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AIRED ON
October 16, 1989
RUNTIME
45 minutes
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2024-09-11 10:11:16
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SUMMARY
Stardate: 43173.5. An away team inadvertently breaks the Prime Directive and reveal themselves to a primitive culture on Mintaka III, causing the inhabitants believe that Captain Picard is a God.
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REVIEWS
*The* Prime Directive episode!
Written by
kimmy on 2018-05-09
★
★
★
★
★
The perfect episode for the Prime Directive: what happens when it is broken inadvertently and the situation builds up to the point that the Enterprise has to reveal itself to a less advanced race. The episode does exactly what one would expect from a pitch like that: the primitive race mistaking the crew for gods (the hilarious "The Picard"!) and creating a religion, the crew debating how to contain the situation, the happy ending. It is the illustration of Arthur C. Clarke's law that a civilization with sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. The episode includes the memorable scene where Picard does his best to convince the Mintakans' leader that he is a mere mortal and that the Mintakans can too wield the power he has, if just enough time passes. The vaguely matriarchal alien civilization is represented by just a lightly populated small village in the Californian desert, much smaller in scope than the civilization-wide issue that is discussed, but that's probably all they could do with the budget they had. Although the episode is not exactly surprising, it is one of those definitive First Contact tales.
Alumni-spotting:
The religious zealot is Ray Wise, none other than the man who one year hence would be Leland Palmer in Twin Peaks!
The quote:
Picard: "Look at me. Feel the warmth of my hand, the rhythm of my pulse. I'm not a supreme being. I'm flesh and blood, like you."
Nuria: "Not like me."
Picard: "Like you! Different in appearance, yes, but we are both living beings. We are born, we grow, we live... and we die. In all the ways that matter, we are alike."
TRANSCRIPT
Captain's log, Stardate 43173.5. We are en route to Mintaka Three, where a three man Federation anthropological field team has been studying the inhabitants. Our mission is to resupply the outpost and repair their malfunctioning reactor.
[Bridge]
PICARD: Mister La Forge, report.
LAFORGE: We've finished replicating the parts they'll need, but what I don't understand is why a three man station would need a reactor capable of producing four point two gigawatts.
RIKER: Enough to power a small phaser bank, a subspace relay station, or
LAFORGE: A hologram generator. Oh, a duck blind. Right. They're anthropologists.
PICARD: Who are studying an extended family of Mintakans at close range from a camouflaged observation post.
TROI: According to Doctor Barron's preliminary reports, the Mintakans are proto-Vulcan humanoids at the Bronze Age level. Quite peaceful and highly rational.
PICARD: Which is not surprising, considering how closely their evolution parallels Vulcan.
WORF: Captain, incoming transmission from Mintaka Three.
PICARD: Thank you, Lieutenant. On screen.
(a dodgy image with lots of interference lines)
BARRON [on viewscreen]: Barron to Enterprise. Our temporary repairs have failed. The reactor is now inoperative.
PICARD: Do you have battery backup?
BARRON [on viewscreen]: Three hours at best.
DATA: Captain, if we increase to warp seven we can be there in twenty three minutes.
PICARD: Make it so. We're on our way.
(They see a big explosion on the screen. One man escapes through the now-exposed observation window on to the planet surface proper)
WORF: We've lost contact, sir.
PICARD: Increase to warp nine.
[Duck blind]
(Riker, Geordi, Data, Crusher and a medic beam in, Electricity is still zapping around the metalwork)
LAFORGE: The framework's still charged, so watch it.
[Path]
(Bronze age proto-vulcan apparently means slanted eyebrows, pointed ears and nineteenth century farm worker clothing)
LIKO: (a man) Why did we have to come so early?
OJI: (a young woman) When the sun reaches its zenith, I have to be ready to take the measurements.
LIKO: You'll be ready. You've read the sundial hundreds of times.
OJI: Yes, father, but never as the appointed record keeper.
(At the sun dial in front of the assembly hall - a lovely carved wooden specimen)
LIKO: You're taking your duties quite seriously. Your mother would have been proud of you.
OJI: What is that? Up there, father. What is it?
(A glint of light from the duck blind)
LIKO: I don't know.
[Duck blind]
(Crusher revives Barron) BARRON: Keep work. Palmer.
CRUSHER: It's all right. It's all right.
DATA: The hologram generator is now functioning, sir.
RIKER: All we need now is power.
