Captain Hardaker was the captain of the starship Titanic from the planet Sto.
Hardaker was bribed by Max Capricorn into magnetising the Titanic's hull and deactivating the shields, which attracted three asteroids that struck the ship. Hardaker had little to lose, as he suffered from a terminal illness and had merely six months to live, and Capricorn had promised that his family would receive a great deal of money.
When Midshipman Alonso Frame tried to reactivate the shields, Hardaker held him at gunpoint, lamenting that the had been promised a crew of old men who had had their time, not boys. After two warnings, Hardaker shot Frame as he tried to reach the shield controls. Hardaker perished in the asteroid strike. (TV: Voyage of the Damned)