Vaught notices his fingernails bleeding while shaving. He puts on band aids, then gets dressed. We hear him talking to the doctor. He thinks there is a problem. The doctor reassures him. Vaughn tells the doc that there is blood under his fingernails. They will send someone to get him. Vaughn says no, there is someone he needs to see first. The doc says stay put. Vaughn goes to HQ - to Irina's cell.

Irina tells him thank you. Vaughn says he didn't do it for her. Irina says she owes him her life. Vaughn asks about the experiments on people exposed to liquid from the red ball. There is not much time. Irina wants to know how he feels about her daughter. Vaughn says it's not her business. Irina persists. Vaughn says help me and I'll tell you.

Syd and will talk. Syd opens a lipstick that is really a bug killer then they begin to talk. Will talks about the tests he's researching. 1982 is missing. Francie comes out and wants them to test bouillabaisse. Syd tells Will about Jack's project. And that the KGB sent her mother here to steal the test and that Vaughn thinks that they are still running the operation to recruit Americans. Syd is paged to HQ.

When Syd arrives, she is told that Vaughn has developed symptoms. Jack tells Syd that he came to see Irina about an antidote and shortly after collapsed. Syd learns from Irina that there is an antidote at a former Soviet Base. The serum is a blood derivative. They need blood from Vaughn to develop the correct antidote. It is located in 3 separate places in an old nuclear facility. Vaughn has roughly 3 days. Jack tells Syd he'll buy time with Sloan and to go.

Vaughn is in isolation and asleep. Syd sits down to get his blood. Syd tells him there is an antidote. Vaughn asks how dangerous. Syd says it'll be easy. She gets his blood, and assures him that in a couple of days he'll be doing wind sprints. Vaughn tells Syd to be careful. Before Syd can leave, an alarm sounds. Vaughn is crashing. They rush him off. He needs blood. A woman comes up to him. She is in tears. She wants to know what is happening. The woman turns out to be Vaughn's girlfriend.

Commercial Break 1

Jack tells Sloan that he sent Syd on a mission to check out a triad listening post. Sloan tells Jack that he went through with the exhumation. Jack insists that she can't be alive. Sloan says she knows what I know. Sloan told his superiors that someone is trying to make it look like they faked Emily's death. Sloan goes through a laundry list of SD6 failures. Jack tells Sloan that Emily's death was a distraction. Sloan says they need a success.

We see a man on a table. Sloan is saying that he is suffering from ascending paralysis. Sloan asks the man where Derevco's base of operations is. The man doesn't answer. Another man gives the "patient" an injection. The patient screams. Sloan says he wants the location. The man mutters someone in a foreign language.

Will is waiting in a parking lot. The woman who asked Will a lot of questions (who turned out to be a CIA op a few episodes earlier) pulls up. She hands Will an envelope and tells him that the questions his interested in weren't on the test in 1982. The questions were ridiculously hard special relation questions - things like why can rainbows only be seen when the sun is behind the viewer.

Syd arrives at the facility. She is wearing a yellow HAZMAT suit, and begins pushing a barrel. She spots Sark and relays this to Jack. Syd uses a gizmo to access the system and get the pass code. There is a problem. If she uses the system to produce the antidote, their system will warn them that she is using it. They tell Syd to abort. Syd refuses. A technician sees this on his screen and warns Sark that someone is in the decontamination room. Opera like music accents the drama. Syd is trapped in a room with Sark looking in from above. He tells her that there is a liquid in the pipes above that are for cleaning metals - it doesn't do well with organic materials such as her suit or her skin. Sark tells Syd that they are destined to work together. Sark will turn on the sprinklers if Syd gets him to Sloan. Syd says okay if I keep the antidote. Sark says no - Sloan first, and then you get the antidote.

Commercial Break 2

Syd relays that they decontaminated her (and we see /images of it). She relays that she promised Sark that she would render Sloan unconscious and deliver him to Sark. Syd and the CIA boss argue. Jack agrees with Syd - they can't lose Vaughn. Jack says the Sloan is slated to go to a meeting in Tokyo. AT SD6 - Marshal is doing some to a polar bear rug. Jack says he needs his access fixed.

Francie asks what Will is reading. It's a test. Francie reads the test - there is a question about the invasion of Grenada. Francie says her uncle was one of the marines. The invasion was in 1983. Will goes back to his contact that insists that it was the one on file.

Sloan and Jack continue torturing the man. Jack asks for an address. Sloan gets angry and asks where in Smila do they look. The man laughs Smila is his wife. Sloan mutters just kill him to Jack.

Will meets with someone. He rattles off the test id number to the man. The man says it's a popular test. Will asks why they put in the rainbow question. The man says this isn't on the original test he sent. The test was administered in 38 states.

Syd and Jack talk. Syd wants reassurance. She asks if they have a choice. Jack didn't want her to ever have to face this. They are thinking about premeditated murder.

Commercial Break 3

Tokyo - Syd is disguised as a geisha. Jack meets a man in a limo. The limo guy has the antidote. When Sark radios him, Jack can have the antidote. Back in Tokyo - Sloan removes his shirt. Syd is coversing via radio with Sark. A guard questions geisha Syd. Syd talks to him in Japanese. The guard doesn't buy it. Syd and the guard fight. Syd renders the guard unconscious. Geisha Syd makes her way in tiny steps to Sloan. Sloan has no idea that the new geisha is Sydney. Sloan mutters that he is tense. He says he saw a man die yesterday. Syd pretends she can't understand. Sloan mutters that is the love he had for his wife that sustained him. Syd removes something from her hair and injects Sloan as Sloan mutters about his love for his wife. Sark tells the ambulance to move in. They take Sloan out. Syd tells Sark to release the antidote. Sark does. Jack goes to test the antidote. Syd watches as the take Sloan away.

Commercial Break 4

Back in Los Angeles, Vaughn wakes. Jack is with him. He was asleep for 40 hours. Vaughn asks if he's dying. Jack tells him almost and that Syd got the antidote. Vaughn asks how she did it. Jack tells him she had Sloan killed. Syd walks through SD6. She eyes Sloan's empty office. She walks further into the office and meets up with Sloan. Sark is with him. Sark is now part of SD6. Syd is told to cooperate with him. She asks what he is doing there. Sark took him to a remote location and revived him. Sark and Sloan are going to work together to solve the Rambaldi puzzles. Sark tells Sloan that he intercepted a communication that an attempt would be made on his life. Sark shows Sloan a piece of paper. Sark won't tell Syd what was on the paper.

Vaughn goes to Irina's cell. He is ready to answer Irina's questions for helping him. Vaughn says he is trying to live a Norman life, which is hard to begin with but harder now that he's met Sydney. Meeting Syd has made it that much worse. Irina says that he hasn't told her anything. Vaughn insists that there are clear rules governing the relationship between an agent and handler. Vaughn meets Syd at HQ. They hug. Syd appears to be hurt - emotionally. Syd tells Vaughn that Sloan brought Sark into SD6. Vaughn knows that Syd met his girlfriend. He tries to explain. Syd says not to. Syd walks away. Vaughn's boss says he's glad everything turned out even though Syd broke protocol. Vaughn excuses himself and follows Syd, but loses her.

Next Time:
In two weeks - the next mission begins. But before this family of spies can save the world - they have to save themselves. Operation Peacekeeper (that's in 2 weeks folks)