LAFORGE: Almost there.
[Hillside]
(Liko and Oji have climbed up to investigate the flashes, and can see the duckblind quite clearly now)
LIKO: You wait here, Oji.
(Liko climbs right up to the window and looks inside)
[Duck blind]
CRUSHER: Enterprise, beam Martinez and his patient directly to Sickbay.
DATA: Commander.
(Liko touches the metal frame and gets a shock. He falls from the cliff face)
[Hillside]
RIKER: Doctor, be careful.
CRUSHER: I've got to get down there.
(Oji hides and watches as Crusher runs down to Liko, scans him then makes her decision)
CRUSHER: Crusher to Enterprise. Medical emergency. Two to beam directly to Sickbay.
OGAWA [OC]: Aye, Doctor.
(Oji sees the strange woman and her father vanish)
[Duck blind]
LAFORGE: That should do it.
(It does. Oji sees the window disappear and be replaced by the cliff face. Curious, she investigates)
[Sickbay]
CRUSHER: (to nurse) You increased the levels of tricordrazine? (re Barron) Let me see his chart, please.
(dialogue too faint to make out, and Picard enters)
PICARD: Doctor Crusher.
CRUSHER: Before you start quoting me the Prime Directive, he'd already seen us. The damage was done. It was either bring him aboard or let him die.
PICARD: Then why didn't you let him die?
CRUSHER: Because we were responsible for his injuries.
PICARD: I'm not sure that I concur with that reasoning, Doctor. But now that he's here, you must remove all memory of his encounter with the away team.
CRUSHER: By erasing short term recall?
PICARD: It has been accomplished before.
CRUSHER: I am familiar with Doctor Pulaski's technique. I can't guarantee it will be effective on Mintakan brain chemistry. Their lie-zone levels are much lower.
BARRON: Wait. No! No! We must evacuate.
CRUSHER: Doctor Barron, you're on the Enterprise. You're safe.
BARRON: The others?
PICARD: Doctor Warren is here. We're doing all we can.
(Liko wakes up and listens)
BARRON: And Palmer? Where is Palmer?
PICARD: Still on Mintaka Three.
BARRON: Picard, you have to find him.
PICARD: We will.
BARRON: He may be hurt.
PICARD: Rest assured we shall not leave until he is located.
BARRON: Thank you, Picard.
PICARD: Picard to bridge. Report.
WORF [OC]: Scans of the planet detect no humans, Captain.
PICARD: Very well. Put us into a close orbit.
WORF [OC]: Sir, a close orbit will increase sensor efficiency by only four percent.
PICARD: I want that four percent, Lieutenant.
WORF [OC]: Aye, sir.
PICARD: Picard out.
LIKO: Picard?
CRUSHER: Damn.
PICARD: Well, Doctor. Your next task is clear.
[Hillside]
(Liko is beamed down alone. He wakes up)
LIKO: Oji? Oji?
(She hears him)
OJI: Father?
LIKO: Here. Oji.
OJI: Father! I thought I'd never see you again. When you and the woman vanished, I was sure you were dead.
LIKO: I think I was, but I was brought back to life. Oji, I awoke in an incredible place and my wounds were gone. I had been healed.
OJI: How is that possible?
LIKO: Long ago, our people believed in beings with great powers. These beings made the rains come, told the sun when to rise, they caused all life to be born, to grow, to die.
OJI: But those are just tales, father. Old superstitions.
LIKO: But perhaps the beliefs of our ancestors are true. Nothing else can explain what's happened. Everything is changed now, Oji. We must tell the others.
[Observation lounge]
CRUSHER: Barron is stable, but Warren is still critical.
RIKER: Palmer is missing. A scan of the planet shows Mintakan life forms only, no humans. However
DATA: The area around the duck blind exhibits Karst topography. Sinkholes, underground rivers, and caverns. And the rock strata contain a high concentration of thallium compounds which may be obstructing our sensor beams.
PICARD: So if Palmer, in his delirium, fled into a cave, we may be unable to detect his life signs?
DATA: Correct, sir.
CRUSHER: Captain, if he is still alive, he needs medical attention. We must send an away team to locate him.
TROI: But our presence must not interfere with the cultural development of the Mintakans.
PICARD: Agreed. Further contamination must be prevented.
RIKER: I have a suggestion.
