Status on the courier ship.
Dead in space.
Privateer is moving into grappling position.
Check that...
Dozens of privateers moving in.
Damned pirates.
Where'd they all come from, anyway?
This is the 11th courier-Jacking in three weeks.
You know, I think somebody should tell these guys
It is rude to ransom other people's mail for cash,
And I think it should be us.
Good idea.
Fire.
All right.
Enemy vessels destroyed.
It's always good to send a message.
Captain, the courier has relayed
an official communique addressed to you.
It's from CINC High Guard, and it's marked "priority".
It's always "priority".
The courier ship is transporting to Sinti
a candidate for election to the second Triumvir.
The High Guard is requesting we assist with safe passage.
We just gave 'em that.
There is more information on the passenger. Overhead screen.
No...
No!
You have got to be kidding.
I mean, half the universe wants this guy dead, And we're supposed to keep him safe?
Dylan this is an official request from the Commonwealth.
Yeah, yeah.
Sorry, Beka.
Move us closer to the courier ship
and bring her on board.
I want to get this all out of the way
while the situation is under control.
I can't believe you're making me do this.
I expect business as usual.
Sid.
Rocket!
It's great to see you.
And Captain Hunt.
What a joy it is that you're going to be working under me.
This is a beautiful ship.
Yep. Business as usual.
The Universe is a dangerous place,
but in our future,
my crew and I fight to make it safe.
I am Dylan Hunt,
Captain of the Andromeda Ascendant,
and these are our adventures.
So, let me get this straight.
The man we're taking to assume control of the Commonwealth
is my beloved uncle Sid...
Sid the murderer.
Sid the drug dealer.
Sid who dosed me with flash
and tried to kill me.
I am not any happier than you are,
but our mission is simple.
We take Sid back home to golden harvest,
he picks up a few things, then we transit to Sinti for the election.
And the election becomes a joke. Beka...
Okay, okay, we can handle this.
We pretend like we never got the orders.
Or... or Sid has an accident.
Or Sid just never makes it to Sinti.
Or we follow orders.
Maybe you weren't clear on the whole "Sid tried to kill me" part.
I heard you fine.
So, you're going to hand over our brand new baby Commonwealth to,
I can't stress this enough, a drug-dealing murderer.
I'm not gonna hand the Commonwealth over to anyone.
Sid still needs to win the election.
And you think he's just going to sit back and submit to the will of the people?
I don't trust him any more than you do, Beka.
But this isn't a debate, we have to follow orders.
I can't believe it.
Like playing taxi service to my worst enemy
is somehow my problem.
Your uncle Sid is no saint,
but he's also no worse
than some of the other characters we've struck alliances with.
Easy for you to say.
How would you feel
if Dylan proposed an alliance with the Drago-Kazov,
the people who murdered your family?
Ow.
Sometimes...
the situation requires that we hold the hand of our enemy.
The difficult part
is not letting them see you while you use the other hand to draw the knife.
Right?
You know, I have to admit
I've been following your career with great interest.
The known worlds owe you a debt of gratitude
not even I could afford.
I'm... flattered.
Rocket...
Don't call me that.
Oh, sorry. Old habits.
You know, I'm a little surprised to see you here,
what with you storming out on me.
Yeah. Me too.
Gretchen Rania, Mr. Profit's chief-Of-Staff.
Your uncle talks about you nonstop.
Yeah, well, I brought him something else
he can wax nostalgic about.
Remember this walk down memory lane?
I like to call it "Sid the drug dealer admits to murder".
Catchy.
A little inelegant, but I can handle that.
I'm a politician these days.
I'm sending a copy to every media outlet on Sinti and golden harvest.
If I were you, I'd prepare to withdraw my candidacy,
spend the rest of your life in the private sector...
Maybe even a private cell.
You know, you had me going there for a moment.
I thought you actually had something that could damage me.
That bit of information was leaked to the public months ago.
Once again, Mr. Profit makes a wonderful noise.
No, I'm serious.
When my spin doctors were done,
your evidence was just another highlight in my colorful career.
You know, I sort of think it gives me a common touch,
people sort of like that.
Colorful rogue now on the Side of good.
Yeah.
Oh, by the way, concerning my travel arrangements,
does the Andromeda auto-Chef dispense vegetarian meals,
or am I going to have to bring along my own restaurant staff?
