Previously on Pandora...
I thought I might be able to find out
more about what happened to my parents.
I don't know any more today
than I did the day they were murdered.
- What year are you? - On the med track now.
Oh, a doctor. They a couple?
He has a girlfriend on Vega 5.
- Why? You interested? - Not in him.
What are you doing tomorrow night?
I don't know. You tell me.
There's an enemy agent on campus.
You want me to spy on Ralen?
It can't be easy being the first Zatarian
to ever attend the Academy since the war.
My father won't always control Parallax.
The company may be mine sooner than you think.
The Sea Hawk.
EarthCom's fiercest and most decorated battle cruiser.
She fragged more Zatarian warships
than any other ship in our fleet.
I was the X-O of the Sea Hawk
under the command of the legendary
Captain Derek Jaworski.
Due to injuries that I sustained at the Battle of Voyek 4,
I was relieved of my post
to convalesce on an off-world med facility.
About four days later,
the Sea Hawk intercepted a Zatarian armada
which had breached our interstellar defense perimeter,
putting Earth directly in their crosshairs
for a kill shot.
But Captain Jaworski did not flinch
and he didn't punch out.
He stayed a course,
and he fought a fight which he knew he could not win.
It was then,
during what is now known as Operation Firebird,
that Captain J...
that Captain Jaworski made the ultimate sacrifice.
Thanks to you and others like you,
the Sea Hawk and her crew will never be forgotten.
Hooyah!
What is it?
It's an antique photo booth.
A what?
A photo booth is a kiosk which contains an automated,
usually coin-operated, camera and film processor
that was invented by T.E. Enjalber,
who debuted it at the World's Fair in Paris in 1889.
Ah, I'm sorry I asked.
It prints actual photographs onto paper
through a photochemical process you can hold in your hand.
It's so cool.
- Sounds silly. - Sounds awesome.
We were pinned down.
We had planetesimals just flinging left, right and center.
And one impact would have just ruptured our ship's hull.
We got through it alive
and lived to fight another day.
Tell us about your legendary battle
in the Nikolov System, that must have been hairy.
That was a bad one.
I didn't think we were going to get out of that one alive,
but I forgot who my cap was.
The lovebirds need their privacy.
Thank you. I was beginning to lose my appetite.
Oh, look!
We should go to an open mic night, Pilar.
It'll be so much fun.
I will not partake in such a banal act
of self-indulgence.
Boo on you.
You sure know how to ruin a party.
How about you guys?
Open mic night. In or out?
I am so in.
- I'm out. - Aww.
Yeah, I got a shift at the med center. Sorry.
Two yes votes and two no votes.
We need a swing vote.
Ralen!
So, an open mic night.
Wait, you don't know what an open mic night is.
I guess they don't have that...
Lieutenant?
That's a Zatarian.
What the hell's a Zatarian doing here?
Oh, that's... That's Ralen.
He's a student here. He...
Ah!
No broken bones or fractures.
You'll live.
You see the way he tossed out that security guard?
Yeah. Tossed him like a ragdoll.
That was not normal.
No. Not normal at all.
I'll be right back.
This is not my blood.
I am here for the brain transplant.
Hey, gorgeous.
I'd rather you keep the one you got.
It's kind of grown on me.
Aww, what's up, doc?
You don't seem like your usual cheery self.
It's Lieutenant Collins.
- Is he going to be okay? - Yeah, that's just it.
I don't actually know.
- Don't know what? - Anything.
Yeah, I was assisting the team that was treating him
when trying to find out why he flipped out on Ralen,
then out of nowhere, his medical records get wiped clean.
- How? - Don't know, but they're gone.
No tissue samples, blood work, CT scans, bio reads.
You need to vacate the building immediately.
This wing is now under strict quarantine.
Quarantine? Under whose orders?
Attention, please.
Everyone must vacate...
Who the hell are these guys?
Most doctors I know don't carry sidearms.
They have to be C.I.S. Somebody doesn't want us
finding out what happened to the lieutenant.
- But you do, don't you? - Yeah, of course, I do.
But what can I do?
I don't have any medical records.
