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Alien Worlds was a syndicated radio show created by radio personality Lee Hansen. It aired 26 half-hour episodes between 1979 and 1980, becoming well known for its realistic sound effects, high production values and documentary style of dialog. J. Michael Straczynski was one of the writers.

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Transcript
00:00And now, Peter Paul Mounds, Almond Joy, and Cadbury Chocolate Bars presents Alien Worlds.
00:13Slowly rotating at the edge of deep space, 1,000 kilometers beyond the atmosphere of 21st century Earth,
00:21is the Arthur C. Clarke Astronomical Observatory, Starlab.
00:26Here, Starlab Research Director Maura Cassidy, along with the scientists and technicians of the International Space Authority,
00:34watch over the countless stars and planets that fill the silent distances beyond the giant space station.
00:43This week, the men and women of Starlab encounter the terrifying dissonance of Death Song on Alien Worlds.
00:56After spending five days at the Sealab 7 underwater research station in the South Pacific,
01:18ISA Commissioner White arrives at Starlab aboard Earth Shuttle 1.
01:25Hello, Maura. Jerry.
01:31Hi, Commissioner.
01:32Hello, Commissioner.
01:33How are John and Buddy doing with their Aquanaut training?
01:35They'll be in Sealab 7 until Friday.
01:38Then they move to the Baltic for ten days in the Soviet Aqualab complex at Chilenka.
01:43They like being underwater so much, you'll probably have to keep them in your aquarium when they get back.
01:48Figures.
01:50Starlab! Starlab! Can you hear me?
01:54This is Starlab. Please identify yourself.
01:57We are Zena and Whitney, two Optimum physicians from the Planet Aragon.
02:04Please give us sanctuary.
02:06What's your situation?
02:08We are being pursued by a hostile Renegade spacecraft which has already damaged our ship.
02:16If you don't give us sanctuary, the Renegade will destroy us.
02:21Get a visual scan on them, Jerry.
02:23Right.
02:24There it is.
02:27My God. It's enormous.
02:30Starlab. This is Whitney again.
02:33Did you understand our last transmission?
02:38Be careful, Jerry. That ship doesn't look damaged to me.
02:41Uh, Whitney, we have your spacecraft on visual as a large corrugated black disc with red, yellow and green markings.
02:51And we see no sign of damage.
02:54There it is. Lower left-hand corner of the screen.
03:06It's so small. No wonder we didn't see it.
03:10Magnify it, Jerry.
03:12Jeez, look at that. The hull's full of cracks all the way down to the tail fins.
03:18Opening emergency docking bay, Jerry.
03:20Right.
03:24Withy, guide your ship toward the docking bay that's surrounded with flashing red lights.
03:29And we'll take you aboard.
03:32Thank you, Starlab. Thank you.
03:34Starlab, you will soon regret having given them sanctuary.
03:46Who are you? Identify yourself.
03:49I am Helan.
03:53We're the unsaners, because you are...
03:56Is it true that you intend to kill them?
04:00Of course it's true.
04:02But why? What have they done?
04:04It isn't a question of what they've done, Starlab.
04:09It's what they haven't done.
04:12Alien Worlds will continue.
04:31Alien Worlds continues.
04:35The routine of Starlab control is suddenly interrupted
04:39by an emergency transmission from an incoming alien starship.
04:44Aboard the ship, Withy and Xena,
04:47two Octavon physicians from the planet Aragon.
04:51We are being pursued by a hostile Renegade spacecraft,
04:55which has already damaged our ship.
04:58If you don't give us sanctuary, the Renegade will destroy us.
05:02As the bell-shaped Aragonian starship moves into visual scanner range,
05:09Maura, Jerry, and Commissioner White see another spacecraft.
05:14Huge, black, and disc-shaped.
05:17I am Helan.
05:20Withy and Xena's pursuer.
05:23Open a close proximity channel, Jerry.
05:26Go ahead, Commissioner.
05:29Keelan.
