Starship Armstrong - Season 3

Part 23 - Family Ties (I)

Wagner sat watching a beat-up old screen and wearing headphones. He had been assigned to dig through the 50-year-old communications signals the Armstrong had been detecting since it entered this area of space. The Science Department was supposed to go through them and see what could be learned about their originators while the ship set a course for the source of the signals.

Of course Dr. Kang and McAfree couldn't be bothered with something like that. It was too close to what the Science Department was actually supposed to do. So the task fell to Wagner.

He didn't mind. This was some of the most entertaining busy work he had ever been given.

There was a pleasing simplicity to this "television". The ancient art form had more merit to it than Wagner would have expected. He was particularly enjoying the current program he was watching, an ongoing drama about genetically engineered freedom fighters engaged in a guerrilla war against a society of evil scientists who called themselves "The Institution". Something about the lead villain, a particularly arrogant mad scientist, resonated with Wagner.

"Your precious human sentimentality is no match for the cold steel grip of science!" taunted the evil scientist, his bloated brain visible through the transparent top of his skull. "Behold the awesome power of my weaponized clothing. Battle mode: activate!"

The evil scientist held his arms out to the side and his clothing and lab coat moved like liquid as it morphed into a suit of bulky power armor many times larger than the original clothing.

The lens flared several times around the suit, and each time it was accompanied by a shin noise.

The scientist grabbed the hilt of a sword from his belt. There was a noise like static and the end of the hilt ignited into a black blade of pure darkness.

The heroine was unphased by this display of power. She cupped her hands and held them in the air.

"People of Terra!" she yelled. "Give me the power of your faith!"

A ball of light, tiny at first but constantly growing, appeared in her hands. Once it had grown to the size of a tennis ball she closed her grip around it. A two-handed broadsword made of light exploded from her hands, making its own static noise.

"Let this be our final battle!" announced the scientist, and he charged.

The heroine ran at him at the same time. Just before the blades of their swords touched the frame froze.

"Next week: the thrilling conclusion!" came the voice of the narrator.

"Aaw," lamented Wagner.

Credits rolled, and the screen faded to black. It came back on displaying a very ornate coat-of-arms with some generic music. The arms appeared to use the old Imperial symbolism. If Wagner remembered correctly some of the emblems implied it was the coat-of-arms of a planetary governor.

Wagner was debating whether it was worth it to yell for McAfree. She would definitely be able to decipher the coat-of-arms but would likely be annoyed at being asked to do so. The arms were gone from the screen before he made up his mind.

They were replaced by the image of a woman sitting at a desk in what looked to be a finely decorated office. Wagner gasped. The woman wore an authoritarian-looking uniform with obvious Babylonian influences. Her hair was short and she wore a good deal of jewelry.

Other than that she looked exactly like Lieutenant-Commander Mitnzer.

"And now," said a voice off-screen, "a message from the Queen."