A glowing red orb appears near the moon, and the first Alpha crewman who sees it, Ted Clifford, goes berzerk, transmitting sensitive information to the orb, attacking anyone who attempts to stop him, and ultimately begging for help just before he falls over dead. The orb envelops the moon with a glowing light while still moving closer. The mysterious object then transmits a warning to Moonbase Alpha: everyone there is a prisoner of the planet Triton. When Koenig dispatches Carter to inspect the orb up close in an Eagle, the object disables the ship’s crew and sends the Eagle tumbling back to the moon, out of control. A rescue party goes to retrieve the ship and Carter, the only survivor, but the orb descends again, extending its influence to Helena and attacking Koenig when he attempts to free her. By the time Koenig comes around, Helena has vanished. Koenig insists on making a return visit to the orb to free Helena, and Carter – disturbed that he alone survived the previous Eagle’s flight – insists on going with him. But Koenig has an ace up his sleeve: Bergman has devised a force field allowing them to get closer. Though they make their way past the probe’s initial attack, it still incapacitates the Eagle’s pilots and sends them back to the moon (though a carefully preprogrammed autopilot prevents another crash landing). This time, however, the Orb returns to the moon, depositing Helena at Alpha. But is she under her own control…or is she doing the bidding of Triton?
written by Edward di Lorenzo
directed by Ray Austin
music by Barry Gray
additional music by Vic ElmsGuest Cast: Prentis Hancock (Paul Morrow), Clifton Jones (David Kano), Zienia Merton (Sandra Benes), Anton Phillips (Dr. Mathias), Nick Tate (Alan Carter), Max Faulkner (Ted Clifford)
LogBook entry by Earl Green