First officer's log, Stardate 43174.2. Counsellor Troi and I are beaming down to Mintaka Three to locate Doctor Palmer and to determine the extent of the cultural contamination. Doctor Crusher has temporarily altered our features and skin colour. She's also implanted subcutaneous communicators so that any transmissions we receive will be inaudible to the Mintakans.
[Plain]
RIKER: Riker to Enterprise. Do you hear me?
DATA [OC]: Perfectly, Commander. I will be monitoring you continuously.
TROI: Mintakan emotions are quite interesting. Like the Vulcans, they have highly ordered minds. A very sensible people. For example, Mintakan women precede their mates. It's a signal to other women.
RIKER: This man's taken, get your own?
TROI: Not precisely. More like, if you want his services, I'm the one you have to negotiate with.
RIKER: What kind of services?
TROI: All kinds.
RIKER: They are a sensible race.
[Assembly hall]
(Troi and Riker enter as Liko is telling his experience to a grey-haired man)
LIKO: I understand your skepticism. Had it not happened to me, I would find it difficult to accept as well.
OJI: But it did happen, just as we've said.
LIKO: Fento, you know the legends better than anyone. Do they not speak of beings like the kind I've seen?
OJI: Who could vanish like smoke?
FENTO: There are the stories of the Overseer who could appear and disappear at will.
LIKO: And couldn't this Overseer heal the dead?
FENTO: He had supreme power, or so our ancestors believed.
LIKO: I believe I have seen the Overseer. He is called the Picard.
RIKER: Uh oh.
TROI: His memory's intact.
RIKER: The procedure didn't work.
NURIA: (a woman) Liko, all this talk of supernatural beings. No one has believed that for countless generations. Just as we no longer believe the stars control our fates, or the spirits of the dead haunt the living.
LIKO: Nuria, I'm not saying all the old beliefs are true. But I did see the Picard, and I was restored back to life.
TROI: We are visitors. We've come to trade our cloth. May we speak?
NURIA: Please do. We welcome outsiders. I am Nuria.
TROI: I am Troi and this is Riker. You've had a very interesting dream.
LIKO: Dream? It was real!
OJI: My father and I both witnessed these beings.
TROI: If you are father and daughter, you may well have shared the same dream.
LIKO: That is not reasonable.
RIKER: Is that any less reasonable than being magically transformed to another place by the Picard?
HALI: Nuria!
(Two men carry in a human)
LIKO: It has to be Palmer! The one the Picard wished to find.
NURIA: Remarkable. You were speaking the truth.
LIKO: The Picard will be pleased.
(The villagers rush off and leave them)
RIKER: Riker to Picard.
PICARD [OC]: Go ahead, Number One.
RIKER: We have a problem.
[Sickbay]
PICARD: With the contamination?
RIKER [OC]: It's worse than we suspected.
[Assembly hall]
RIKER: The Mintakans are beginning to believe in a god
[Sickbay]
RIKER [OC]: And the one they've chosen is you.
BARRON: Picard, you must beam Palmer aboard immediately. Without medical attention
PICARD: It's not as simple as that. He is surrounded by Mintakans. If he dematerialises before their eyes, the impact
BARRON: It will slightly increase the cultural contamination which already exists. A small price for saving Palmer's life.
PICARD: Number One?
[Assembly hall]
PICARD [OC]: Is there any chance of your freeing Palmer and transporting up unseen?
RIKER: We can try.
PICARD [OC]: Try hard.
[Sickbay]
PICARD: Picard out.
BARRON: Picard, I must protest. You're endangering Palmer with this delay.
PICARD: I am aware of that. But each of us, including Doctor Palmer took an oath that we would uphold the Prime Directive, if necessary, with our lives.
[Assembly hall]
(A woman is tending Palmer's head injury)
HALI: Riga and I were hunting on the third ridge. We followed a hornbuck into a cave. The stranger was there, asleep.
NURIA: This Palmer is one of the Overseer's servants?
LIKO: Yes. The Picard has many servants. Isn't that true, Fento?
FENTO: According to legend. But if this Palmer is a servant of the Overseer, what was he doing in the cave?
OJI: Perhaps he ran away.
HALI: Or he failed the Picard somehow and was hiding from him.
LIKO: We should bind him in case he wakes and tries to escape.
RIKER: It's senseless for this stranger to be held captive. All this talk of the Overseer, it's old superstitions.
NURIA: I disagree. All the evidence indicates that the Overseer exists.