05:30This is Commissioner White of the International Space Authority.
05:34I represent the scientific and military forces in this solar system.
05:38Do you understand that?
05:40I understand.
05:43Any hostile action against this space station will be construed as an act of war against the Earth,
05:50and will be dealt with accordingly.
05:52Do you understand that?
05:54I understand.
05:57What's your planet of origin?
06:00Aragon.
06:02I see.
06:03Well, are you a legal officer of some kind?
06:06Have the two Octavon physicians committed a crime?
06:09To my way of thinking, they have.
06:15Dr. Cassidy, this is Simon down in the emergency docking bay.
06:19The alien ship is secure.
06:21All right, Simon, thank you.
06:24Commissioner, I think we've heard enough from Helan to know where he's at.
06:28Let's put him on a hold and see what the two physicians have to say about, uh,
06:33whatever this is about.
06:35Helan, stay on this frequency and I'll get back to you.
06:39I need some time to think about what you've said.
06:42Of course you do, Commissioner.
06:45And then you'll need time to conspire with Withy and Xena against me.
06:51And then there will be no more time, Commissioner.
06:56The last thing you'll hear is the sound of your own screaming.
07:01Surrender the two physicians within the hour, or I'll unleash a symphony of such terrible power
07:19that your star labs will shatter like delicate crystals.
07:30Dr. Cassidy?
07:32Simon again?
07:33The two aliens have come out of their ship.
07:35Bring them into my quarters right away, Simon.
07:38Let's go, Commissioner.
07:40I don't know, Maura.
07:47Except for Stygos and the trail, we've never had to deal with this kind of hostile alien power before.
07:53Dr. Cassidy?
07:54Hello, Simon.
07:55Where are the two aliens?
07:57Well, they're kind of shy.
07:59Have them come in, Simon, we won't bite.
08:02Withy?
08:03Xena?
08:04It's all right, you can go in.
08:06Oh, my gosh, they're elves.
08:11Little blue elves.
08:13It's obvious what a surprise we are, all because of the size we are.
08:18But just because you're tall and pink and we are short and blue,
08:23the fact is you are as strange to us as the two of us are to you.
08:27The two of us are to you.
08:31Two kilometers beyond Starlab, Keylon enters the audiogenic spectrum chamber of his slowly orbiting ship.
08:48He touches a bright red jewel near the entryway.
08:52The gleaming black metal floor slides open.
08:55Then something begins to rise up out of the opening.
09:00Something massive and angular and dark.
09:04A nightmare construct of polyphonic drone generators and ultrasonic inverters.
09:10Thick spiraling amplifier coils and blood red keyboards.
09:15Helon's death song synthesizer, the cathedral.
09:24My beautiful cathedral, my phantom self, my soul.
09:31Soon we will hear their voices dying amid the music of an unexpected destiny.
09:38Helon, it's time.
09:41Time?
09:42Time for what, Cataract?
09:44My infusion.
09:45It's time for my infusion.
09:47I just gave you a death song infusion, Cataract, a few moments ago, up in the communications chamber.
09:53No, you didn't, Helon.
09:55That wasn't my infusion.
09:56That was the premonition of Adagio you transmitted to Starlab.
10:01It was?
10:02Yes, of course it was.
10:04Forgive me, Cataract.
10:06Perhaps we should share an infusion.
10:09Memory distortion is one of the primal symptoms of death song withdrawal.
10:14Yes, of course, an infusion.
10:17Here, Cataract.
10:19Help me with the anthem injectors.
10:22With pleasure.
10:24The various aspects of the mind and body are tuned to specific vibrational frequencies, Mario.
10:39And as long as these frequencies are maintained, the mind and body remain in perfect harmony.
10:45Illness occurs when certain vibrational frequencies shift out of phase.
10:56A lot happens.
10:58We use these octavons to re-harmonize the retrograde frequencies.
11:05This restores the mind and body to their proper balance.
11:11We don't treat the disease that has the body.
