Lost in Space: Galahad

by G. L. Payne
(based on the television series "Lost in Space" by Irwin Allen)

Premise: Set in the same time-frame as the original "Lost in Space", this concept concerns the
adventures of the crew of the Jupiter Series colonization ship, "Galahad". Originally intended as
the follow-up launch to the Robinson Expedition in the weeks following the highly publicized
launch of "America's First Family in Space", the Galahad expedition is rush-launched within 72
hours of the loss of the Jupiter II. After the trouble-plagued Gemini 12 program and the
destruction of the experimental Jupiter I with all hands on board (later demonstrated to be the
result of sabotage), Alpha Control was well aware that security of the organization was
thoroughly compromised. It had been a vain hope that the high level of attention and public
scrutiny surrounding the launch of the Robinson Expedition would insulate it against further
sabotage. Following the disaster and undoubtedly facing Congressional Inquiries, hearings,
possible budget cuts and, perhaps even the elimination of the Alpha Centauri Colonization
Program, officials at Alpha Control decided to rename the Jupiter III flight and inaugurate it as a
classified expedition (resulting in the ship being re-christened "Galahad") as soon as the vehicle
could be made launch-ready and the crew assembled. The desire in this effort was two-fold; first
to continue the program before government machinations might cause interruption and, second,
by launching the craft weeks before the scheduled lift-off and without any publicity, it was hoped
the saboteurs could be off-guard and the craft safely away before hostile interests had any chance
to regroup, reorganize and engage in and operations which might harm the effort. The other
main concession was, in view of the role played by the Robinson Expedition's B-9
Environmental Control Robot in the loss of the ship, the Galahad's unit was disassembled and
placed aboard the Galahad in crates.

Characters:
Professor Roy Jackson "Jack" Lockhart: 39 Astrobotanist and Exobiologist. Commander of
the Galahad Expedition, husband of Ellen Lockhart and father of two children, Anthony
Lockhart and Angela Lockhart. A thoughtful but somewhat nervous man. He was comfortable
with the expedition as planned as a colonist for Alpha Prime, but when things go awry, he
privately often feels he's in over his head.
Dr. Ellen Lockhart: 37 Exometeorologist and Doctor of Planetary Body Physics. Wife of Roy
Jackson "Jack" Lockhart and mother of two children, Anthony Lockhart and Angela Lockhart.
She has a rather cold personality and is a much more strict disciplinarian toward the children
than her husband.

Anthony Fremont Lockhart: 14 Son of Jack and Ellen Lockhart. Shy, introverted and
somewhat small and slightly built for his age, his aptitude testing shows him with more potential
than he usually demonstrates. Often self-conscious, he lacks confidence and is something of a
loner. Insists on being called "Anthony". Sister Angela calls him "Tony" for spite. Sometimes,
in moments of closeness, his family members call him "Ant".
Angela Kristen Lockhart: 11 Daughter of Jack and Ellen Lockhart. She is the polar opposite
of her brother--adventurous, a tom-boy, frequently smart-mouthed without being precocious.
She is aggressively bright and her over-confidence tends to make her occasionally
argumentative. She insists on calling Cypher--the Lockhart's B-9 Robot--by the name "Stupid".
She "proves" her point in one demonstration by asking it, "which is better to eat, rocks or
strawberry ice-cream?" Cypher begins to respond that rocks have no nutritional value and she
interrupts, saying, "no, which TASTES better?" When Cypher 's response is, "That does not
compute", she rolls her eyes and says, "see? It's not even smart enough to know you're supposed
to eat ice-cream instead of rocks. STUPID!"
Dr. John Harris, MD: 53 Medical Doctor. Widower, his wife and two children were killed in
an auto accident 12 years earlier. He was a colleague of Dr. Zachary Smith at Alpha Control
Medical, a fact that casts some suspicion on him, though he personally did not consider Smith a
"friend" and often states he was the sort of person whose company you endure. Medical officer
for the expedition and was supposed to be Chief Medical Officer for Alpha Colony. Immensely
intelligent. Because he is still grieving for the loss of his own family, Harris would like to see
the Lockhart's as a surrogate. Somehow the fit just isn't right and he ends up being closest to
Cypher, who he privately sees as his only intellectual equal on the journey.
Capt. Dawn Goddard: 29 United States Space Corp. Pilot of the Galahad. She's a straight-up
hard-core military officer. She was, for a time, engaged in a fairly serious romantic relationship
with Major Don West of the Robinson Expedition. She has mild contempt for Jack Lockhart and
sees him lacking as Commander of the Expedition. She feels he is a "space farmer" and, after
certain events play out, she decides he is either untrustworthy or weak-willed. Anthony rapidly
develops an unrequited crush on her and is subtly and inadvertently influenced by her opinions
regarding his father.
Lt. Mark Ballard: 34 United States Space Corp. Pilot. Dispatched by Alpha Control after the
launch of Galahad to intercept the craft because of fears of sabotage. A man of exceptional
skills, his performance has frequently been compromised due to hyperemotional responses.
Because of this, Ballard was never intended for Deep Space service and was not planned to be
part of crew or expedition to Alpha Centauri. He was considered unsuitable for long-term flight
and was selected to intercept Galahad based on availability and the urgent need for a pilot--any
pilot--capable of performing the mission. Because of certain events occurring, his relationship
with Jack Lockhart is extremely strained.

