“The Channel” is episode five of season two of First Wave.
Two drunk young women leave a bar at night. One, Chloe, goes to her car and the other, Denise, says she shouldn’t be driving. They set off walking. They’re probably too drunk for that too. Chloe starts questioning her life choices. She wanders into the road and says you’re like a bug on a windshield. One second flying along; the next, splat. She doesn’t come out of the road and a car hits her.
Paramedics are working on Chloe, who is flatlined, when suddenly she comes too. And starts spouting the Nostradamus quatrain about the Twice-Blessed Man.
Cade is in Cranston, Rhode Island. A waitress was revived after six minutes with no heartbeat. She woke up reciting words of fortune. If Cade knows that she woke up reciting the lost quatrains of Nostradamus, the aliens must too. Cade must find Chloe before they do.
People and a police officer are outside Chloe’s house. An obnoxious reporter tries getting past, but the officer stops him. Those waiting seem to believe that Chloe can predict their future. Eddie is watching the reporter as he talks about a prediction that Chloe made about the death of the mayor; Cade is briefly caught on camera. Eddie and Cade are both in Eddie’s trailer; Eddie doesn’t remember the quatrain that Chloe said about the mayor. Cade is worried about being on film; Eddie says he only was for a couple of seconds.
Cade wants to get into Chloe’s house. He’s getting tired of all this. Eddie tries reassuring him. Cade says they hid the Nostradamus book so that the Gua couldn’t find it. If they discover that Chloe is spouting prophecy, they will come get her. Eddie says that Chloe is saying things that aren’t in the book. It could be a trap. They can come back when it’s all died down. Eddie won’t help Cade get into the house.
Despite his objections, Eddie winds up helping. Inside the house, Denise is with Chloe. Denise wants to turn what happened to Chloe into cash. Chloe thinks it happened to her for a reason. The finest reason, according to Denise; money. Not what Chloe meant. She decides to order food in. Outside, Eddie listens in on the conversation, then calls Cade, saying it’s his chance. Cade calls the delivery place and pretends to be Chloe’s boyfriend. He says he will pick the food up, so don’t deliver it.
Joshua is meeting with someone called Graydon, who doesn’t seem happy to see him. He shows Joshua the prophecy that Chloe made on the news clip and asks if those are Nostradamus’s words. Joshua thinks they could be and are definitely worth checking up on. It’s important to get the book of prophecies. Graydon thanks Joshua for coming; Joshua wonders why, given Graydon resisted his arrival, agreeing only when the council ordered. Because waiting for Joshua’s approval of the mission was a waste of time. Graydon has already assembled a team. Joshua is pleased and says that now the team has an experienced leader. Him.
Cade arrives at the house and the officer checks he does have food on him, then grabs him and asks what the password is. The girls said Cade was coming, and gave him the password. No-one enters without the password. Cade says there isn’t one, and the officer says he was just messing with him.
Cade goes to the door and Denise invites him in. When Chloe sees Cade, she calls him the Twice-Blessed Man; the one from the prophecy. Why does she think that? She doesn’t know. Over the last few days, words and images have jumped into her head. She doesn’t even know what the phrase means. Denise wants Cade out now; she thinks he’s trying to scam them. Chloe doesn’t. She wants to know why things are happening.
Outside, another news van arrives, only this one has the Gua in it. Graydon wants to go straight in. The video is played and this time it goes further; Joshua sees Cade on it. Graydon says that’s him, isn’t it? Subject 117?
Cade is telling Chloe she’s in danger. There’s a 400-year-old book of prophecies just like the one she made and a group of people who fear what she might have to say. Chloe says a bright light was blinding her and somebody inside her head wanted her to say the words.
Denise doesn’t believe any of this, though reassures the officer, her boyfriend it seems, when he comes to check why the delivery guy hasn’t left. She thinks Cade is crazy, and that’s before he starts talking about aliens. It seems that Chloe’s experience has opened up a channel to Nostradamus. In the van, Graydon, who seems unimpressed with Joshua, is getting impatient.