His father is Tabor Saroyan, the governor of Vistula. I suppose I should notify him personally.
Just how serious is his condition?
It's his nerves controlling his voluntary muscles and motor coordination. They're deteriorating, just like all the others.
Others?
Yes. The Computer Council has ordered that a definitive statement to the general public not be made just yet. But so far here in New Chicago, 25,000 case have been reported.
When did all this start?
Three days ago, while you and Buck were gone. And another thing: this disease, or whatever it is, has cropped up in other cities on Earth, but here in New Chicago it's much, much worse... You see, what the Computer Council is trying to keep secret is its effect on our defense squadrons, for they've been hardest hit of all.
- Capt. William "Buck" Rogers and Col. Wilma Deering perform a training flight run in a Thunderfighter, callsign Earth Recon 1, returning to Earth via Stargate 4. Rogers feels disoriented after exiting the space warp, and Deering notes that it is a normal reaction to those who've experienced the space warping for the first time.
- After exiting, they come across a pirate attack on a Thunderfighter referenced as Recon 3. Its pilot, a young man named Regis Saroyan, is scared and sick. Over the distress channel, Rogers hears Recon 3's call for assistance.
- Recon 3's leader, Maj. Duke Danton, admonishes Saroyan for lagging behind and instructs him to engage in evasive maneuvers.
- From Earth Recon 1, Rogers shares his belief that Recon 3 won't make it, and Deering agrees with the assessment. Between Rogers' piloting skills and Deering's shooting, they are able to fend off the attack, saving Saroyan at Danton's chagrin. Rogers surveys Recon 3's damage, noting that he sustained a hit on his starboard side.
- After Danton and Rogers get into a verbal tit-for-tat, Danton challenges Rogers to repeat his statements regarding "Funk & Wagnalls" face-to-face in New Chicago's flight bay. Rogers agrees while Deering, recognizing the voice, smirks silently.
- The pilots make their landings, and Danton grills Saroyan, who is clearly clammy and feverish. Rogers is quick to note this, and catches Saroyan before he face-plants into the hangar floor.
- After Saroyan is taken away to the Directorate clinic, Danton identifies Rogers as being the one who interfered with a Directorate training mission. Before they get further into it, Deering arrives.
