Laacon Merlander

"Calm, perfectly calm!" Laacon Merlander radiated his thoughts with all the intensity of which he was capable. But he felt with painful clarity that his empathic influence on the members of the Driver Lodge was diminishing more and more.
-- Booklet 080, Sky Mountain

Laacon Merlander is the Lodge Master of the Driver Lodge aboard the tramp ship STORTIS, appearing across Booklets 080--082 of Die Terranauten. A veteran navigator with decades of experience in Space II, Merlander serves as the saga's most detailed portrayal of the day-to-day operational burdens facing a Lodge Master: managing a dysfunctional crew of misfits, containing a life-threatening PSI crisis mid-transit, recruiting untrained replacements, training them to function as Drivers, defending his ship with a PSI Shield, and ultimately facing destruction at the hands of the very dimension he spent his career navigating.

Merlander's story is one of quiet, unglamorous competence in the face of cascading disaster. Unlike the saga's legendary Lodge Masters -- Asen-Ger, Hadersen Wells, or Jana -- Merlander commands no fleet, leads no political movement, and carries no cosmic destiny. He is a working Lodge Master aboard a shabby independent freighter, doing his best to hold together a lodge of broken, flawed individuals and keep his ship in one piece. That he ultimately fails -- that the STORTIS is torn apart by amorphous phantoms after Edison Tontor's betrayal -- does not diminish the tenacity and professionalism he demonstrates throughout the arc.

Biography

Background

Laacon Merlander is described as a Lodge Master "with decades of experience" in Space II navigation. His primary PSI ability is empathy -- the capacity to connect, balance, and coordinate the PSI currents of his lodge members, which is essential for maintaining the psychic chain that guides a spacecraft through the hostile alternate dimension. Like most Lodge Masters, his raw PSI potential is modest; his strength lies not in telepathy, telekinesis, or precognition, but in the unglamorous art of holding a lodge together.

Before the events of Booklets 080--082, Merlander had accumulated enough experience to know that he had been assigned one of the worst lodges in the spacelanes. He reflects bitterly on the composition of his crew:

"What a wretched bunch! Haapala, the psycho-epileptic; Ain Lavalle, the Gray Driver who had already deserted before the Driver persecution and had only escaped the general PSI lobotomy thanks to dubious connections; Zeus Alpha, who had been turned into a Super-Driver on an unknown experimental planet in a manner that could barely still be called human; Oona Karf, the man-killing nymphomaniac; and as the only halfway 'normal' one, Siri Lankard, who had gone underground during the great Driver persecution."

Despite these liabilities, the lodge's overall PSI potential is "extraordinarily high" -- not a single member has a PSI factor below 120 -- and it is Merlander's coordinating empathy alone that has kept them functional through multiple transits. He acknowledges privately that the STORTIS's safe passage thus far has been "something of a miracle."

Merlander is physically described as lean, and his manner combines warmth toward those he is responsible for with a quiet authority that he exercises through persuasion rather than command. He is not a telepath and cannot read thoughts, but his years of experience allow him to sense emotional states and anticipate crises before they fully develop.

The Haapala Crisis (Booklet 080)

The STORTIS is mid-transit through Space II, bound for Parisienne, when Kirju Haapala -- a Driver from the planet Tamerlan who suffers from psycho-epilepsy -- begins to lose control of his PSI faculties. Merlander is the first to perceive the danger. He detects barely discernible pinkish wavy lines crossing the familiar gray of Space II on the holographic display -- deviations an inexperienced observer would miss entirely, but which his trained eye reads as signs that the harmony between the ship and Space II is breaking down.

As Haapala's attack escalates, the sick Driver's uncontrolled PSI sense creates materializations -- not mere suggestions or hallucinations, but physically real constructs willed into existence by raw PSI energy within Space II. A younger version of Haapala appears, first re-enacting a violent episode from his past and then physically strangling Oona Karf.