I trusted you to behave professionally,
and you betrayed that trust.
Understood.
Beka, you know, I've never expected military discipline from you,
but I do expect you to refrain from cowboy behavior.
Understood.
Don't understand it. Just fix it.
And how do I do that?
Apologize to him.
What? You can't be serious.
And even if I did, which I won't,
what makes you think he'd accept?
Because he already said that he wants to see you,
and if you're wondering, the answer is yes, that's an order.
Where is he now?
He's on Golden Harvest.
They went back to the planet about an hour ago.
I told Gretchen that you'd bring them back to the Andromeda when they are ready.
I don't suppose we could make that dead or alive.
I heard that!
So I stood there and I told her to apologize,
and all I could think was "she's not wrong."
Hit me.
Meaning?
No matter how many lepers he bathes
or orphans he clothes,
he's still every bit as vicious as Beka says.
I'm good.
Mm-hmm...
You sure you're not cheating?
I don't need to.
Dylan, we're going from chaos to culture.
It's inevitable that some of the new leaders
are going to have checkered pasts.
I've played the "moral compromise
for the greater good" game before,
but Sid seems like one compromise too many.
Because it's personal.
Damn right, it's personal. I'll have another one. Aw...
Bust.
Can we play a different game?
Sid, I'm sorry.
Sorry you're such a miserable piece of...
Sid?
Sid, are you in there?
All right, Sid, you win.
Again.
Want to see me grovel?
Here I am.
Sid?
Come on, wake up.
Sid...
Skull fractures, torn arteries, brain damage...
it's a mess in there.
Thank you for responding so quickly.
Until we find out who did this, he'll be safe here.
Gretchen, why don't you go back to your quarters?
We'll keep you updated on his condition.
It's okay.
If anyone can save him, it's Trance.
Trance, can you save him?
Well, he's stabilized for now,
but it's still too early to tell.
A millimeter to either Side, and that bullet would've killed him.
Do what you can. If he dies on our watch,
that's one more blow Against the Commonwealth's credibility...
Not to mention my own.
You want me to lead the investigation into Sid's shooting?
Mm-Hmm.
I can't imagine a better candidate for the job.
Well, imagine harder, because I'm sure as hell not sorry
that Sid caught a bullet to the head.
Hell, I'm probably the prime suspect.
Ah, you know Sid better than anybody else.
Hey, I notice you let the whole "I'm probably the prime suspect"
thing slide by.
Notice harder.
I don't suppose I could convince one of you
to arrange some good news for a change.
Well, there is one little nugget of happiness, Mm-hmm...
...Sid got shot on the planet.
Usually foreign dignitaries wait
until they're on board to meet their violent deaths.
He's not dead,
just comatose while the medical nanos repair the damage.
Which makes communicating with him out of the question.
Well, that's not quite true,
is it?
Sid's data port.
We could hook him up to the V. R. Matrix
and communicate with him in cyberspace,
that is of course provided that the interface works
and the relevant parts of Sid's brain are functioning.
We're going to find out.
Harper, let's go talk to the guy.
I don't know, boss.
People aren't exactly plug and play, you know?
This usually requires voluntary thought.
One slip during the flight, and he won't be asking for vegetarian meals,
he'll be a vegetarian meal.
We need to find out who did this.
The only eyewitness
is lying in a coma on my med deck.
Tyr Anasazi. I'm...
I know who you are,
and since we've never met,
I'll assume you haven't come to share your innermost
thoughts and feelings in this difficult time.
Correct.
Tyr, your reputation precedes you.
You're cunning...
Toughness...
Fierce brutality...
And, I'm hoping, your avarice
are all things that could serve you in good stead.
Mr. Profit's company maintains a discretionary account
for occasions such as this.
You would mean a revenge fund,
a way for Mr. Profit to exterminate his rivals
from beyond the grave, yes?
Significant, I assume?
Significant to the tune of 15 million guilders.
Oh my.
Bring me the head of the guilty party,
and collect the reward. It's that simple.
Does that interest you?
There's a problem...
Profit's not dead.
He may as well be,
which is lucky for Mr. Profit...
Not so lucky for those who tried to kill him.
A revenge fund?
