A dying, planet-sized sphere seizes Discovery and shares its vast archive, while Saru seems to be dying of the Kelpien condition vahar'ai.
A huge living sphere traps Discovery and floods the ship with data, the record of its long existence, before it dies. Its signal sets off vahar'ai in Saru, a condition Kelpiens believe is always fatal. Saru asks Burnham to help him end his life with dignity, but instead his threat ganglia fall away on their own, leaving him healthy and, for the first time, without fear.
Meanwhile, the spore-based organism inside Tilly again speaks to her as May, accuses Discovery of harming the mycelial network with its spore drive, and engulfs her in a cocoon. The teleplay was by Alan McElroy and Andrew Colville, and Lee Rose directed.