Merlander initially misjudges the threat, assuming the figure is merely a suggestion that poses no real danger. When he realizes it is a materialization -- that the young Haapala is real enough to kill -- he acts without hesitation:

1. He leaps from his shell seat and draws his Strahler (a weapon capable of both laser and paralysis radiation).
2. He fires a laser beam at the materialization's head, but the PSI figure does not fall.
3. He fires again, fanning the beam back and forth, and the materialization finally collapses.
4. When Haapala begins generating a second materialization -- a formless lump of protoplasm growing rapidly -- Merlander switches the Strahler to paralysis mode and stuns Haapala directly, ending the crisis.

The stunning of Haapala breaks the lodge's psychic chain entirely. The remaining Drivers -- Ain Lavalle, Siri Lankard, and Zeus Alpha -- lose their trance state, and the STORTIS falls out of controlled navigation through Space II. The ship veers off course and eventually emerges near the Heinlein system, only 8.9 light-years from the Walhalla nova -- a proximity that Merlander finds "suspicious," since interactions through Space II cannot be ruled out.

The Banshee Encounter

Before the STORTIS can exit Space II, the red-tinged chaos visible on the ship's screen intensifies. Dark, pitch-black forms move within it -- shapes resembling "gigantic polyps" and "primeval beasts." Merlander recognizes them as the proverbial Monsters of Space II and begins considering whether they might be PSI-beings similar to Haapala's materializations, capable of penetrating the ship's hull.

His speculation is immediately confirmed when a luminous sphere the size of a fist phases through the dome's wall and enters Zeus Alpha's head. Merlander identifies the phenomenon as a Banshee -- the restless soul of someone who died in Space II. He explains the concept to his bewildered lodge members:

"Banshees are the restless souls of people who at some point met their death in Space II. A Driver once told me that, one who was confronted with this phenomenon on the Terranaut planet Rorqual."

Zeus manages to repel the Banshee through sheer mental resistance, and the entity exits his body. Merlander's knowledge of Banshees -- acquired secondhand from a Driver who had served on Rorqual -- proves critical in keeping the lodge from panicking during this encounter.

What Merlander does not yet realize is that the Banshee intrusion is connected to a far more dangerous development: the disembodied Id of Edison Tontor, the dead former GeneralManag of the Consolidated Tontor Corporation, has taken possession of the weakened Haapala during his psycho-epileptic collapse. Tontor's consciousness, having survived decades adrift in Space II after his death in the Walhalla System, has seized the incapacitated Driver's body as a vehicle for its return to the living world.

Decision to Land on Heinlein IV

Once the STORTIS emerges from Space II near the Heinlein system, Merlander reads the ship's catalog and identifies Heinlein IV as a former colonial world, abandoned during some unspecified crisis and declared off-limits. Despite this prohibition, he proposes landing to find a doctor or replacement Drivers for the incapacitated Haapala. His reasoning is practical: the lodge is understaffed (five Drivers instead of the standard seven), and with Haapala now a liability rather than an asset, they cannot safely navigate another transition through Space II.

Captain Artuur Morgh initially resists, but Merlander's professional judgment carries the day. As First Officer Jeng-Jeng grudgingly acknowledges: "If the Lodge Master is of the opinion that he cannot drag a sick man along with his already understaffed Driver lodge without suffering shipwreck, we have to accept that."

The Ringo Mission and Recruitment (Booklet 081)

Merlander accompanies the landing party aboard the Ringo, the STORTIS's auxiliary craft, along with Siri Lankard, Ain Lavalle, and the possessed Haapala. On the surface of Heinlein IV, the crew discovers the Sky Watchers, a fanatical cult, preparing to sacrifice Jelina von Riglan on a pyre.

When Ain Lavalle detects latent Driver abilities in the young woman on the pyre, Merlander immediately grasps the tactical significance:

"The girl on the pyre possesses Driver abilities?" he asked, his ears pricking up. [...] He clapped his hands together. "That's it! Do you understand, First Officer?"