You'd be surprised at the number of powerful figures
who keep them as a deterrent to assassination.
Yes, but by no means bulletproof.
No.
In any event, it's in our best interest to act quickly.
I'm quite certain I'm not the only fixer
Gretchen has contacted.
And we all know where that leads.
Yes, and it's our job to make sure it doesn't get there.
Meet Anton Awartnik.
CEO of quantum technologies,
and Sid's new partner.
Little computer hacking
revealed several recent large cash payments
to a front company
for a well-Known mercenary fund.
Motive, means, opportunity.
Funny how those things add up.
Tyr, what was that?
Quantum technologies headquarters was just destroyed
in a plasma eruption.
Initial scans indicate no survivors.
Looks like our prime suspect just been assassinated.
Sid's revenge fund is fully operational.
Beka, get us back to the Andromeda, fast.
The situation's more complicated than we thought.
Comm traffic from the planet indicates escalating violence,
approaching complete chaos.
There's a whole wave of reprisals
against Sid's enemies,
and they're not taking it quietly.
It's a city on fire down there.
The mercenaries are killing anyone who looks like a payday.
Well, have no fear, wonder Harper is here
with news guaranteed to turn your frowns upside down...
Except maybe yours, Tyr.
Uncle Sid is jacked in and happily ensconced
in his own personal corner of the V.R. Matrix.
So the link is working? Please.
I've already played four hands of Vedran whist, with the guy.
And you know what? He cheats.
Unfortunately, you're a little late, Harper.
Our entire most wanted list
is in the process of wiping itself out.
I think I need to talk with Sid.
Maybe he can put a stop to this.
Dylan, wait.
Let me talk to him.
I know him, and more importantly, I know when he's lying.
Yeah, like when his lips are moving?
Please?
Okay.
But whatever's past between you and Sid, it's just that, the past.
The present, people are dying in Golden Harvest.
Go. We don't have a lot of time.
All right, Sid.
Let's dance.
Oh, I wasn't expecting you.
I was prepared for something more along the lines
of eternal reckoning.
Chains and hellfire, that sort of thing.
Let's stick to business.
An army of freelance hit men
is killing anything that moves on Golden Harvest
because you are offering 15 million guilders
for the head of your assassin.
I cannot believe
that's what you came here to discuss.
What do you recall about the night you were shot?
Honestly... nothing.
One moment I was sitting at my desk,
and the next moment, I'm playing whist with Mr. Harper...
who cheats, I might add.
That's it?
Well, memory is tricky,
even without a head wound.
You, of all people, should know that.
What one wants to believe
easily clouds the truth.
You're changing the topic.
Am I?
Why don't you play a little experiment with me?
Tell me about your 10th birthday.
I'm not getting into my 10th...
No, no, no, no.
Your father had just come back from kalderash with...
Candied eggs.
Yes. Good. Go on.
He hid them all over the Maru
for me and my brother, Rafe, to find.
They tasted a little funny, but we didn't care,
because we hadn't seen him in--
Wa-wa- Wait.
Let's stick with the eggs for a minute.
They tasted funny
because I had injected them with a vitamin solution
before I hid them.
Your father wasn't feeding you and your brother properly.
That's not true. My father fed us.
It is true.
And your father spent that day in bed
sleeping off a flash binge.
Go to hell, Sid.
If there is one, that's probably where I'll be headed...
barring negotiations, of course.
Look, I don't say these things to hurt you.
You have to believe that.
But if they do hurt, I know that, too.
Dylan, I'm receiving a transmission from high guard command.
Message playback.
Captain Hunt.
Jack Fremont, acting minister of war.
I'm looking at a message from you
indicating your reluctance
to transport Sid Profit to Sinti.
Now, we all understand your concerns,
and on behalf of your superiors...
Tough.
I hate to be the bearer of bad news,
but your stock at H. Q. ain't what it was.
You see, the Nietzschean Jaguars are making trouble,
and the Persiads,
well, they're still mad about that hone thing,
and don't even get me started on the fish people.
The point is,
there's even talk of transferring fleet command
to the Achilles
or the 12 centuries.
What?
Now, I don't want to see that happen,
and it's a real simple equation,
follow your orders. Period.
Fremont out.
So what do you think?
If this is rekindling the light of civilization...
I miss the dark ages.