I don't even have a blood sample.
Good thing I do.
Ralen, we need your shirt.
My shirt?
We need to run a medical scan on it.
I find your request quite peculiar.
- Ralen! - Very well.
- You may have my shirt. - No, not that one.
The one with Lieutenant Collins' blood on it.
- You still have it? - Ah.
I do.
This is not good.
What is it?
What's wrong?
We found an abnormality
in a sample of Lieutenant Collins' blood.
Greg... Cadet Li...
believes it may be far more pervasive in the fleet
- than just Collins. - That's correct, sir.
And how in the worlds did you get a blood sample
from the lieutenant?
It was on Ralen's shirt. Long story.
Greg ran a scan of Collins' blood,
- and that's when he found... - Let me guess.
Ryodyne.
You haven't told anyone else about this, have you?
Just you, Professor.
Let's keep it that way, shall we?
You knew soldiers were using Ryodyne?
Yes.
Very, very much so.
Ryodyne is a performance-enhancing drug
that attacks and disables the neural pathways
responsible for flight
while stimulating those responsible for fighting.
Then you also know how dangerous it is,
in addition to being completely illegal.
And if it is illegal, where is it coming from?
That I do not know.
But I do know that Ryodyne helped Earth win the war.
It made our soldiers virtually unstoppable,
afraid of nothing, not even the most violent death.
The perfect soldier, the perfect weapon. Anything to win.
I guess that doesn't make us much better than the Zatarians, then, does it?
It's very easy to look back and say that
now that the Earth is safe
and our race no longer in imminent danger of extinction.
I know it's not a proud chapter in Earth history,
but we were losing the war against the Zatarians.
We needed something to turn the tide.
The war's been over for years.
Why is Collins still dosing?
He's addicted. Ryodyne is extremely habit-forming.
And you still invited him to campus.
He could have killed Ralen if Xander hadn't stopped him.
Lieutenant Collins' outburst was an isolated incident.
Now, I appreciate your concern. It is all under control now.
It's not remotely under control.
Something's rotten in the Crab Nebula.
Jax, I wouldn't trust telling your uncle any more secrets.
Yeah. Duly noted.
Earth soldiers were given a dangerous
and life-threatening narcotic to help them fight my race,
- and EarthCom lied about it. - I'm not surprised.
My dad served in the military too.
He said EarthCom did some pretty messed-up stuff during the war.
Your dad was a war hero?
It's not really the time or place to talk about it, Atria.
Well, maybe you want to share your story for open mic night?
That is a great idea.
- Really? - No.
All of Lieutenant Cade Collins' military records are classified.
There's no mention of Ryodyne use anywhere.
This doesn't make any sense.
Someone is hiding something about Collins.
All of the members of the Sea Hawk,
their files are classified too.
Stop, babe.
Okay, got it.
Not letting this go.
You're not even listening to me, are you?
I am listening to you.
And you're right.
I'm not going to let this go.
Neither are you.
Of course not.
I'm not letting you go either.
I didn't expect this to happen so fast,
from losing my parents to joining Fleet Training Academy.
What are we doing here?
We believe in the same things, Jax.
We care deeply about others,
and I care about you.
Tomorrow you can get Pilar to use the datastream
and hack those files.
Hack what files?
Oh!
Pilar? How long have you been standing there?
Seven and a half seconds.
Whatever happened to knocking first?
I don't need to knock. This is my room.
If you need privacy, I will leave.
- Okay. Bye. - No, stay.
I need you to tell me everything you can
about the Sea Hawk and her crew.
This will be a difficult task?
Nearly impossible.
I'm in.
Tom?
Hello?
Yoo-hoo.
You in there?
Uh, um...
Monica, wait.
Atria, what are you doing here?
Wow. Who was that woman?
She was so beautiful.
That was my girlfriend Monica.
She goes to school on Vega 5.
What were the two of you doing?
What did it look like we were doing?
Having sex. But it can't be very fun
if Monica's not really here.
I've never tried virtual sex.
Every time I've had sex it was live and in person.
Okay, this is getting way too uncomfortable.
