- Pilot, as she limps in to save Power from imminent death.
Freedom One is the voice of resistance in the East Coast, broadcasting clandestine messages encouraging resistance to Dread. During a broadcast,Power and the team receive a coded message from the persona known only by her on-air name to meet her at a specified location.
It looks like Dread has been listening to the clandestine broadcasts as well and his troops are in the process of trying to capture/kill Freedom One when Power and his team arrive. The team easily defeats the troopers and meet the mysterious Freedom One face to face. She is a beautiful blonde haired woman, vivacious and forward whose real name is Christine Larrabee. Without ado, she informs Power that she has organised a meeting for the top five leaders of the resistance. She wants Power and his team to provide the transportation, knowing that he has a effective teleportation facility. Christine adds that the leaders will be willing to attend the meeting if Power agrees to help since he is not only a leading figure of the resistance, but will be able to ensure safe passage for the leaders. Power is skeptical initially but is sold on the idea by the persuasive Christine. The team members are dispatched to pick up the various leaders, with Power transporting Freedom One personally.
Larrabee gives him the coordinates for the secret meeting place, an abandoned Dread base. She leaves Power and enters a separate room where we observe her conferring with the holographic image of Dread. Christine, is a Dread Overunit, a double agent masquerading as a member of the resistance. Dread informs her that Elzer, one of the leaders, knows her personally and would recognise her as a traitor - he must be prevented from attending the meeting. Christine informs Dread that Elzer is being transported by Pilot. Dread sees the opportunity to kill two birds with one stone; he still remembers 'Youth Leader Chase' and her betrayal of the Dread Youth. To protect Christine's cover, Dread dispatches Blastarr to deal with Pilot and Elzer while Christine broadcasts false coordinates to Pilot.
Pilot lands the Skybike in a run down alleyway - her suspicions are aroused; she notes it is a curious place for a meeting. Just as she is about to radio back to Power, Blastarr shows up. Elzer and Pilot, even with her Powersuit, are outgunned by Blastarr who having cornered the two, brings down a brick wall on them, burying the two in rubble.
Meanwhile, at the real location, all the leaders have arrived except Elzer and Pilot. Power is concerned - but Christine assures him that Pilot has merely been delayed. On the pretext of watching out for Pilot, she leaves the room once again. Once outside, Christine tries to send a message on a miniature transmitter but is caught by Power, who had surreptitiously followed her out in suspicion.
Unfortunately, Christine is ready for him and pulls a blaster on Power, who is without his Power Suit. As Christine prepares to dispatch Power, he is rescued by Pilot, who shoots the blaster out of Christine's hands in the nick of time.
Having realised it is a set up, Power orders the evacuation of the leaders. However, Blastarr has arrived with troopers and Power single handedly defeats the troopers to give the leaders time to escape before being rescued by Hawk in the Skybike. Meeting up with the leaders, Elzer tells Power that the broadcasts must continue and takes over as the new voice of resistance - Freedom Two.
Comment:
An enjoyable story - and well written. Nice subtle referances to Pilot's background and the underlying Pilot-Power relationship gets a bit of a boost here; as Power is clearly concerned when Pilot no-shows. The use of the radio as a voice of resistance is nicely in sync with the World War II setting of the show - the Allied forces also used radio to keep up hope in German occupied areas and to keep the citizens informed of the progress of the war.
Christine Larrabee is a character that is very quickly developed and I always think there's a slight underlying tension between Larrabee and Power - a very brief attraction. Power gives in almost too easily to Freedom One's request - perhaps because he finds it hard to say no to a woman? For that matter a attractive one? [In Gemini and Counting, Pilot finds it equally easy to persuade Power] If there is an attraction between Power and Larrabee, is it because she reminds him of Pilot?
But what's sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander, and there seems to be an underlying chemistry between Elzer, the handsome resistance leader and Pilot. [It was slightly reminiscent of Casablanca - just briefly] Elzer seems intermittenly attracted and in awe of Pilot. Perhaps if the episode was an hour long rather than half an hour, something might have developed?
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©Copyright Bernice Low