So I was considering why the aliens may not have been able to receive the telepathic messages from the Emperor.

Then I was wondering why Bart Torgal was convinced the telepathic messages he was getting were only hallucinations caused by his progressing illness.

Then I stumbled over some data entry about the missing Degassi crewmembers, saying that Bart Torgal had mental implants - with other words he was some form of cyborg.

The Warpers the aliens left behind as quarantine enforcers are cyborgs as well - so the alien researchers themselves may have been using similar mind enhancing cyber implants as Bart Torgal had.

And maybe the implants messed with the telepathic signals from the Emperor.

Our hero - an engineering assistant - likely had none of such things.