11:17We treat the body that has the disease.
11:26I wish Dr. Rossiter were back from Kronos.
11:29She'd love this.
11:31Zayna, you said that Helan was once an Octavon physician.
11:35What changed him?
11:36There was a thermal accident at one of our laboratory outposts.
11:42Helan was sent to betray the injured.
11:46His sky machine malfunctioned and crashed in an ice forest on the edge of Aragon's polar frontier.
11:56He succumbed to a lethal temperature and fell into a pre-death trance.
12:04Before the trance paralyzed him, he set the infusion level on his octavon at maximum.
12:14As a result of being subjected to maximum infusion for two days, the frequencies of Helan's mind and body became terribly distorted.
12:29When the rescue expedition reached him, he was in a state of total vibrational mutation.
12:39We attempted to re-harmonize him at the Octavon laboratory, but we were too late.
12:47He was completely addicted to his hyper-vibrational condition.
12:54One night, he forced his way into the Octavon vault and took all the two of the instruments.
13:04Then he went to one of our spacecraft installations, abducted a technician named Cataract, stole a deep space laboratory ship, and disappeared.
13:20Helan, when Wicky and Xena are dead and their Octavons are interfaced with the cathedral, where will we go?
13:38What will we do?
13:40We will wander from galaxy to galaxy, exploding the stars with Death Song.
13:48I see crescendos of light and sound will sweep to the far corners of the universe.
13:55Death Song.
13:56Bright comets will swirl and dance against the fiery corollas of eclipsing suns.
14:01Death Song.
14:02Planets will vanish in screaming disintegration.
14:07Death Song.
14:08Raging through the silence.
14:10Transforming into deafening articulations of infinite majesty.
14:16Death Song.
14:17Death Song.
14:19Death Song.
14:20Death Song.
14:21Death Song.
14:22Death Song.
14:23Death Song.
14:24Death Song.
14:25Death Song.
14:26Death Song.
14:27Death Song.
14:28Alien worlds continue.
14:30Alien worlds continues.
14:312 kilometers beyond Starlab, Helan's huge, black, ovaloid spacecraft continues its slowest
14:47This huge, black, ovaloid spacecraft continues its slow, concentric parking orbit.
14:54In the ship's audiogenic spectrum chamber, Helon sits before the blood-red multiple keyboards
15:02of the Deathsong Cathedral.
15:05Keterak, go into the communications chamber, contact Commission of White, and say this.
15:13My ship will orbit six more times.
15:16If at the beginning of the seventh orbit, Withy and Xena have not surrendered, Deathsong
15:22will take the lives of every multivibrational organism aboard Starlab.
15:28Yes, Helon.
15:37And because there have never been more than twelve octabons in existence at one time,
15:43there have never been more than twelve octabon physicians.
15:48Twelve physicians for an entire planet?
15:51Twelve are enough, Laura.
15:54Injuries are rare on Aragon, and illness is relatively non-existent.
16:02What was Aragon like before the octabons were created?
16:06We treated the diseases of the mind and body with narcotic chemicals.
16:11As a result, the people of Aragon were in a constant state of neurotic irresponsibility.
16:21Maura, are you there?
16:24What is it, Jerry?
16:25I have a transmission coming through from Helon's ship.
16:28We'll be right there.
16:29We'll be right there.
16:37We will be beginning on the seventh orbit.
16:39Withy and Xena have not surrendered.
16:41Deathsong will take the lives of every multivibrational organism aboard Starlab.
16:47Six orbits.
16:51How much time does that give us, Jerry?
16:54Less than eight minutes.
16:56Zayna, suppose you and Withy give Helon your octabons.
17:00What then?
17:02He will interface them with the tan he already has.
17:06And his cathedral will become a weapon of irresistible power.
17:10So here we are with a 250 megawatt solar reactor and no way to use it against Helon.
17:17No weapon system, no communications, no shielding generators.
17:21Maura, didn't you say Helon's death song burst had terminated Starlab's primary power matrix?
