The Last Enemy

Episode Quote
"What the hell have we got ourselves into?"

Plot
When the Moon falls into an orbit that places it directly between two planets on opposing sides of their sun, a huge spacecraft from the planet Betha takes up a position on the Moon and begins to launch an offensive on the other planet, Delta. The Alphans soon realise that the two planets are at war, and that their relative positions make it impossible for them to fire directly at each other, but now the Moon has provided the Bethans with the ideal gun platform. Missiles from Delta apparently destroy the Bethan craft, but an escape vehicle makes its way to Alpha and the occupant, the Bethan commander Dione, seeks asylum on the base. When a Deltan battlecruiser takes up position on the Moon to launch an offensive on Betha, Koenig desperately attempts to negotiate a cease-fire, but the cunning Dione has other plans...

Hook
Alpha approaches a system with two planets whose orbits keep them on opposite side of their sun. As the first of the planets comes into range, it is determined that it is inhabited. Alpha tries to open communications with it's people to no avail. The Bethans are igoring the signals.

High above Betha is the massive battle cruiser Satazius, which leaves orbit on a course for Alpha. The Bethans monitor Alpha as they prepare for battle.

Act One
The moonbase's defensive screens are deactivated, all communication systems are rendered inoperable. And every Eagle is prevented from launching. The Satazius lands in near proximity to the base as Koenig and his command staff watch it's actions closely. The Satazius raises it's missile launchers, aims, and fires... right over Alpha! It's target is the planet Delta on the opposite side of the sun. After realizing that Alpha was not the target of the alien craft, Koenig races to the window to track the missiles with his monoculars. He watches them impact on Delta. Victor realizes that the Moon is being used as a mobile gun platform in a war between these two worlds!

Act Two
Delta retaliates with a volley of missiles trying to take out the Bethan gun ship. Since they were not able to get a precise location, the missiles are scattered, and coming in frighteningly close to Alpha, until one finally strikes the Satazius.

Finally, the attack is over. The Eagles are now able to launch, and Koenig has Alan check out the Satazius. He reports that it appears completely knocked out and doubts that there could be any survivers, that is, until an escape pod launches and heads for Alpha.

Koenig decides that the only way to learn what is going on around them is to let the surviver of the gunship in. The pod is lowered into one of the underground hangars and it's pilot is greeted at the air lock by the Commander and a few of his security force. The Bethan Captain removes her helmet and demands sanctuary. Koenig refuses on the grounds that she is the one who endangered Alpha, by putting them in the middle of the two planets' war. She tells him that Delta will send a gunship to the Moon check out the source of the missiles, and will find Alpha. If Koenig provides Dione with sanctuary, Betha will help to protect the base. If he sends her back to her crippled ship, Betha will destroy Alpha. If they want to survive they will need her help.

Act Three
The Deltan gunship arrives and starts firing missiles at Betha. Betha, naturally, returns fire until the Deltan gunship is destroyed... almost taking Alpha along with it. Koenig has to do something to insure the safety of Alpha. He tells Dione that she can stay if she will help him organize a cease-fire. She agrees to help, but since nothing like it had ever been attempted before, she does not know if it will work. Dione arranges a three-way communications link between Alpha and the two planets. A tentative agreement is reached, but if anything goes wrong, Alpha will pay the price. Koenig just hopes that it will give them enough time to get out of range of the two planets before it breaks down. Dione is escorted to Sandra's quarters, and placed under guard.

Act Four
She teleports to her escape pod and takes off for the Satazius, which was not so badly damaged as we were lead to believe. Dione rejoins her crew and resumes her attack on the, now, unsuspecting Delta. Koenig tries to tell Talos (the leader of that planet), that he was fooled by Dione's ruse, and did not break his word given in the cease-fire agreement. Talos says that if Koenig gives him the exact coordinates of the Satazius he will not destroy Alpha. Dione, who monitored the conversation, tells Koenig that if he does give Talos her location she will destroy Alpha.

Koenig tells her that he wants to come out to her ship to talk. She accuses him of trying to desert his command. He grabs Alan's stun gun, and tells the command staff that he is going out to the ship, and not to try to stop him. Victor cuts communications to the Satazius, and Koenig tells them that he has a plan and he needed to make it look convincing. Victor restores communication to the Satazius and Koenig tells Dione he is coming out to her ship. She tells him she will not let him aboard, but he tells her that since he took her in, she owed it to him.

Koenig stays in contact with Dione as the moonbuggy approaches her vessel. She tells him to head back, as there are missiles on their way from Delta, and he could be killed out on the lunar surface, but she still will not take him in. He tells her that if she will stop firing at Delta he will turn back. She refuses. He tells her that she only has herself to blame. She suspects a trap, and orders the Moonbuggy destroyed, but it is too late. It has passed beneath the range of her ships weapons. The helmet falls from the spacesuit filled with explosives, just before it collides with the Satazius, destroying it for good.

Epilogue
Back on Alpha, John wonders what it might have been like to live on Betha. Helena asks him if he feels regret about not going to the planet. He says that he was only curious. She tells him that she would rather wander through space than live in a constant state of war.

Filming Schedule
Friday, November 8th - Tuesday, November 19th, 1974 and Tuesday, February 25th - Thursday, february 27th, 1975

Original Titles

 * "The Second Sex"
 * "The Other Enemy"