Laughing, a beautiful young woman – LaShala -- watches as he pulls the creature in. "I wasn’t sure who to bet on -- you or the shakloo," she tells him.

"Wasn’t sure myself," Crichton comments. He invites her to dinner, and is unfazed when she reminds him that among her people sharing food is a sign of affection.

A little ruefully, he tells her, "on this map, it would be right about there." He turns and throws a stone deep into the bay, pointing out where "there" is.

The lost crewman isn’t doing badly for himself. The planet Acquara is beautiful, its people are healthy and happy, and the tribe’s grandir wishes to discuss the leanings of his daughter LaShala’s heart.

"Amongst our people, it is the female who chooses which male she will mate with for life," Kato-Re tells Crichton. "It may be out of your hands, my dear Crichton."

Crichton’s friendly chat with the grandir does not go unnoticed. Rokon, a hunter of the tribe, and his mother Neera watch him enviously.

Rokon seeks to win LaShala’s heart, while his mother has ambitions for him to lead the tribe. She is a priesten, the female opposite number of the grandir, and she would have her son be more than the best of the hunters.

While Rokon wants to marry LaShala, it’s not for his mother’s reasons. "How can I control the way she feels?" he asks.

His mother scoffs, "I’m talking about rule of all of this, and you can’t even master the heart of one foolish girl? You will do whatever is necessary to ensure that no one stands between you and our family’s destiny."

The pod isn’t the only thing that fails. Their communicators soon lose power, D’Argo’s energy sword loses its charge and Rygel’s chair dumps him unceremoniously on the ground.

"You were a lot more agreeable as a peace-loving priest," Aeryn complains.

As he walks along a trail, Crichton is intercepted by Rokon and three of his hunters. "Is there a problem?" Crichton asks.

Rokon intends to make sure that Crichton isn’t competing for LaShala’s heart. Crichton protests that they have nothing to worry about from him, but Rokon also wants to be sure that he has nothing to worry about from LaShala.

His plans for Crichton are interrupted by nearly seven feet of angry Luxan warrior. D’Argo quickly chases the hunters off, though Rokon stands toe-to-toe with him for almost ten seconds.

The reunion with Crichton proves rocky, especially when D’Argo opens the conversation by cheerfully informing Crichton that he both smells and looks like "drenn." Crichton’s not impressed that his shipmates came back for him.

D’Argo asks, "You’d rather those guys have danced all over your face?"

"Yeah, I would," Crichton says. "Now wherever you came from, go back."

After Rokon describes D'Argo to the grandir, his mother is quick to suggest that the Luxan is another way in which the "parasite" Crichton "infects" their society. Kato-Re isn’t convinced – Crichton may be a stranger and D’Argo a scary-looking alien, but the tribe is descended from starfarers themselves.

Kato-Re warns Neera not to try his patience, but she quickly reminds him that his office depends upon her official support.

Rygel is taking a nap in Crichton’s tent. "This isn’t the happy reunion I’d planned on," he exclaims as Crichton begins to shoo him out.

"I hadn’t planned on one at all," Crichton replies. "Not after you abandoned me."

The others are quickly tell him that they had no control over Moya’s starburst. D’Argo asks him, "Do you really think we abandoned you when we spent the last quarter cycle searching for you?"

In any case, they have a more immediate problem. D’Argo and Crichton have compared notes on the failures of Farscape One and the transport pod, and learned that anything that uses power stops working due to some kind of "negative power vortex."

"We’re stuck here?" Rygel asks. "No power, no comforts, no defenses – sounds like paradise."

It takes Crichton a moment or two to decide if Rygel is being sarcastic.

On Moya, Aeryn and Zhaan study biological scans of the planet, hoping for a clue to the others’ whereabouts. Meanwhile, Aeryn thinks they can supply the castaways with power by firing a shielded power source in a projectile to the planet.

Crichton explains to D’Argo why he’s not unhappy being stuck here. He’s gone through a lot of traumatic and strange experiences since leaving Earth, and this is the first place he’s found peace and familiar things.

LaShala comes to see him, and is shocked to encounter D’Argo as well. She accuses D’Argo of attacking Rokon and his brothers, but D’Argo angrily tells her what really happened.

Crichton tells LaShala of Rokon’s fears that LaShala is placing her heart with Crichton. "Perhaps he is right," she tells Crichton, and kisses him.

"You must come to my father at once," she says, "and convince him that D’Argo is not a threat."

They set off for the village, but are ambushed by Rokon’s men, who net and subdue them. They also take some goods from Crichton’s tent, unknowingly bringing along Rygel, who has hidden himself in a sack.

The grandir accuses them of assaulting his guards, and Crichton again attempts to explain Rokon’s fears of losing LaShala. It’s a confusing concept to the tribe – Rokon seems to be the only one mixed up on the idea of a woman choosing her mate for herself.

Neera exploits D’Argo’s strangeness to stir fear among the villagers, and the grandir seems determined to pacify her by continuing the trial. The sentence for assaulting the guards is death, but Kato-Re toys with the idea of ten cycles’ banishment instead.

He’s interrupted by a noise from Rygel, who is beginning to suffocate in the bag. The villagers open the bag, stagger back in shock, and then kneel in worship.

Rygel looks exactly like the stone idol he’s sitting in front of.

