosaur. Isaac can paint the future, and Hiro needs a sword. Linderman is a client of hers, a huge collector. He buys all of Isaac’s paintings. She can get Hiro in there. He should get his car, because he’s going back to Vegas.

New York Street, nighttime. Peter walks quickly along, talking on a cell phone. He needs a flight out of New York right away. Anywhere remote. Nevada? That’s where they tested atomic bombs. Las Vegas is a good destination. As he waits on hold, he stops in front of an open-air restaurant. Across the tables he sees the vagabond from his dream casually walk up to a woman’s purse, in sight of the woman and everyone else around him, open the purse, take out her wallet and pull a few bills from it. Peter closes his cell and starts to follow. The vagabond picks up a cell phone from a table and keeps walking. Peter calls for him to stop, but he doesn’t. Peter chases after him, but he takes no notice and keeps walking. Finally, Peter catches up to him and grabs him by the shoulder. They stare at each other for a few moments and then the man asks if Peter can see him. He can’t believe Peter can see him. He grabs Peter by the neck and pushes him into a lamppost. No one can see him, he’s invisible. The camera changes angles, showing a street vendor near the lamppost looking around in confusion as he hears the voices. His table shakes and then falls over, but he cannot see anyone there.

Mohinder’s voiceover talks about seeking comfort in the face of the advent of those with power. Under it, we catch glimpses of Mohinder studying the business card, Hiro readying for his trip, Zach and Claire leaving the derrick together, and Niki in a padded cell, wearing a straightjacket as she’s being sedated. At the Sanders house, D.L. assures Micah that she’s going to be all right, but Micah has his doubts. As the guards at the prison call for lights out, Niki prays for help. Jessica manifests, wondering why Niki needs god when she’s got Jessica.