I've had sex with lots of alien species too.
Including the Cronin, who have both sexual organs.
Let me tell you, that was quite interesting.
I know who the Cronin are.
Okay, Atria, what are you doing here?
I wanted to apologize for being a silly sally in the Black Hole.
I didn't mean to ask you things about your father
you didn't want to discuss. I'm sorry.
I appreciate that. And I'm sorry for getting upset.
I'm just overly sensitive when it comes to my pop.
Okey-dokey, no more talking about your dad, got it.
Oh, by the way, you left your tie on the door.
Yeah, it's too late, but that means "don't enter."
Oh. Well, maybe you should have just written that on the door instead.
Yeah.
Maybe next time I will.
Hi, Ralen.
Greetings, Atria.
Have you made your mind up about open mic night
in the Black Hole yet?
It'll be super awesome.
Yes.
Yes, you'll do it? Great!
Yes, I have made my decision.
And my answer is no.
What's a clone got to do around here to have fun?
She's deep into the datastream.
This is Dark-Stream territory,
classified military files
protected by virtually impenetrable firewalls
and defensive A.I.
You're underestimating her.
She can do this.
I've connected with another bioorganic.
They are on the Sea Hawk.
Must be some sort of flashback log, right?
Before the ship was destroyed.
Who are you?
What do you want?
You are not authorized to contact me.
Terminate your connection immediately.
I know who you are. I need to talk. I'm from Earth.
Activate firewall defensive protocols.
- What is it? What's wrong? - It's all a lie.
The Sea Hawk was never destroyed.
She's still out there.
What do you mean the Sea Hawk is still out there?
It was destroyed during the war.
No. They are still fighting.
EarthCom and the Zatarians are both out
searching for the ship.
There's something else you need to know, Jax.
The Sea Hawk's route took it through the Orion system
three months ago.
What's in the Orion system?
New Portland.
And three months ago was around the same time
my colony was attacked and my parents were killed.
What are we going to do?
We got a lot of questions and not many answers.
We find someone who has some.
Oh, yay.
This is a really bad idea. There's security everywhere,
and every donut in the world
isn't going to sugar them off this time.
I don't care.
I need to find out what he knows about the Sea Hawk
and the destruction of my home.
I have an idea.
You're not going to like it.
Even during quarantine,
the staff still has to change bed linens.
Yeah, and the bedpans.
You could have picked a clean laundry cart.
Hey, we're inside, aren't we?
Yeah, inside someone's dirty laundry.
Okay, sorry. Good plan.
Lieutenant Collins?
Lieutenant Coll...
Looks like he's going through some mean Ryodyne withdrawal.
I need to talk to him. Is there anything you can do?
I'm a doctor, there's always something I can do.
This should safely wake him up for a spell.
Be fast, though, okay?
I'm not gonna risk giving him another injection.
That's enough.
This field combat training exercise is terminated.
Class dismissed.
You are not going to discipline the students responsible
for reprogramming the simulation?
Why does that not surprise me?
You need to see this as an opportunity for you.
The ones who are openly racist you know are your enemies.
It's the ones that pretend to be friends to your face
that you need to worry about.
You must understand your enemy, Ralen,
whatever face it wears.
Collins.
I need you to tell me why was the Sea Hawk
was at New Portland three months ago.
Cade Collins.
Serial number X654...
You're a soldier.
This is your chance to help people.
You swore to protect the Confederacy.
I need you to tell me why the Sea Hawk
was at New Portland three months ago.
That is an order.
Cade Collins. Serial number...
X654531. I know.
Jax, you got to think of something, okay?
Once we lose him, I'm not going to risk
giving him another injection.
Where is the Sea Hawk now?
I need Ryodyne, please.
The Sea Hawk, where is she?
I know she wasn't destroyed during the war.
I need Ryodyne!
Jax, be careful.
The Ryodyne, where do you get it?
You need it or you'll die. I know.
Where do you get your fix?
Parallax.
Parallax Galactic?
They give it to you?
The whole crew needs it.
Please.
And where is the crew of the Sea Hawk now?
Where are they?