"I think they think you’re god," Crichton tells him.

"No, not a god," Rygel says with great satisfaction. "A sovereign!"

Rygel doesn’t know what a colony of his subjects are doing in the Uncharted Territories. He simply considers it an example of how far his influence extends, and intends to enjoy the royal treatment to the fullest.

On Moya, Zhaan has figured out the layout of the village from the bio-prints supplied by Moya. Aeryn has the projectile ready, but to her great annoyance needs she still Crichton for the scientific knowledge involved in constructing a shielded power source.

Luckily, Zhaan’s also identified the source of the negative power vortex – and the projectile might be useful in pointing the crew on the planet to it.

As for the crew, Rygel basks in primitive luxury while D’Argo tells him that his subjects are planning to celebrate the king's imminent fulfillment of local prophecy. Unfortunately, Rygel hasn’t the slightest idea what he's supposed to do, and it’s going to be hard to find out without looking like an imposter.

He does manage to cozen the tribe's holy writings -- the Tymbala -- out of Neera, though. Fortunately, it’s in Ancient Hynerian, which he is somewhat familiar with.

LaShala is angry with Crichton. "Are you immortal too, like the Masata?" she asks. "When were you going to tell me? I thought we had a future together."

However, it doesn’t matter, she says, since according to the prophecy all their futures will be different now.

Crichton coaxes some of the prophecy out of her, learning that the Masata is expected to end the tribe’s exile and "lead them to the light." She thinks this means Rygel will take them off the planet, "whether we want to go or not."

Crichton tries to tell her that Rygel is "not a spiritual being", but she refuses to believe the creed her people have followed for generations is wrong.

"If he is the real Masata," she says, "he will rise up and lead us to the light. If he does not prove himself the real Masata tonight, he will suffer a torturous death beyond any other – and so will you!"

The celebration begins. The villagers dance, and written prayers are hung on lines.

Rygel continues deciphering the Tymbala. As it turns out, his predecessor Rygel X sent the tribe out as colonists, only to abandon them intentionally with the aid of the power-draining device, which prevents advanced civilization and space travel.

As time passed, the tribe’s priests elevated themselves by constructing a system of worship around their memories of their Hynerian rulers. Rygel is shocked – he’s a king, not a god – and intends to tell them the truth.

"Look at them out there," D’Argo says. "They aren’t preparing for the return of a worldly king – they’re preparing for the return of their savior."

"Then we are frelled," says Rygel.

The celebration continues. A burning pyre has been built at the center of the prayer lines.

Rygel is having trouble believing what he’s reading, calling it a "metaphor." Crichton points out that it’s not – the villagers are burning their possessions, and will expect Rygel to perform a miracle.

Approaching, Neera overhears Rygel’s fear and indecision.

Aeryn and Zhaan fire the projectile – and almost immediately lose contact with it.

Rygel comes out and tries to make an inspiring speech. The villagers are not impressed, and Neera challenges him to live up to the prophecies, to "rise and lead us to the light."

When Rygel dithers, she accuses him of being a false god. The villagers take up the cry, and seize him.

D’Argo drags Crichton away, pointing out that they can’t help Rygel if they don’t escape themselves. Just then, the projectile lands in the water a few feet away from them.

Crichton retrieves it, finding the scan from Moya with the coordinates of the negative power vortex inside.

Rygel is carried toward the fire, still trying to convince the villagers to abandon their generations-old beliefs. Rokon tells LaShala this is how it must be, but she asks, "Why can’t we make our own rules?"

He’s about to be tossed on the fire when Crichton cries, "Stop!"

Crichton tells the villagers of the power-draining device. "You’ve been lied to," he says, "first by the people who left you here and then by the priestens."

"That’s the highest sacrilege!" objects Neera.

"No," says Rygel. "The highest sacrilege is that of keeping your own ignorant and subjugated for your own glorification!"

"Lies!" she cries. "You have no proof of anything."

"Yes I have," Rygel answers. "In the Tymbala."

Neera orders Rokon to kill Crichton. LaShala orders him not to.

Torn, Rokon asks Crichton, "If what you saying is true, then where is this device?"

Crichton isn’t sure – he needs time to figure out the coordinates. Rokon attacks, throwing him to the ground.

As he’s picking himself up, Crichton spots two depressions shaped like Hynerian hands at the base of the tribes’ stone idol. As D’Argo holds off the tribe’s hunters, Crichton dashes through the crowd, grabs Rygel, and presses the Dominar’s hands to the stone.

The stone breaks in half, and a pillar of energy escapes into the sky. Rygel’s chair reactivates, slides under his royal rear, and lifts him into the sky.

The villagers kneel in worship again, but Rygel commands them to stop. "I have not risen, I am not a deity, I am but a worthy being like yourselves – but I am your sovereign."

"The slug who would be king," Crichton mutters.

Rygel and the others prepare to take their leave. The grandir – grateful that his people have been given freedom to develop as they wish – has prepared provisions for them, and intends to forget their visit should the Peacekeepers drop by asking questions.

He’s also prepared a special gift – shakloo jerky. Rygel is extremely appreciative.

Crichton takes his leave of LaShala and Rokon. She asks him why he won’t stay and help them rebuild their civilization.

Although he wishes he could, his future is with his own kind. He’ll continue his journey.