Cypher: The Lockhart Expedition's B-9 Environmental Control Robot. Disassembled and parts
crated at the time of launch as a result of the damage caused by the same model robot on the
Robinson Expedition. Unlike Will, his counterpart on the Robinson voyage, Anthony Lockhart
is afraid of the robot while his sister, Angela, considers it "Stupid" (the name she uses for it
instead of "Cypher") and a noisy, annoying toy. At least in these early stages, Cypher does not
demonstrate a fraction of the personality of the Robinson Robot and is a rather cold and
intimidating presence--much more "Gort" than "Robby".
Plot Synopsis:
Six weeks after the successful and uneventful rush-launch of the Galahad, the craft is
approximately 16 light-hours from Earth and rapidly increasing velocity in order to reach the
Alpha Centauri system in 5.5 years of flight. On-board, the Lockhart family, Dr. John Harris and
Pilot, Captain Dawn Goddard, are in a state of suspended animation in freezing tubes. The
expedition's B-9 Environmental Control Robot is disassembled and its components crated. All
seems well. It is not.
Alpha Control's in-house security as well as US Law Enforcement and Governmental Agencies
have identified Dr. Zachary Smith as the architect of the sabotage which resulted in the loss of
the Jupiter II, the Robinson Family and Major Don West. What is unknown is whether Smith
was accidentally trapped aboard the Jupiter II at launch or if he intended to stow away, in effect
staging a suicide mission. Troubling intelligence indicates a number of "Aolis Umbra" agents
may have penetrated the inner ranks of Alpha Control and, even though the Galahad is safely
away and nearing the edge of Earth's solar system, the ship and crew may yet be in peril.
Counter espionage measures have determined that the security of the expedition has been
compromised and, though the saboteurs were, in fact, caught off-guard by the premature lift-off
off the vessel, they were still able to lay the groundwork for the destruction of the ship. Amid a
great deal of governmental red-tape, hearings and inquiries following the loss of the Jupiter II
expedition and the hasty launch of Galahad, the Alpha Colonization program is in disarray and
put on indefinite hold. However, extremely compelling evidence demonstrates the Galahad is in
immediate danger. Suspicion is focused on Dr. John Harris, a colleague of Zachary Smith at
Alpha Medical. It remains unknown how he could possibly sabotage or otherwise damage the
vessel as he remains, like the rest of the crew, in a state of suspended animation. Insistent chatter
on spy-networks, however, as well as reports from undercover operatives within Aolis Umbra
repeatedly peg Harris as the agent of destruction on-board and claim time is running short to
prevent the loss of the ship. So seriously are these reports taken that Alpha Control considers
remotely terminating Harris' life-functions by shutting down life-support on his freezing tube.
Enter Lt. Mark Ballard, who volunteers to pilot a specially rigged one-man craft (code-named
"Zorro") in pursuit of the Galahad, where the plan is that he will board the ship, take custody of
Harris and place him into suspended animation in the freezing chamber of the Zorro. Goddard
will assume Harris' place in the freezing tube of the Galahad for the duration of the journey to

