US Airdate : 27 April 2002
UK Airdate : 24 April 2002
At an abandoned safehouse, mutant Zack Lockhart (Callum Keith Rennie) meets with GSA
agent Artie Hill (Michael Anthony Rawlins) to go over plans to break into a highly secure
vault. After assessing the risks involved, Zack, who has the power to penetrate solid
objects and reveal their contents holographically, refuses to participate and heads for
the stairs. Just as Hill's cronies whip out their taser truncheons, Brennan (Victor
Webster) and Jesse (Forbes March) arrive and overpower the agents. They escape with Zack
and call Shalimar (Victoria Pratt) to inform her they are bringing a mutant named Zack to
Safehouse 6. Shalimar is furious when she realizes that Zack is her former boyfriend, who
brought her nothing but trouble in the past. She warns Adam (John Shea) that Zack is a
dangerous liar and thief, but Adam contends that Zack may have changed since she knew him,
and his extraordinary powers might prove very useful to them.
At Genomex, Eckhart (Tom McCamus) is incensed that Artie has let Zack escape, since his
powers are needed to break into the vault. Artie promises Eckhart he will find a way to
get Zack to cooperate. Meanwhile at Sanctuary, Adam and Emma (Lauren Lee Smith) begin
researching the vault. They discover that the safe, located at Dombey & Sons Security,
contains a precious collection of Fabergè Eggs that are to be sold by Segal's Fine
Auctions the following day. When Adam learns that one of the eggs belonged to Eckhart's
arch rival in Russia, a biogeneticist working on the manipulation of the DNA strand
controlling free will, the Mutant X team deduces that the egg contains a data chip with
the secret genetic code. If Eckhart gets hold of the chip, he will have control over all
mutants. Adam realizes he must get to the egg before Eckhart, and the only person who can
help him is Zack. However, Zack is painfully aware of how much Shalimar detests him, and
decides to leave Mutant X.
At Adam's urging, Shalimar reluctantly sets out to find Zack. After persuading him to
rejoin the mission, she lets down her guard, and the two enjoy a passionate reunion. Their
tryst is soon interrupted by Artie and his men, and the two fight them off before heading
to a safehouse. In the meantime, Adam has dispatched the rest of his team to case the
Dombey & Sons facility. As Brennan and Emma conduct surveillance from inside the
Double Helix, Jesse phases out, enters the building and infiltrates the security system.
To everyone's surprise, the GSA suddenly begins its break-in. Mutant X secretly monitors
their operation and triggers the security alarm, just as Artie is about to break through
the vault's electronic lock. Security guards burst in and arrest Artie and his men. An
angry Eckhart then takes matters into his own hands, placing an absentee bid for the egg
under an alias name. Adam soon discovers that Eckhart is the absentee bidder, and realizes
that unless Mutant X acts immediately, the egg will be in Eckhart's hands by morning.
Now, with the help of Shalimar and Zack, Mutant X prepares for its mission - to break
into the vault, steal the data chip and replace the egg with no one the wiser. Dressed in
full security guard gear, the team infiltrates Dombey & Sons. Emma, using her
telempathic powers, immediately puts two security guards to sleep and grabs the special
keycard that is able to wipe out the lethal laser beams surrounding the vault. Jesse
phases out, passes through the laser gauntlet and swipes the keycard through the
electronic lock slot, extinguishing the lasers. Zack is able to create a holographic image
of the inner workings of the vault's security system, which Brennan then blasts with a
tesla coil, clearing the way for Jesse to reach inside for the Fabergè Egg. Suddenly,
Zack grabs for the egg, causing Jesse to lose his grip and sending the egg flying.
Shalimar reacts quickly, catching the egg and opening it up to remove the hidden data chip
before the team returns the egg and exits the facility.
The next morning, Shalimar finds Zack in a rush to leave town. Unconvinced about his
change of heart from the beginning, Shalimar reaches up to Zack's ear with a sleight of
hand move, produces the data chip and reveals she was aware all along that he would try to
steal it. Back at Genomex, Eckhart opens up his egg. Finding he has been scammed, he
smashes the delicate masterpiece in a fit of rage. At Sanctuary, Adam, Jesse and Brennan
destroy the data chip, knowing it's too dangerous to be left intact. |
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