17:29No, our reactor wasn't affected at all.
17:33If we can interface our two octabons with your reactor, we can defeat him.
17:39Alright, let's get down to the reactor control room and get set up.
17:49How much time do we have, Jerry?
17:51One minute thirty seconds.
17:53Helon just started his fifth orbit.
17:56Withy, what effect will this have on Helon?
17:59He will die.
18:01Die? But you said you wanted to help him.
18:03Taking his life is the only way that we can recall him to life, Maura.
18:09Our octabons will terminate him and then infuse him with the frequencies of his earlier life.
18:17How will you know if you've been successful?
18:18His voice, Commissioner. You will hear him in his voice.
18:25Harmonize the octabons, Zena, and tune for maximum pulse inflection.
18:31How will he achieve?
18:34Engage the primary and ancillary sub-articulations.
18:42Multifonic articulations are in cadence.
18:48Crosslink reactor output sub-terminals, Jerry.
18:52Sub-terminals, Jerry.
18:53Sub-terminals are in phase.
18:57Maximum quantum injection now.
19:02Objection.
19:03No.
19:04Arrruinr...
19:05I would wander from galaxy into galaxy...
19:09Exploding the stars with death Definitely.
19:10Awww, The Awww, The Awww, The Awww.
19:11I would wander from galaxy exploding the stars with death.
19:39I say question, there is a light and sound to penetrate to the rock eyes of the earth's death song.
19:55The calmness will swirl and dance against the fiery coronas of eclipsing songs.
20:03The calmness will swirl and dance against the fiery coronas of eclipsing songs.
20:15The calmness will swirl and dance against the fiery coronas.
20:27The calmness will swirl and dance against the fiery coronas of eclipsing songs.
20:43We must call to you, Laura.
20:59Call the short-range vehicle, Hangar Cherry. Tell them to get a shuttle ready.
21:15Heal on. Heal on.
21:24Cataract, my friend, forgive me. Please forgive me.
21:30Withy, Xena. Cataract is dying.
21:40Attempt to him, Xena. Don't try to stand here. Lie still. Rest.
21:51Cataract will live with you, but we must re-harmonize him quickly.
21:58Is there anything we can do, Xena?
22:00Go to the shuttle and get our octavons.
22:04Come on, Maura. I'll give you a hand.
22:10My dear. Xena.
22:14Thank you for calling me from the darkness.
22:18We are your brothers, Eamon.
22:22We are your friends.
22:25We are the spectrum travelers.
22:35Enemies of darkness.
22:42Seeking ourselves in the many coenisms
22:48That lies between the twilight and the wind.
23:01We are the rainbow riders.
23:05Lost in light.
23:11Finding ourselves in the water prison spaces
23:18That hide between the strong clouds and the sun.
23:30We are chromatic dreamers asleep
23:36In the stars asleep in the future
23:43Losing ourselves in the mythical freedom
23:49That lies between the candles and the stars.
24:03Death song was based on a story by Ken Ross
24:23And written by Ron Thompson
24:25And starred Linda Gary, Roger Dressler and Corey Burton
24:30With special guest stars
24:32Larry Moss, Joe Baker, Michelle Goodman
24:35Lindsay V Jones and Tony Walters
24:38Music director, Tom Rounds
24:41With special music effects
24:43Composed and performed by Rick Kellis
24:46Associate producer and song lyrics by Ron Thompson
24:49Engineer, Stu Jacobs
24:52Assistant to the producer, Jim Cook
24:54Technical consultant, Peter Skye
24:57Alien Worlds
24:59Alien Worlds was created, produced and directed
25:01By Lee Hansen
25:03And is distributed by Watermonk Incorporated
25:06And so until next week
25:08This is Roger Dressler
25:10Inviting you to join us
25:11For our next adventure
25:13The Infinity Factor
25:15From the elsewhere and else when
25:18Of Alien Worlds
25:20Episode both
25:33The Infinity Factor

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