Alpha Prime, from where he and Harris (under arrest) will then return to Earth on the first flight
back from the Alpha system. The intention and expectation is that Harris is to remain in
suspended animation until he arrives back on Earth, a time frame of approximately 12 years.
Because the Galahad has been accelerating since lift-off and is approaching light-speed, Ballard's
ship is a high-performance vehicle which has been modified to reach fantastic speeds in order to
allow it to overtake the Galahad, but the strain of which in doing so will render the craft
damaged beyond repair. The chase will take several weeks before Ballad can catch the ship and,
should he fail to do so in time, there will be no way of returning him to Earth and he may remain
decades on the outskirts of the solar system in suspended animation before he is either rescued or
the power fails and he dies in his sleep in the freezing unit. Alpha Control considers this best of
a number of bad options and Ballard sets off in pursuit of the Galahad.
He awakens from his freezing chamber as the Zorro docks with the Galahad. Boarding the ship,
he recovers a laser pistol from the Galahad arsenal and releases Harris from his freezing tube.
Harris is completely confounded by Ballard's appearance and gets no answers from the man as to
why he is there or what his intentions are. Ballard grows increasingly nervous and shows signs
of cracking under some kind of strain he is experiencing. Harris, unsatisfied with Ballard's
responses, decides to radio Alpha Control for instructions even though he knows he is looking at
minimum 32 hour turn-around time before any transmissions can arrive back to him from Earth.
Before he can make the transmission he is stunned to find a huge cache of incoming
transmissions from Alpha Control which name him as a suspected saboteur on the voyage.
Ballard apologizes to him and raises the laser pistol, his intention obviously clear to murder the
man in cold blood.
Ballard breaks down, however--unable to pull the trigger. He lapses into an almost hysterical
state, muttering repeatedly, "I've killed them. I've killed them". Unable to get any more
answers from Ballard and no longer content to wait a day and a half for instructions from Alpha
Control, Harris decides to release the Lockharts and Pilot Dawn Goddard from their freezing
tubes in order to determine the next course of action.
Jack Lockhart orders Goddard to take Ballard into custody and then requests she check the ship
top to bottom for any evidence of tampering or sabotage. He radios Alpha Control for guidance
but faces the same delay as Harris did due to distance. Meanwhile, Ballard has begun to recover
some from his emotional breakdown. He confesses under questioning that he is there on a
mission of sabotage, the victim of blackmail by agents of Aolis Umbra. They have his family, he
states, his wife and children and will kill them if the Galahad is not destroyed or lost like the
Jupiter expedition before a rapidly approaching deadline. Double-agents inside Alpha Control
planted evidence to implicate Dr. Harris in order to set the stage for Ballard getting access to the
Galahad. The saboteurs, he says, were caught off guard by the Galahad's early launch and, while
there was another plan in place, the final details were not yet established sufficiently for it to
have taken full effect. Ballard was supposed to murder Harris (making it impossible for Harris
to deny Ballard's explanations to the Lockharts later). Then, in order to spare his own life as