Why were they at New Portland?
Hey, hey.
Why were...?
- Why were they at New Portland? - Jax!
- Tell me! Tell me! - Jax, stop!
Look at him.
His entire crew is addicted to that drug.
That supply's not going to last forever.
If we find where they manufacture the Ryodyne,
we can find the Sea Hawk.
Right, so let's get this straight,
The most decorated battle cruiser
in Earth's military history,
which blew itself up
in a pivotal battle with the Zatarians
to help us win the war,
is still operational.
- Yes. - And its captain,
the legendary Derek Jaworski,
is alive and is addicted to Ryodyne,
along with his entire crew.
We know that sounds crazy,
but from what we've found out, it seemed to be true.
Well, what I've learned with Jax is
that a lot of what sounds pretty nuts usually turns out to be true.
I know where the Sea Hawk is going.
To get more Ryodyne,
which the crew desperately needs.
Without it, they die.
Pilar's located a Parallax-owned
manufacturing facility on Nimbus 4
which can produce the drug in sufficient quantities.
Follow the Ryodyne and we find the Sea Hawk.
Yeah, and what's your interest in the Sea Hawk, Jax?
I think it had something to do
with the destruction of the colony on New Portland
and the death of my parents.
Mm-hmm. Knew there'd be a catch.
With or without you, I'm going after them, Xander.
We are going after them.
What he said.
You need to take this to Professor Osborn.
Yeah, that didn't work out so well the last time.
He wouldn't listen.
Captain Jaworski is out there right now,
killing innocent civilians and Zatarians.
If he's left unchecked, it could start another war.
Do you really want that on your conscience?
The rendezvous and exchange with the Sea Hawk is set.
Jaworski has the data you seek.
The coordinates. Excellent.
You have done well.
But I believe that after this mission,
the good captain will have outlived his usefulness to us.
I look forward to putting that lunatic out of his misery.
Like father, like daughter.
I only wish to make you happy, Father.
And I know what would make you happiest of all.
What's that?
My death.
You misunderstand.
I misunderstand nothing.
You would not be my daughter if you didn't covet
what you cannot have.
But always remember, power is never earned.
It's taken.
I know.
I wouldn't do that if I were you.
Not unless you want Cordelia to inherit Parallax.
Perhaps you'll think twice
before you try to kill me next time.
Father, I would never...
Just take care of the Jaworski problem
before he interferes with our plans.
And pray that I live for a very long,
long time,
for your sake, as well as mine.
Go home, Zit.
Go back to Zatar, Zit!
I'll recon the facility.
Pilar, keep the comms, channels open,
and feed into the security network.
Okay, got it.
Greg, ready the med bay.
Yes, sir.
Just in case.
Pilar, report.
Sorry, I didn't quite catch that report.
All clear.
Having some trouble with comms, though.
I think it's the planet's atmosphere.
Activating heat signature mode.
Wow, that's a whole lot of bogies.
Xander, they know you're there.
- Xander! - He can't hear you.
- Comms are down. - Yeah, it's not the atmosphere.
They're being intentionally jammed.
Damn it, he's walking blind right into them.
Heard you got something for us, sweetie.
But first you have something for me.
All the surveillance on Tiagra is on there.
Oh, I think you'll find
what your papa has been searching for.
Thank you, Captain.
We are most appreciative.
Start taking the Ryodyne up to the ship.
Tonight we're going to have ourselves a little party
in the Sirius system...
courtesy of the Fried sisters.
Until next time. Ciao, babe.
Over there!
It's the crew of the Sea Hawk.
You think? Why do you sound so surprised?
We need to help them. We don't want to hurt them.
Yeah, well, we can't very well do any of that
unless we get back to the ship alive.
Head north. It's the only way out.
Do you copy? Xander?
Jax?
Jax.
Jax, do you copy?
Greg?
Don't move.
Your prisoners, Captain, as you ordered.
If you want to live,
I want you to answer truthfully and tell me now...
where the hell is my Ryodyne?
What are you talking about?
You got it from Parallax during the rendezvous.
All these boxes are empty.
