Minding his own business on his shift for the Portland Parks and Recreation department, Ryan Gilko gets violently rear-ended by a driver with some serious road rage. Gilko gets out of the car to talk to the driver behind him and discovers him pockmarked and appearing to be very ill. The man is completely disoriented and violent, almost zombie-like; Gilko retaliates, pricking him with his quills as he morphs into a Stangebar, a porcupine-like Wesen. The driver recoils, and then staggers into a nearby building where he passes out from illness. A traumatized Gilko calls 911, and then Nick and Hank arrive on the scene.