well as that of the rest of the crew, he was throw the Galahad off course, plunging it on a path
into deep uncharted space, thus preventing the ship and crew from reaching Alpha Prime while
later still being able to blame the sabotage on the doctor. Because of the nuclear engines on the
Jupiter series spacecraft, the vessel might travel light-years and centuries before the crew
emerged from stasis. While Ballard would never see his family again, their lives would be
spared if he performed these actions. At the crucial moment, however, Ballard lost his nerve and
was unable to pull the trigger and kill Harris in cold blood.
Goddard reports to Jack Lockhart there is no apparent damage to the Galahad. All systems are
operational and the ship is on course and schedule, though compensations will have to soon be
programmed for fuel/weight ratio changes due to the presence of Ballard and his ship. She also
reports reviewing transmissions from Alpha Control implicating Harris and finds them quite
damning. Alpha Control is adamant he is a saboteur and she requests to take him into custody as
well until it can be proven otherwise. Showing signs of stress and fatigue, Lockhart is uncertain
how to proceed. It seems unlikely to him that if Ballard and Harris had the same objectives, that
any of the rest of them would have ever left the freezing tubes. He questions Ballard further,
demanding to know his knowledge of other plots or agents threatening the ship with harm.
Ballard admits knowing another plot--the primary plot--was in place and required action by
someone on-board the ship. Who it was or whether it was to be a member of the crew or a stow
away saboteur like Smith is unknown to him. The only other knowledge he has is that the
"action phrase" ordering the saboteur to perform the deed is the phrase, "Alpha Control to
Omega Control." At this point in the discussion, Jack Lockhart is suddenly taken ill and nearly
passes out. Goddard reluctantly allows Harris to check him out but finding nothing obviously
wrong with him, the doctor ascribes the episode to lack of experience with space-flight
conditions and lingering effects from the suspended animation process. With Lockhart ill,
Goddard assumes full command of the Galahad and orders Ballard and Harris under "housearrest" and to be confined to quarters below deck until instructions can be provided by Alpha
Control. Ballard and Harris are cooperative and go below to a shared stateroom while Goddard
and Ellen Lockhart begin assembly of the B-9 robot because Goddard has a feeling they might
need its "muscle" before things settle down.
In their shared cabin, Ballard and Harris talk. Harris is uncomfortable being confined with a man
who, just a short time earlier, had intended to kill him. All Ballard can consider is his family.
He's not exactly certain what the time is but he knows that the deadline for completion of his
mission has almost certainly already passed. He tells Harris that he is no longer a threat to
anyone as the hostile agency has no leverage over him without the threat against his wife and
children. At least the Galahad ship and crew are safe, he says, looking for comfort there. They
didn't end up suffering the same horrible fate as the Robinson Family. Hearing the activity on
the lower deck outside the cabin, Harris steps out and suggests it is dangerous and mistake that
Goddard and Ellen Lockhart are assembling the robot. Daughter Angela is also helping but
Anthony wants nothing to do with the machine. Harris argues that the role played by the

Robinson's robot in the loss of that ship is without question. Dawn Goddard says that as Harris
is a suspected saboteur, he is not in a position to give advice. Harris counters that the claims
against him are ridiculous and that none of them would be there to discuss it if he and Ballard
had been working together. In fact, Harris suggest, it might be considered suspicious that
Goddard is in such a hurry to assemble the robot, considering the what happened aboard the
Jupiter II when their B-9 unit was activated. And there is good evidence to suspect at least one
other saboteur was intended to bring harm to the expedition. Outraged, Goddard orders him
back into the cabin under threat of a laser pistol.
Alone on the Flight Deck, awaiting any incoming communications from Alpha Control, Jack
Lockhart's illness seems worse than ever. He appears feverish and nearly delirious. Over and
over, he hears in his head the phrase "Alpha Control to Omega Control" , repeating like a loop.
He seems like a man struggling to wake from a nightmare. He then suddenly slips into a trancelike state.
Below deck, Anthony is agitated by the arguing between Goddard, Ellen and Harris. He slips
away, climbing the ladder to the flight deck where he finds his father entering the Galahad
through the airlock, having been doing something in Ballard's one-man craft. Jack Lockhart
seems not to recognize him, even when Anthony calls to him. Anthony is disturbed by his
father's lack of response and becomes openly frightened when his father steps out of the armory
with a laser pistol in hand. Moving like a machine, Jack fires the laser at the Galahad's main
controls and series of explosions results. The deck pitches wildly as Jack fires at the astrogator
and alarms are triggered as the vessel begins to careen wildly out of control. Anthony tackles
his father, trying to wrestle the laser pistol away from him but Jack knocks him aside shouting,
"Alpha Control to Omega Control." He is clearly under an external influence.
As the ship tumbles, Goddard, Ballard, Harris and the others arrive from below deck. Just as the
Galahad appears to stabilize, there is a tremendous burst of acceleration, sending everyone
flying. Goddard is able to knock Jack Lockhart down and get the pistol from him while Ballard
tries to take control of the ship at the astrogator. Ballard is puzzled because, while the Galahad
continues to pitch and yaw violently, he is unable to restore control. Goddard turns Jack
Lockhart over to Harris, who restrains him as he struggles weakly. She checks the damaged
main controls and reports that the Galahad's engines are not causing the acceleration. At the
same time, she and Ballard realize it is his solo ship's engines that are causing the rampant
acceleration. She reports also the scanners show those engines are set to overload and will
detonate in seconds with the force of a tremendous nuclear blast, certain to destroy the ship and
kill all hands. Ballard starts for the ship to power it down but Goddard says there is no time.
They are seconds from detonation. She remotely jettisons the Zorro from docking and orders
Ballard to engage the Galahad's hyperdrive system. Ballard starts to argue that they are off
course and Goddard activates the system herself from main control, saying the need only a few
seconds at faster than light speed to avoid the blast. At that instant, the Zorro explodes with the
force of a small nova.