You know what's going to happen to us without Ryodyne?
Nothing good.
Captain, I'm a doctor.
I can help you...
No!
Stop it!
Stop it and I'll tell you.
There was a bait and switch.
Regan Fried and Parallax double-crossed you.
It wasn't us.
And why would they do that?
They've never screwed us over before.
Lieutenant Collins had a mental breakdown while he was on Earth.
He's in intensive care on the campus medical facility.
Your secret's starting to get out.
Change of course, X-O.
The second moon of the Kirby-Royer System.
Aye, Captain.
That's a Zatarian outpost
on the edge of the Armistice Line.
Ah, someone knows their way around the galaxy.
I also know it's a civilian colony.
It's not military.
I think you're confused about which side you're on.
You see, the Zatarians never stopped fighting the war.
So they have to be annihilated before they annihilate us.
Get me?
- Hooyah! - Hooyah!
Captain, if you attack that colony,
you'll never survive.
Without Ryodyne...
my crew are dead anyway.
He's right, Jax.
They'll lose control of the vessel,
and then they'll lose control of their bodies.
I'll get the Sea Hawk close to that Zit colony,
detonate the engine reactor core, and boom!
Hmm?
Operation Firebird.
I can no longer track the Sea Hawk.
The bioorganic crew member I previously linked to
has severed her link to the datacore.
Okay, tap into a different feed.
We need to locate them.
Finding Jax and Greg will be like finding
a needle in a haystack,
in a barn full of haystacks on a planet full of barns.
Which means there's still a chance.
Keep looking, Pilar.
If anyone can find them, then it's you.
Normally, I am extremely confident in my abilities.
- However... - Okay, now is not the time to be modest.
Find them. That's an order.
We can't let this ship reach the Zatarian outpost.
We have to get out of this cell.
I completely agree. I'm open to any escape plans.
I think I need some stitches,
and maybe a case of sake.
For medicinal purposes only, of course.
How's this?
- Feels a little bit better. - Hmm.
How about another one?
How about...
Now's really not the time.
I think I have a way to contact Xander and Pilar.
It's a long shot, but it could work.
Oh! Help me.
Help me!
- He needs Ryodyne. - Hey!
You want some Ryodyne?
We searched you both.
- Just a little longer. - You don't have any.
No.
But I know someone who does.
Lots of it.
Where?
On an EarthCom training vessel, the Earhart.
Log into the datastream and contact Delaney Pilar.
She'll make you a trade and you can have all that sweet,
sweet Ryodyne all to yourself.
I know where they are.
Come on.
We need to get a message out to EarthCom and warn them.
Jax, what are you doing?
- Scanning the Sea Hawk's logs. - Why?
I need to find out why they were at New Portland.
Uh, Jax...
Just give me a nanosecond. The answer could be right here.
Jax, we don't have a nanosecond.
Hooyah.
Captain, you can't attack that colony.
The Zatarians are re-arming for war.
Earth Confederacy is too blind to see it.
Is that why you destroyed New Portland?
What?
Your attack didn't kill Zatarians.
It killed humans.
Two humans who mattered to me.
My parents were on that colony,
along with everyone else that you massacred!
No.
We do not kill humans.
Then why did you take the Sea Hawk to New Portland?
Orders.
Parallax scientists said they found something.
An incredible power source.
Needed us to investigate.
Fried said it was something that could change the balance...
What was it?
I don't know.
By the time we got there,
the colony had been destroyed.
It wasn't us, kid.
Oh!
What the hell was that, Zara?
We're under attack, sir.
How many ships?
Just one.
Training vessel's armaments have a 0% chance
of defeating an EarthCom battle cruiser.
Its hull plating alone is 20 meters thick.
Yeah, I know, I'm just trying to slow them down until the cavalry arrives.
99.7% chance of being blasted into nanoparticles before they do.
Okay, open all comms channels to the Zatarians.
Tell them we've found the Sea Hawk.
Have them dispatch intercept ships immediately.
Once Jax and Greg are safely off that boat,
they have the authorization to fire.
- On whose authority? - On mine!
- Excuse me? - You heard me, Pilar. Do it!
