who's there? it's your relief, sam. all quiet? didn't see a thing, chief. nobody ever does. whatever the thing is, it's already killed 50 people. i never realized before how dark it is down here. stay on your toes, schmitter.

you saw what happened to ed appel when he took a shot at the thing. how about all those other people, before the monster got them? i'm sorry, schmitter, i know how you feel, but we've got to have guards. ok, chief. i'll do what i can. keep alert. if you hear anything or see anything, call in. somebody can be here in 3 minutes. a lot can happen in 3 minutes. chief, is it true the "enterprise" is on its way? 's coming. you think it could get here in the next 4 hours?

[fiery noise] no. aah! come on. aah... schmitter. like the rest of them. burned to a crisp. kirk: space--the final frontier. these are the voyages of the starship "enterprise." its 5-year mission-- to explore strange new worlds... to seek out new life and new civilizations...

a distress call from the pergium production station on janus 6 has brought the "enterprise" to that long-established colony. mr. spock, dr. mccoy, and i have beamed down to meet with chief engineer vanderberg, administrative head of janus 6. all right, let's assume there is a monster. what has it done? when did it start? sensors gave us an unusually rich pergium reading. not only pergium, whatever you want. uranium, serium, platinum. the whole planet's like that. it's a treasure house. yes, we're aware of that. if mining conditions weren't so difficult, janus 6 could supply the mineral needs of a thousand planets. but what happened? first, the automatic machinery, piece by piece, started to almost disintegrate.

d our chemists were unable to analyze the corrosive agent. i'm sure there is an answer. it simply has not yet been discovered. yes, it has. i don't know what this butchering monster is, but i know what it's doing. our maintenance engineer sent down to the drifts to repair the corroded machinery. we found them... seared to a crisp. volcanic activity? on this planet, captain. he's right. none. at first, the deaths were down deep, but they've been moving up toward our levels. the last man died two days ago 3 levels below this. same way? burned? i'd like to examine the body. we kept it for you. there isn't much left. roberts will show you. it isn't pretty.

of course. 5 of them have died. who else has seen this? i have. this is ed appel, chief processing engineer. describe it. i can't. i only got a glimpse of it, but it's... big and shaggy. ed shot it. oh. you mean shot at it. no. i mean shot it. with this. didn't even slow it down. well, i've made my report to you. production's stopped, nobody will go into the lower levels, and i don't blame them. if the federation wants pergium, then you're gonna have to do something about it. that's why we're here, mr. vanderberg. you're all pretty tough, aren't you? starship, phaserbanks. well, you can't get your starship down in the tunnels. i don't think we're gonna need to, mr. appel.

you'll get it. mr. vanderberg, what is this? it's a silicon nodule. there are a million of them are down there. no commercial value. but a geological oddity, to say the least. pure silicon? a few trace elements. look, we didn't call you here so you could collect rocks. thank you, mr. vanderberg. we'll need your complete cooperation. you'll have it. just find that creature, whatever it is. i've got a quota to meet. come on, appel. vast number of tunnels is not gonna make our hunting any easier. doc? schmitter didn't burn to death, jim, not in the usual sense, anyway. explain that. well, there are only fragments of bone and teeth left, but the plant's physician agrees with me-- a chemical corrosion... almost as if he'd been thrown into a vat of extremely corrosive acid. strong enough to eat machinery?

i've charted the positions of the deaths and the acts of sabotage. here, here, and here. if the times of these incidents are to be accepted as accurate, the creature would have to have moved at an incredible rate of speed. mm-hmm. mr. vanderberg, how recent are these charts? they were made last year. before the appearance of whatever it is? that's right. i see. mr. spock... give us a report on life beneath the surface. within range of our sensors, there is no life, of this colony beneath the surface, uh, at least, no life as we know it. we can't cover tunnel by tunnel on foot. we must get production going again. we must have that pergium! if we could force another appearance of this creature... when that creature appears, men die.

aaaahhhh! t possibly. mr. spock, our sensors can pick up normal life functions at a considerable distance, but what about abnormal life functions? [siren blares] something's happening in the reactor room! back to your stations.