What does Sid want?
It's not like I'm a threat to him,
not anymore, anyway,
but it's like he still wants sympathy or something,
from me, the one person in the world
who knows exactly what kind of man he really is.
For men like him,
it's never simply about the power.
I imagine it's about...
Well, being loved as well as feared.
That's what makes him a good politician, I suppose.
He's got an entire galaxy who thinks he's the greatest thing since artificial gravity.
Why does he need me?
Perhaps because you're the one person who knows what kind of man he is.
And, perhaps, in his own mind,
he believes what he says
and he needs you to believe it as well.
Yes?
You wanted to see me?
How's Sid doing?
Getting better all the time, I'm told.
It really is a miracle.
Certainly is.
I want you to call off your dogs.
I'm sure I don't know what you mean.
Gretchen...
I may have spent three centuries frozen in time,
but I didn't wake up stupid.
End this now.
Easy to say, harder to do.
Things like this have a way of taking on lives of their own.
Well, in the meantime, we let an entire city become a smoking ruin.
You know, here's your choice...
Cancel the revenge fund
or spend quality time in my brig.
It's too late.
You see, that's the trouble with people like you.
Always thinking you're above the mess you made
and the people that you left in that mess.
Golden Harvest is no longer my concern.
Once the election is...
No, no, no.
I don't think you heard me.
You aren't going to make it to the election.
Hello, Sid.
Oh, well, Captain Hunt.
I was expecting Beka, but no, it's you.
well, I guess I must be moving up the ladder.
You know, the attempt on your life
seems to be working out pretty well for you,
I mean, all things considered.
Well, I wouldn't know. I haven't been keeping up on current events.
Well, then, here's a summary.
While you make a speedy recovery,
your rivals are going down one by one,
thanks to your little revenge fund.
Pretty soon, you won't have any rivals left.
You'll end up second triumvir by default.
That's not a bad day's work for a guy in a coma.
I guess I should have been shot in the head years ago.
That's funny, because that's what Beka says.
Oh, well, Beka says a lot of things.
Sid,
you tried to kill her.
I thought she was trying to blackmail me.
I was wrong.
Mind you, I was surprised I was wrong,
but nonetheless, I was wrong.
It happens in business.
And the commonwealth, I suppose that's just business, too.
In the new commonwealth, they're going to need men like me
just as much as they need you.
Now, I'm no saint,
but it'll be easy to be a saint in paradise.
You lost me at the "Commonwealth needs men like you."
I have double-Crossed, blackmailed, back stabbed, and lied gloriously
to create this paradise,
however, I've also created a mess in the process,
and that's where you come in.
I'm going to need you on clean-Up.
I don't come in anywhere,
and the mess that you've made, well, I'm sorry Sid,
but you're the one who's going to have to clean it up.
You were good to me, Sid.
Something's not right.
Sid's vital signs just flatlined.
Gretchen is with him.
Seal the deck.
Get Trance and Tyr down there and get me out of here.
Oh, thank god you're here. One minute...
I don't want to hear it.
Trance.
Stabilized for now.
Put her in the brig.
You do not have any authority over me, Captain.
As a matter of fact, I do.
I know what you're thinking.
I kill the boss, then use his revenge fund
to start an assassination campaign against his rivals,
and in the end, the last one standing is me.
Well, that's not how it is at all.
Tyr.
What did Sid do to her to justify mass murder?
My guess is he treated her like the daughter he never had.
She was just doing what he taught her to do.
She saw an opening and took it.
None of this was personal.
So the assassination attempt on Sid,
she didn't plan it?
Didn't have a thing to do with it.
She just tried to close the deal.
if she didn't, someone else would.
So someone else is the killer?
And whoever it is is still out there.
I am completely out of patience and time.
I'm convinced
taking him to Sinti for a coronation
is a big mistake.
Coronation? The man hasn't even been elected yet.
The universe has a sick sense of humor, Rommie.
I mean,
is this what I've invested my blood in?
Rebuilding the commonwealth
so I can hand the reins over to someone like Sid?
I'd rather just throw him to the Magog.
You could probably get away with that.
If only that were true.
Well, Dylan, it seems the solution to your problem is pretty simple.
Really?
Do your job.
Thank you.
You're welcome.