The recognition of Jelina's PSI potential transforms the rescue from an act of charity into a strategic imperative. The STORTIS needs Drivers, and here are two young PSI-gifted individuals -- Thor von Riglan and Jelina von Riglan -- who could fill the gap left by Haapala. After Thor rescues Jelina with the Ringo crew's assistance, the clansmen are brought aboard the STORTIS.

Merlander himself "felt too old for commando operations" and remained aboard the Ringo during the ground action, but he is central to the persuasion effort that follows.

Training Thor and Jelina

Back aboard the STORTIS, Merlander leads the effort to persuade Thor and Jelina to join the lodge and prepares them for their first Space II transition. His approach combines warmth, honesty, and professional authority:

• He introduces himself to Thor and Jelina personally, alongside Captain Artuur Morgh and Siri Lankard, sitting down with them and smiling warmly -- though Thor notices "his eyes were not smiling along with it."
• He promises Thor and Jelina they will return home: "You will come home again. You will most certainly come home again."
• When Siri Lankard telepathically monitors Thor's thoughts during the meeting (a standard precaution with unknown individuals), Merlander instructs him to stop once he judges the newcomers trustworthy: "I have gained the impression that Thor and Jelina are being honest with us. Therefore you can calmly stop monitoring them. Our honor code applies to them as of now as well."
• He explains Driver mechanics in plain terms to the ship's officers: "Driver powers are not specialized. It plays absolutely no role in a transition to Space II whether the lodge is composed entirely of telepaths or telekinetics. Only the PSI potential as such counts."

During the actual transition, Merlander administers the standard PSI-activation pellets to the newcomers, seats them in the lodge circle, and guides them through the process:

"Think of nothing, Thor. Only look always at the mistletoe, and concentrate with all your mental strength upon it!"

When tension flares between the experienced Drivers -- Oona Karf berates Thor for his inexperience, calling him a derogatory name -- Merlander intervenes sharply: "Silence! By Yggdrasil, must it always come to such degrading quarrels?"

During the transition itself, Thor describes a remarkable phenomenon: the lodge's consciousnesses merge into a unity, but Merlander stands apart from that unity. He is not part of the psychic fusion -- his role is to be the anchor outside it, the calming presence that holds the merged consciousness together and prevents it from breaking apart. Thor describes it thus:

"Laacon Merlander was not part of this unity. But we felt his nearness, his calm, which held us together, which ensured that we did not break apart."

After the successful transition, Merlander embraces Jelina and claps Thor on the shoulder: "You both did magnificently! A well-practiced lodge could not have carried out this transition any better."

The PSI Shield and Escape to Space II (Booklet 082)

As the STORTIS approaches Parisienne, Parisienne space surveillance detects the ship and gives chase. Thor and Jelina learn for the first time that the STORTIS is smuggling mistletoe blossoms -- a revelation that shakes their trust in the crew. Merlander confirms the truth "quietly" when Thor confronts him: "Yes, it's true."

Despite this betrayal of trust, Merlander rallies the lodge for a defensive action. The Drivers -- including the newly recruited Thor and Jelina, and even the ailing Haapala -- erect a PSI Shield to protect the STORTIS from laser fire. Merlander explains the procedure to the newcomers and coordinates the effort, maintaining empathic contact as the shield drains the Drivers' reserves.

When Merlander senses the shield is failing, he withdraws momentarily to consult with Captain Morgh about surrendering. The lodge immediately feels his absence: "We all sensed how Merlander withdrew. The absence of his empathic influence, which had until now ensured calm and equilibrium, made itself felt immediately and unpleasantly."

The STORTIS ultimately escapes into Space II, but this proves to be its final transition.

Tontor's Betrayal and Death

Inside Space II, Kirju Haapala reveals his true identity as Edison Tontor. Armed with a beamer, he holds the lodge at gunpoint, forcing Merlander and the other Drivers back into their shell seats. Merlander attempts to reason with him:

"Be reasonable, Kirju. No one wants to harm you!"

But Tontor dismisses him: "Enough of this silly chatter, Merlander! You don't need to act as though I'm an idiot."