i wouldn't touch it, captain. an extremely active corrosive. traces may linger. kirk! quickly! the main circulating pump for the entire reactor-- it's gone. same indication as shown at the door, captain-- very strong corrosive. is there a replacement for that? no. none. it's outdated. we've never had any trouble with it. spock, onboard? nothing for a device without the pump mechanism, the reactor will go supercritical. it could poison half the planet. we can't shut it down. it provides heat and air and life support for the whole colony. mr. spock, we seem to have been given a choice-- death by asphyxiation...

a pxk pergium reactor? no, sir. we don't have any spare circulating pump for a thing like that. i haven't seen a pxk in 20 years. can you rig one up? it's vital. well, sir, i can put together some odds and ends, but it won't hold for long. how long? 48 hours maybe, with a bit of luck. 48 hours is better than nothing. down here with it. top priority. aye, captain. i'll be right down. scott out. what happens when it breaks down? hopefully we'll have found the missing part by then. hopefully? small chance. we'll have to, chief. the alternative is to evacuate all you people up to the "enterprise." a dozen planets depend on you for pergium for their reactor. they're already screaming. reactors closing down, life support systems-- i'm concerned with my people right here kirk-- they're being murdered.

it was the one piece of equipment absolutely essential for the operation of the reactor. do you think the creature is trying to push the colonists off the planet? it would seem so. but why now, mr. spock? these production facilities have been in operation for over 50 years. i don't know. but there is a possibility. what's that? life as we know it but what if life exists based on another element? for instance... silicon? you're creating fantasies, mr. spock. not necessarily, bones. i've heard of the theoretical possibility of life based on silicon,

phasers might not affect it. certainly not phaser one, which is far less powerful than phaser two. all right. how about this-- a creature that lives deep in the planet below us, at home in solid rock. it seems to me that in order to survive, it would have to have some form of natural armor plating. it could explain much, especially since the colonists are armed only with phaser i. but our people have phaser number two. ainst silicon. silicon-based life is physiologically impossible, especially in an oxygen atmosphere. it may be, doctor, that the creature can exist for brief periods in such an atmosphere before returning to its own environment. i still think you're imagining things. you may be right, doctor, but at least it's something to go . mr. spock, have lieutenant commander giotto assemble the security troops

you seem fascinated by this rock. yes, captain. you recall that vanderberg commented there were thousands of these at a lower level-- to the first appearance of the creature. do they tie in? i don't know. speculate. i have already given dr. mccoy sufficient cause for amusement. i would prefer to cogitate the possibilities for a time. a short time, mr. spock.

well, sir, it's a plumber's nightmare, but it'll hold for a bit. it has to hold longer than a bit. [beep beep] i'm sorry, sir. that's about the best i can do, and i guarantee it's not good enough. kirk here. spock: captain, security officers have gathered in chief vanderberg's office. i'll be right there. kirk out. scotty, ride herd on it. kind words. tender, loving care. kiss it. baby it. flatter it if you have to, but keep it going. i'll do what i can, sir. you'll proceed from level to level, checking out every foot of opening. which is highly resistant to phaser fire. phasers will be set on maximum, and remember this-- 50 people have died. i want no more deaths. except the bloody thing. the creature may or may not attack on sight. however, you must. it is vitally important that we get this installation back into production. mr. vanderberg, may i ask at which level you discovered the nodules of silicon? the 23rd. why?

. start your search there. aye aye, sir. may i ask if you have reason to suspect this creature may be on that level? it's one of the possibilities we've discussed. i want your people to stay on the top level, together and at a safe place. i don't know any safe place, captain, the way that thing comes and goes. well, gentlemen, you have your instructions.

[sensor tone] mr. spock? find something? adjusting my tricorder to register for silicon, captain. [sensor tone continues] interesting. traces? orm, captain. bearing 111 degrees, elevation 4 degrees. one of our people?

[fiery noise] aaaaahhhh! he never even had a chance to fire, captain. it's only been seconds since we heard him scream. the creature must still be around. captain. this tunnel. my readings indicate it was made within the hour, moments ago, in fact.

the eye can see. our best machinery couldn't cut a tunnel like this. not even with phasers. indeed, captain. i'm quite at a loss. [fiery noise] get down. disappeared. astonishing that anything of that bulk could move so rapidly. these walls are hot. indeed. this tunnel was cut within the last two minutes. you all right, captain? yes. perfectly. did you see it, sir? yes, we saw where does the tunnel go? readings indicate a maze of tunnels of this general category in that direction. did you get a shot at it? yes. we took a bite out of it.