Prepare the engine's reactor core
to self-detonate once that Zit colony
is within blast radius.
It's been a long time coming,
but Operation Firebird is finally going to happen.
The final flight of the Sea Hawk
as it sails off into history.
Hooyah.
So, Monica dumped me
using a prerecorded hologram transmission.
So harsh.
I'm sorry things didn't work out with your girlfriend, Tom.
You can do better.
Let's give it up for Deirdre!
Hey, what's...
what's the matter, Atria?
It's...
Ralen?
What does an EarthCom battle cruiser
and toilet paper have in common?
They both circle Uranus wiping out Zatarians.
Thanks, Thomas.
Good joke.
Earth humor.
I do not get it.
We got to go. Come on.
Come on, we got to go.
- You okay? - Never better.
Liar.
The Sea Hawk's engine reactor core is going to detonate.
I know how to disable the ship
before it reaches the Zatarian outpost.
Come on.
Engage the dorsal ion thrusters.
Well, actually, it's the battle cruiser's emergency brake.
I took Osborn's class too, you know.
I'm going back to engage the dorsal thrusters.
- Get in the escape pod and... - No, no, no, no.
You do that at light speed, you tear the ship apart.
You won't make it back in time.
I know.
You can't do that. You'll die.
I have to.
If I don't, he'll kill thousands of innocent Zatarians
and millions more in the war that follows.
Maybe this is why I survived,
and why I didn't die with my parents.
Maybe this is what I was meant to do.
Okay. Okay.
I have to try.
I know.
Open the door! Open the door!
What are you doing? Open the door!
I'm hurt bad, Jax. Even if I get off the ship,
I'm not going to get medical attention in time.
You're lying. Open the door, Greg.
Please!
Find out what happened to your parents, Jax.
Open the door, babe. Please. Please.
I love you.
My name is Ralen.
I'm one of the first Zatarians
to willingly come to Earth after the war,
and the first ever to enroll in the Fleet Training Academy.
My family and friends ridiculed me.
Thought I was foolish for coming to your world.
I have only ever wanted to bridge our two worlds together.
But for some it is hard to accept that,
given our differences.
Given what we've both inflicted on each other in the past.
But we must try to understand each other.
Maybe even like each other.
Otherwise, there will be more hurt,
more suffering, more loss.
And that is something I believe we can all agree
we do not want to experience ever again.
Ultimately,
we can all die alone.
Or we could die together.
But we will die.
One day.
You are not your parents.
I am not my father.
We are our own unique beings.
We shine bright,
and then we burn out
like the stars in the sky.
We must celebrate our oneness
for the brief time that we exist
in this vast cosmos together.
That time is now.
I am Ralen from Zatar.
And like it or not,
I am here to stay.
Whoo!
Attention, Sea Hawk escape pod,
A retrieve-and-rescue ship is on its way. Do you copy?
Xander, I am detecting only one heat signature in the pod.
Jax, is that you? Are you okay?
Do you copy?
Jax!
Hmm. Shouldn't have done that, Professor.
Why is that, Mr. Duvall?
I thought by now I would have taught you the value of a pawn.
Some would characterize it as the weakest piece on the board,
whereas I would argue sometimes weakness can be a strength
if exploited properly.
Are you talking about chess or Captain Jaworski?
You tell me.
It's a dark chapter in our history.
His war record speaks for itself.
He's no hero.
Greg Li was a hero.
He gave his life to avoid a war
that Captain Jaworski would have started on a lie.
What lie is that?
That the Zatarians were re-arming for war.
His Ryodyne-fueled paranoia made him delusional.
Don't be naive.
The Zatarians are re-arming for war.
We've been receiving intelligence and data intercepts
from Jaworski for months that support his hypothesis.
You were in contact with the Sea Hawk
the entire time it was running dark?
Of course.
Check.
Do you really think the Zatarians,
who were hunting for him along with EarthCom,
would have gone to war over a lunatic rogue captain's
unauthorized actions?
So why take the risk?
We fight the little battles now
so we can avoid the big wars later.
That's checkmate.