Redjac (also known as Jack the Ripper, Beratis and Kesla) was a non-humanoid lifeform that existed for centuries by journeying from planet to planet and feeding on the pain and fear he caused by committing serial murders. It was similar to a parasitic organism, and required a humanoid host to inhabit in order to commit crimes.
Redjac on a viewscreen.
- On Earth and Mars:
- 2156: 10 murders in Heliopolis on Alpha Eridani II
- In 2266 (as "Beratis") on Rigel IV
- In 2267 (in the form of Hengist) on Argelius II
Among the other murderous identities Redjac held was Kesla on Deneb II.
After Redjac committed a murder on the pleasure planet Argelius II in 2267 as "Hengist", Lieutenant Commander Montgomery Scott from the Federation starship USS Enterprise (NCC-1701) was accused of this crime. However, Hengist's true identity was later revealed and the Redjac entity was beamed, on a dispersal pattern, into deep space, where it was hoped that it would die from lack of nourishment. (TOS: "Wolf in the Fold")
Background
In a comic story released by WildStorm titled "Embrace the Wolf", it was revealed that Redjac survived by latching on to a nearby starship. After an absence of over a century, Redjac returned to confront the crew of the USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-D), where, having provoked a nuclear war on a Federation planet, he transferred himself into the holodeck and abducted several crewmembers, challenging Data in his Sherlock Holmes persona to save them. Data was able to save Counselor Deanna Troi from Redjac, and was also able to contact Captain Jean-Luc Picard, Doctor Beverly Crusher, and Lieutenant Worf. Tricking Redjac into a confrontation with Worf, the crew was able to have Redjac focus all his energy on one spot, before trapping him in a photon torpedo. The torpedo was subsequently abandoned on a nearby barren moon.
In James Blish's novelization of the original script, Redjac manifests itself on the viewscreen in the form of a Dantesque scene, with fire and brimstone, naked women riding on the backs of satyrs, horned toads, etc. Kirk declares that it is a vision of Hell, whereby the "filthy thing" is showing the Enterprise crew where it was born.