what is it? closest approximation i could come to would be fibrous asbestos, a mineral, captain. then your guess was right. it would seem so. silicon-based. summation. we are dealing with a silicon creature of the deep rocks, capable of moving through solid rock as easily as we move through the air. that would account for the tunnels. correct. this creature's body secretes an extremely powerful corrosive. powerful enough to dissolve the door of the reactor chamber. it's definitely phaser resistant. we had our weapons set for silicon and on full power, yet we only damaged it. it still lives. meaning it's impossible to kill? no. no, it might require amassed phasers. or a single phaser with much longer contact. commander... pass this on to your men-- we knew it was a killer. now it's wounded... probably in pain

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commander giotto. instruct your men to concentrate the search in this sector. remind them the creature is wounded. aye, aye, sir. what is it, spock? i've run a complete spherical check on all life forms, captain, radius 100 miles. i've located our men, all of them, and i've located one creature

and that is all. one creature in 100 miles? exactly. captain, there are literally thousands of these tunnels in this general area alone, far too many to be cut by the one creature in an ordinary lifetime. then we're dealing with more than one creature, despite your tricorder readings, or we have a creature with an extremely long life span. or it is the last of a race of creatures which made these tunnels. if so, if it is the only survivor of a dead race, to kill it would be a crime against science. mr. spock... our mission is to protect this colony, to get the pergium moving again. this is not a zoological expedition. maintain a constant reading on the creature. if we have to, we'll use phasers to cut our own tunnels. we'll try to surround it.

but i'm afraid the creature must die. i see no alternative myself, captain. it merely seems a pity. the search team is gathering in the main tunnel. good. so it is wounded, and therefore twice as dangerous. stay in pairs. if you see it, concentrate your phaser fire at what appears to be its head. concentrate it. maintain it. it is definitely resistant, but it can be hurt. and if it can be hurt, it can be killed. mister spock. gentlemen, if you'll examine your charts, please. i last located the creature in the area marked attit-26 moving in bearing 201. this particular group will move out beyond that area in all directions in an effort to surround it, possibly capture it. your orders are shoot to kill. protect yourself at all times. commander giotto, disperse your search parties. aye, aye, sir.

capture it? i don't recall giving any such order. you did not, sir. i merely thought that if the opportunity arose-- i will lose no more men. the creature will be killed on sight and that's the end of it. very well, sir. mr. spock. i want you to assist scotty in maintaining that makeshift circulating pump. i--i beg your pardon, sir? you heard me. it's vital that we keep that reactor in operation. your scientific knowledge-- is not needed there, sir. mr. scott has far more knowledge of nuclear reactors than i do. you're aware of that. mr. spock, you are second in command. this will be a dangerous hunt. either one of us by himself is expendable. both of us are not. captain, there are approximately 100 of us engaged in this search against one creature.

2,228.7 to 1? those are pretty good odds, mr. spock. and they are of course accurate, captain. of course. well, i hate to use the word, but logically, with those kind of odds, you might as well stay. but please stay out of trouble, mr. spock. that is always my intention, captain. [beep beep] kirk here. scotty here, captain. my brilliant improvisation just gave up the ghost. it couldn't stand the strain. can you fix it again? negative, captain. it's gone for good. start immediate evacuation of all colonists to the "enterprise." not all, captain. i and some of my key personnel are staying. we'll be down to join you. we don't have enough phasers for you. then we'll use clubs. we're not being chased away from here. we're staying.

fewer people we have breathing the air down here, the longer the rest of us will be able to hold out. how much longer, scotty? the reactor will go supercritical in about 10 hours, sir. you have that long to find the mechanism. we'll do our best. start feeding us constant status reports, scotty. vanderberg, you and your crew assemble at level 23, checkpoint tiger. kirk out. team up with the "enterprise" security personnel. they're better armed than you are. keep someone in sight at all times. vanderberg, take two men. ezvous with commander giotto. appel and the rest of the men, go through there. tie up with lieutenant osborne's detail. mr. spock and i will control the operation from a central point. that's all. mr. spock? captain, we are being watched. are you sure? intuition? no, sir.

[electronic tone] captain. fresh readings within the hour in each of these tunnels. chart says both of these tunnels converge a few thousand yards further. you take a left. i'll take a right. should we separate? two tunnels. two of us.