The Galahad clears the detonation but is now travelling at maximum speed without a set course.
When Goddard attempts to disengage the hyperdrive however, the damaged main controls won't
accept the shut down command. The ship continues to accelerate, the engines now in overdrive
and the vehicle completely off course and wildly out of control. Ballard attempts to shut down
the hyperdrive from the astrogator but the damaged mains override and won't accept the
command. The engines, Goddard reports, are headed for an overload that would result in an
explosion making the destruction of Ballard's one-man ship look like a fire-fly next to a
searchlight. Angela suggests shutting down the fusion core that powers the engines. It would
prevent the detonation of the engines and stop the acceleration. But it wouldn't slow the ship-they need engine control for a braking maneuver to exit the hyperdrive. It would take several
minutes at least to reactivate the fusion core, during which time the Galahad would be travelling
at unimaginable speeds without any established course. By the time the core is back online and
they are able to use the engines to decelerate, the Galahad could be almost anywhere in the
galaxy. Like the Robinsons, they too will be lost in space.
Coming out of his fugue, Jack Lockhart agrees, giving the command to shut down the fusion
core. It really is the only hope. The engines are seconds from destruction. Seeing no
alternative, Goddard does as told. She immediately begins the start up process for the fusion
core, telling Ballard to do something with the controls so they can steer the ship once the engines
are back online.
Hours later, Harris has finished examining Jack Lockhart, confirming that he was apparently the
victim of a Manchurian Candidate style brainwashing. The cue for action was the phrase "Alpha
Control to Omega Control". He was not, in the doctor's opinion, responsible for his actions nor
does it seem likely Ballard had any intention or knowledge of what would happen when the
phrase was used.. Now that the saboteur's objective of the ship being lost has been obtained,
there is likely no more threat from Lockhart. Anthony is still frightened of his father while
Goddard and Ballard have come to something of a truce, a small degree of trust forged between
them during the hyperdrive crisis. They are having no luck at all attempting to learn their
position and Goddard wonders if they are still even in the Milky Way galaxy. The Galahad spent
at least 20 minutes travelling at an unknown velocity many multiples of the speed of light--they
could be almost anywhere in the universe. She also argues that Jack Lockhart should be taken
into custody but Harris points out that any one of them might have been brainwashed--might
STILL be so and just waiting for the appropriate trigger word. Anyway, the goal has been
achieved--the Galahad with all hands on board is Lost in Space and the expedition to Alpha
Centauri compromised. Ellen checks to make certain her husband is physically well but then
retreats from him completely, shutting him out and wanting nothing more to do with him at that
time. Ballard is also cold to Lockhart, now feeling like his own family has doubtless been
sacrificed in vain as the loss of the ship occurred well past the deadline the blackmailers had
given him. Ballard spared Lockhart and his family at the expense of his own, only for the ship to
become lost anyway and at Lockhart's own hands. After a survey of the ship. the conclusion is

that the command and control systems of the Galahad have been severely damaged and, while
the engines and drive are intact, they have no idea at all where in the universe they have been
thrown. As Ballard and Goddard begin to attempt repairs on the Galahad's systems and to
determine their position, Ellen and Harris complete assembly of the B-9 robot in the hope that it
might be able to use its own computers to assist in salvaging the mission. Jack, feeling useless,
broods with guilt regarding the damage he has done to his family and the mission, worrying that
if it happened once, could it happen again?