US Airdate : 17 November 2001
UK Airdate : 28 November 2001

When a power failure sweeps across the city, Adam (John Shea) attributes the blackout to rumors he's heard about new mutants with a desperate hunger for energy. Adam conducts a search on the new mutant database and finds that there are three possible suspects. He concludes that the energy-absorber is most likely mutating, which would undoubtedly cause an insatiable and irrepressible physical need for electrical power.

At Genomex, Eckhart (Tom McCamus) scolds his hired bounty hunter, Cross (Gordon Currie), for failing to capture power hungry new mutant Ashley Elliot (Moya O'Connell) so that Eckhart can exploit her as a weapon to wipe out an enemy's power grid. Meanwhile, Eric (Mark Lutz), Ashley's boyfriend who was captured earlier by Cross, contacts her by cell phone, telling her he is being held in a Quonset hut on an abandoned air force base. The line suddenly goes dead and Ashley immediately sets out to rescue Eric, but is captured by Cross when she arrives at the hut.

Following Adam's orders, Emma (Lauren Lee Smith) and Shalimar (Victoria Pratt) disguise themselves as investigators and comb the power station looking for clues. When the two find female footprints scorched in the grass outside the station, they deduce that the culprit is Ashley. Near the footprints, they also find a cigar butt, which they bring back to Sanctuary. The analysis reveals the presence of Cross's DNA. Tracing Cross's recent purchases, the team discovers that he has been shipping items to Nichols Air Force Base.

At the Quonset hut, one of Eckhart's men, agent James Henshaw (Reuben Thompson), pays Cross for his services. When he orders his men to take Ashley, she suddenly becomes hysterical. As the agents try to restrain her, she is able to draw energy out of a nearby panel and fights them off. In the chaos, Cross becomes irate when he discovers that he's been given only half of the money he was promised. Jesse (Forbes March) and Shalimar burst on the scene just as Henshaw shoots Ashley with an implant gun. Shalimar knocks Henshaw unconscious, and she and Jesse escape with Ashley. Back at Sanctuary, there is an instant attraction between Brennan (Victor Webster) and Ashley, despite the fact that she's frantic that her boyfriend Eric is still being held by Cross. In private, Adam warns Brennan that Ashley's feelings for him are purely electromagnetic, and that she's a dangerous threat to him. Later, when Ashley gets a message from Eric saying that Cross is going to kill him, she goes to Brennan for comfort. Unable to control her sudden hunger, Ashley draws an arc of electricity out of Brennan and absorbs him into her body as pure energy, causing him to vanish.

Now possessing all of Brennan's powers, Ashley heads for the hangar, shooting Shalimar with a bolt of electricity when she tries to stop her. When Adam learns that Ashley has taken the VTOL aircraft and absorbed Brennan, he contacts her on the comlink and tells her that Eric lied and is actually working for Cross.

Ashley enters the Quonset hut and confronts Cross, who confirms that Eric double-crossed her. Cross captures Ashley yet again and calls Eckhart to tell him to have Henshaw bring the rest of his money, unaware that the Mutant X team is tapping into the conversation. Adam, suddenly realizing that Ashley must be running low on energy, tells the others that if Ashley dies, Brennan will die too. If Ashley draws power with Brennan inside her, the consequences could be even more devastating.

Overriding the system, Emma brings the VTOL aircraft back and the team rushes out to find Ashley. Adam is confident that once Ashley starts drawing energy from the power station, they will have a brief window to break down the spark gap, which will allow them to pull Brennan safely from her. The transmission successfully releases Brennan from Ashley unharmed, but Cross gets too close to her in the process and is electrocuted.

Back at Sanctuary, Adam readjusts Ashley's electrochemical balance, eliminating her desperate need to feed on energy. Ashley apologizes to Brennan and he takes her to a safehouse where they bid each other a sad goodbye.