Tontor paralyzes Merlander and the entire lodge with a stun beam, then sabotages the ship's computer, takes Captain Morgh and the smuggled mistletoes, and abandons the STORTIS aboard one of the ship's Ringos with Thor and Jelina (whom he has manipulated into trusting him by posing as "Ulan terHara," an agent of the Driver Assistance).

Merlander is the first to regain consciousness after the paralysis wears off. Despite a pounding headache and severe dizziness, he fights through the weakness, retrieves a hand laser from the unconscious Siri Lankard, and begins a methodical assessment of the situation:

• He confirms that all lodge members in the dome are alive.
• He searches the ship for Haapala, weapon in hand, prepared to shoot.
• He discovers the sabotaged computer: communicator disabled, radar inoperable, and the panorama screen fixed to a single image showing the STORTIS hurtling toward a planet with engine nozzles that cannot be regulated or shut down.
• He awakens the crew and coordinates the emergency response.

When all other options are exhausted, Merlander proposes one final desperate measure: another transition into Space II. If the lodge can shift the ship into the alternate dimension, they may escape the collision course. First Officer Jeng-Jeng agrees: "Merlander is right. It cannot go any more wrong than it already has."

Merlander leads his remaining lodge members -- now reduced to Oona Karf, Ain Lavalle, Siri Lankard, and Zeus Alpha -- up the spiral staircase to the Driver Dome for the last time. They take their places, join hands, and concentrate on the mistletoe blossom.

The transition succeeds -- but the STORTIS enters Space II weakened, with an understaffed lodge and depleted reserves. The amorphous phantoms that Thor and Jelina foresaw in their precognitive vision during their first transition now attack in force. The lodge's PSI unit shatters.

Merlander's final recorded thought:

"Thor's vision has thus truly been fulfilled," thought Laacon Merlander. Then dissolution seized him as well and all the others in the ship. They lost their bodies and became entities wandering lost through the void.

The narrative suggests that the crew of the STORTIS became new Banshees -- disembodied souls trapped in Space II -- a darkly fitting fate for a Lodge Master who had only recently explained the nature of Banshees to his own crew.

Lodge Operations: A Detailed Portrait

Merlander's story provides the most comprehensive depiction of daily Lodge Master operations in the entire saga. Through his perspective, the reader learns:

The Lodge Master as Conductor

The Lodge Master does not participate in the psychic merger that guides the ship. Instead, he sits outside the unity, serving as an empathic anchor. His role is analogous to an orchestra conductor: he does not play an instrument but ensures that the ensemble performs as a coordinated whole. This is why Merlander's withdrawal during the PSI Shield sequence causes immediate destabilization -- without the conductor, the orchestra falls apart.

PSI Harmonization and Discipline

Merlander must manage the interpersonal tensions within his lodge, which are considerable. Oona Karf and Ain Lavalle despise each other (Oona calls Ain a "Gray Slut"; Ain calls Oona a "damned beast"). Kirju Haapala's psycho-epilepsy makes him unpredictable and dangerous. Zeus Alpha's artificially enhanced PSI powers come packaged with the "mind of a five-year-old child." Only Siri Lankard is considered "halfway normal." Merlander's empathic skill is the glue that holds these volatile personalities in psychic coherence during transit.

Crisis Management in Space II

When a crisis strikes mid-transit -- as with Haapala's psycho-epileptic attack -- the Lodge Master must make split-second decisions with life-or-death stakes. Merlander's initial misjudgment (assuming the materialization is merely a suggestion) demonstrates that even experienced Lodge Masters can err. His rapid correction -- escalating from observation to laser fire to paralysis radiation within moments -- demonstrates the decisiveness the role demands.

Recruitment and Training

Merlander's induction of Thor and Jelina shows the process by which new Drivers are integrated into an existing lodge: PSI-activation drugs are administered, the newcomers are seated in the psychic circle, they are instructed to focus on the mistletoe blossom, and the Lodge Master's empathic presence guides them through their first merger. The speed with which Merlander accomplishes this -- under field conditions, with untrained adolescents from a pre-spaceflight culture -- speaks to both his skill and his desperation.