By the way, Trance has reported that Sid's condition is improving.
Hmm...
I want a complete information blackout
on his status.
We'll be safer from the real assassin that way.
Okay, and you may also wish to know
that Sid has reasserted his consciousness
in my V. R. Matrix.
He is awake.
Good.
I want to talk to him.
He's already asked to speak to someone else.
Oh.
Rocket.
I told you not to call me that.
Yes, well,
hopefully, there'll be other opportunities
for you to tell me that.
You sound scared, Sid.
Really? Well, so do you.
Look, can we dispense with these pleasantries?
I have said hello,
you have invited me to go to hell, and can we just get down to business?
So this is about business?
I have had a breakthrough, a memory.
You saw who did it?
Close.
Andromeda, play file "Alpha Profit,"
Full resolution.
I'm telling you, your niece is a liability waiting to happen.
All the spin doctors in the Universe
are no match for one determined spoiler.
Beka's not a spoiler.
She's an angry kid who needs to blame somebody
for her father's troubles
and I'm elected, besides, I'm family.
Does the phrase, "unreliable narrator" mean anything to you?
Does the phrase, "incurable cynic"
mean anything to you?
Listen, if she blows this...
She's not going to blow it!
Now go and get yourself packed. We're leaving in an hour.
Very good.
Good evening, Mr. Profit.
You have one communication waiting.
Shall I play it for you?
Caller information, please.
Caylor Ragatz.
Ragatz,
your main rival.
Way too easy,
and besides, we ran a check of your communication system.
Your inbox was empty.
It was auto deleted.
I delete all his messages.
He never has anything nice to say to me.
Why are you telling me all of this?
Why not tell Dylan?
Rocket, I am trying to show concern for you,
and please don't take this wrong,
affection.
You don't want me to go.
Caylor Ragatz is a dangerous man.
Do you understand that?
He will kill you
Just because you're important to me.
Your concern just breaks my heart.
Better mine than yours.
Sid, save the crocodile tears for someone who gives a damn.
Sid wasn't exaggerating.
Ragatz isn't exactly the president
of the Golden Harvest glee club.
We may be walking into an ambush.
That's why I always assume I'm walking into an ambush.
It prevents unpleasant surprises.
Either way,
Golden Harvest is an armed camp these days.
Getting into Ragatz's headquarters will not be easy.
I'm gonna look on the bright side.
There's a bright side?
Oh, yeah. Getting in is going to be a lot easier than getting out.
I told you people I wanted...
Quiet.
I would think very carefully about where to put my hands
if I were you.
Now place your gun on the desk.
My security...
Oh, your security's having a very bad night.
You're on your own and you're coming with us.
With you?
You mean you're not here to kill me
For the revenge fund?
Nope.
But this is about profit?
Got it in one.
Get out of my office.
You know what?
I think I could use that money after all,
because I could do a hell of a lot
with 15 million guilders.
Dylan, no.
Head wounds are so messy. Shoot him in the chest.
Okay. Okay, okay, okay.
If you want to arrest somebody, start with profit.
The hit was a fake.
Profit ordered it
on himself.
Oh, so Sid shot himself in the head
Just to start a war.
Wouldn't hurt his election chances, either.
I want evidence,
documentation.
What, you don't believe me?
No.
I want to nail Sid to the wall.
You're coming with us.
Tyr, get ready for a hot evac.
Beka, Dylan, what's happening?
Beka, only one way out. Come on.
Get them!
Back off, we let you live.
Should have backed off.
Amateurs.
It's never easy.
No.
He's guilty as sin.
We have all the reason we need to shoot Sid out an air lock and do the universe a favor.
Based on no hard evidence,
just the claim of a dead man
who gave us a confession under extreme duress.
You know I'm right. You can feel it in your gut.
Commonwealth we've built is worth anything,
we have to trust it to do what's right.
We have to have faith in somebody other than us.
And if that faith is misplaced?
Well, then, we have bigger problems Than your uncle Sid.
What should I do, Dad?
What should I do?
It's funny.
You and Sid built this ship together,
and looking around,
I can see little touches of both of you everywhere.
You designed the bar,
Sid installed the weapons locker...
And now being here,
it's like having a little angel
and a little devil sitting on each shoulder.
Give me a sign, dad.
What would you do?