The Lodge Master's Isolation

Perhaps the most poignant aspect of Merlander's role is his isolation. During transit, the Drivers merge into a shared consciousness, experiencing profound unity with one another. The Lodge Master, by contrast, remains outside this merger. After Thor and Jelina's first transition, they experience a terrifying precognitive vision of the STORTIS's destruction -- but Merlander knows nothing of it until Siri Lankard tells him afterward. The Lodge Master bears the heaviest responsibility but is excluded from the deepest bond his crew shares.

Relationships

Key Actions

Themes

Competence Without Glory

Merlander represents the saga's acknowledgment that civilization depends on unglamorous, competent professionals -- people who will never appear in legends but without whom nothing works. He is not a Summacum, not a Terranaut hero, not a political leader. He is a working Lodge Master on a tramp ship, and his story dignifies that role.

Leadership Under Duress

The Lodge Master article notes that "the saga repeatedly depicts Lodge Masters making life-or-death decisions under extreme pressure" and cites Merlander as the primary example. His decision to shoot a member of his own lodge -- to use lethal force against Haapala's materialization and then paralyze the Driver himself -- illustrates the terrible choices the rank demands.

The Expendable Professional

Unlike Asen-Ger, Hadersen Wells, or Jana, Merlander does not survive his story arc. He dies not in a blaze of heroic sacrifice but in the line of duty, attempting one more transition with an understaffed, exhausted lodge on a sabotaged ship. His death is reported almost in passing -- the narrative has already shifted to Thor, Jelina, and Tontor's schemes. The saga moves on. The Lodge Master does not.

Appearances

See Also

• Lodge Master -- The rank Merlander holds; his story is cited as "the most detailed depiction of daily Lodge Master operations"
• STORTIS -- The tramp ship Merlander serves aboard
• Driver Lodge -- The psychic collective Merlander leads
• Drivers -- The PSI-gifted caste to which he belongs
• Space II -- The alternate dimension he navigates
• Mistletoe Blossoms -- The organic amplifiers essential for his work, and the contraband his ship smuggles
• Kirju Haapala -- The psycho-epileptic Driver whose crisis triggers the arc
• Edison Tontor -- The dead soul that possesses Haapala and betrays the STORTIS
• Thor von Riglan -- The young precognitive Merlander recruits and mentors
• Jelina von Riglan -- Thor's Clan Sister, also recruited into the lodge
• Oona Karf -- Driver whose life Merlander saves during the materialization attack
• Ain Lavalle -- Former Gray Driver in Merlander's lodge
• Siri Lankard -- Merlander's most reliable lodge member
• Zeus Alpha -- Super-Driver with diminished mental capacity, member of the lodge
• Artuur Morgh -- Captain of the STORTIS
• Jeng-Jeng -- First Officer of the STORTIS (secretly Max von Valdec)
• Banshee -- The phenomenon Merlander identifies and explains to his crew
• Monsters of Space II -- The entities that ultimately destroy the STORTIS and kill Merlander
• PSI Shield -- The defensive field Merlander's lodge erects against Parisienne surveillance
• Strahler -- The weapon Merlander uses to subdue Haapala's materialization
• Heinlein IV -- The forbidden planet where Merlander recruits new Drivers
• Parisienne -- The STORTIS's intended destination
• Mistel Syndicate -- The criminal organization behind the mistletoe smuggling
• Terranauts -- The movement Thor and Jelina join after the STORTIS arc
• Ringo -- The landing craft Merlander uses to reach Heinlein IV

Laacon Merlander appears in 3 booklets of Die Terranauten (080--082). A Lodge Master defined not by destiny or political power but by professional duty, he held together a lodge of misfits on a doomed ship, trained two young strangers to navigate a dimension that destroys the unprepared, and died attempting one final transition through the space he had spent his life mastering.