Where's Sid?
He woke up.
He needed to stretch his legs so he went for a walk.
He'll be back.
Dylan, you have to know that I'm trying to do the right thing here.
I need to finish things with Sid.
Dylan, the Maru is leaving hangar 16.
Damnit.
Beka, wait. He can't steal your ship.
He knows the codes.
Then he can steal your ship.
I want the truth,
and if I don't like what I hear,
you're going to know it fast.
You didn't take my advice About Ragatz, now, did you?
You went to see him and nearly got yourself killed.
I'm fine, but before he was killed...
He said that the assassination was a fake
And you believed him.
Of course.
Well, that's smart, because it's true.
You started a war to win an election.
Look, I know what you think of me.
I know you think of me as being a monster,
but in my world, I'm the good guy.
I'm the white knight.
The white knight?
You strapped me down.
You poured flash in my eyes.
You tried to kill me, Sid.
Look, I'm not going to insult you by offering an excuse.
I mean, in the grand scheme of things,
my personal history is positively banal.
Banal?
Tell that to my father.
Tell my father that making him a criminal and an addict was banal.
I'd love for you to tell him that,
but you can't because he's dead.
I didn't make your father a criminal, he did.
I didn't make him an addict, he did.
I didn't take away everything he owned,
he gave it away,
and none of that is banal, it's sad.
It's deeply sad,
because I know one little girl who deserved better.
You cut him off, Sid.
You cut him off when he needed you the most.
But I didn't cut you off, Rocket.
You have this ship because I kept the debtors off your back.
It was your home.
You needed it.
It was my gift to you because you're family.
In that case...
You can keep it.
Andromeda ascendant, this is the Eureka Maru.
Mayday, mayday.
We've got incoming bogeys
and I don't think they're after Sid's autograph.
They'll be at least 20 minutes. We're on our own.
You know, Rocket, I'm not worried.
You're the best pilot there is,
and those troglodytes, they don't have a chance.
Except the one thing.
They don't want to blow up the Maru,
They want to board her.
Know how to use this?
Sure.
It's like riding a bicycle.
Looking for me?
You idiots.
Don't you know you can't collect the fund unless I'm dead?
TheMaruis dead in space and under siege.
Calculate time to intercept.
We'll be within weapons range in just under three minutes.
That's a lot of time to die.
Or to win.
Nice shot, Beks.
Oh, man, that hurt.
I'm too old for this.
We are within weapons range. What have we got?
One fighter-Transport clamped to the Maru's hull, Another flying cap.
Target the escort ship and destroy it.
Tyr, get a lancer pod ready.
We're going over there.
Rocket, stay down.
You know, it's funny, you may be the one who gets the revenge fund.
You saved my life.
Yeah?
Well, I owed you one.
Oh, gee, look, it's the cavalry.
Is he all right?
He's going to be fine.
I can't believe it.
Sid lost.
Well, I made sure that the electors knew everything that they needed to know.
Huh? I put surveillance equipment
On the Maru, recorder Sid's every word.
You wha... We'll talk about that later.
It's funny how a little truth can change your mind about someone.
You know, all in all, i'm not that disappointed.
I have survived two attempts on my life,
my enemies are dead,
and I'm not enslaved to a political office.
I am in a better position than when we started.
We both are.
I think a man needs to follow his destiny.
Yours is this ship,
and mine is business,
and business...
Is good.
Rocket?
Don't...
Make it quick.
I hope you're going to give me a chance
to show that I'm not the man you think I am.
What you said on the Maru about my dad,
is that true?
I wish it weren't, more than anything.
Yeah...
I guess I feel the same way.
Your father wasn't a perfect man,
but he loved you...
And so do I.
Well, how's that for the truth?
Truth's a bitch.
I used to think I could feel him here,
my father.
I used to think that maybe
his ghost lived in these walls...
He was watching over me,
protecting me,
but it's not true.
My father is gone...
And no amount of wishing from a little girl with a broken heart
make that untrue.
Maybe you're right.
Maybe there is no ghost
Living in the walls of this ship.
Your father isn't gone.
His ghost is still very much with you.
That ghost lives here...
And he always will, as long as you accept him for the man he was...
And forgive him for being as flawed as the rest of us.
Your father isn't gone.
He's still here.