LIKO: And I heard the Picard say he wanted to find Palmer.
OJI: Then by keeping Palmer safe, we will please the Picard.
LIKO: And he'll grant us favours in return.
NURIA: Favours?
FENTO: It is said that the Overseer is all powerful. He can provide gentle winters, plentiful hunting, fertile crops, anything.
LIKO: He could even bring back those who have died.
NURIA: It's agreed. We will save Palmer for the Picard.
TROI: I've seen another one, like Palmer.
LIKO: Another servant of the Picard?
TROI: He's headed toward the caves.
NURIA: Fento, stay and bind Palmer.
(The active villagers leave, following Troi)
[Outside the hall]
MAN: Where?
TROI: Over there.
[Assembly hall]
RIKER: That knot won't hold. If I may?
FENTO: Please do.
RIKER: You need a knot that'll tighten under pressure. Let me show you.
[Path]
OJI: Father, the sun's reaching its zenith. If I don't go to measure
LIKO: Go.
[Assembly hall]
(Riker is gagging the bound Fento)
RIKER: Forgive me, friend, but the stranger must be set free.
[Outside the hall]
OJI: Riker?
RIKER: Riker to Enterprise. Lock on and prepare to beam us directly to Sickbay, but hang on for my signal.
DATA [OC]: Acknowledged, Commander.
OJI: Riker, stop!
[Path]
(The adults hear her calling)
NURIA: Oji?
OJI [OC]: It's Riker, he's taking Palmer!
NURIA: Hali. Yuri, don't let her escape.
(Riker rounds a rock outcrop out of line of Hali's bow, and hides)
RIKER: I'm clear. Energise!
[Sickbay]
RIKER: Data, has Counsellor Troi beamed up?
DATA [OC]: Negative, Commander. Sensors show she's in the midst of a group of Mintakans.
RIKER: Damn.
[Assembly hall]
(Fento is untied)
NURIA: He is all right. Hali, find Riker and Palmer.
LIKO: Why did you and Riker take Palmer from us?
TROI: We did not take Palmer.
[Bridge]
TROI [OC]: We set him free. Riker and I do not believe in these fables about an Overseer.
LIKO [OC]: Don't you realise what you've done? You've angered the Picard and we may all suffer for it. I know. I've seen him. He is all-powerful.
[Assembly hall]
LIKO: Fanto, weren't there stories about the Overseer destroying those who offended him?
FENTO: Stories, nothing more.
NURIA: Liko, we'll get Palmer back. Riker was carrying him. They can't have gone far.
LIKO: Still, the Picard may blame us for letting Palmer escape. Perhaps we should punish her. Let the Overseer know
[Bridge]
LIKO [OC]: That she and Riker acted alone.
[Assembly hall]
NURIA: We will keep Troi captive.
LIKO: That's not enough.
NURIA: You would have us harm her?
LIKO: If it will hold off the Picard's anger, yes. I've seen how powerful he is.
NURIA: I am unwilling to hurt her needlessly. We will wait for Hali to return.
OJI: And if they don't find Palmer?
NURIA: Then we may have to do as Liko suggests.
[Observation lounge]
PICARD: Doctor, you believe the Mintakans are capable of harming Counsellor Troi?
BARRON: They are not normally a violent people but these are extraordinary circumstances. They're trying to comprehend what they believe to be a god.
PICARD: Recommendations?
BARRON: The Mintakans wish to please the Overseer, but they can only guess what he wants. They need a sign.
PICARD: Are you suggesting?
BARRON: You must go down to Mintaka Three.
RIKER: Masquerading as a god?
PICARD: Absolutely out of the question. The Prime Directive
BARRON: Has already been violated. The damage is done. All we can do now is minimise it.
PICARD: By sanctioning their false beliefs?
BARRON: By giving them guidelines. Letting them know what the Overseer expects of them.
PICARD: Doctor Barron, I cannot, I will not, impose a set of commandments on these people. To do so violates the very essence of the Prime Directive.
BARRON: Like it or not, we have rekindled the Mintakans' belief in the Overseer.
RIKER: And are you saying that this belief will eventually become a religion?
BARRON: It's inevitable. And without guidance, that religion could degenerate into inquisitions, holy wars, chaos.
PICARD: Horrifying. Doctor Barron, your report describes how rational these people are. Millennia ago, they abandoned their belief in the supernatural. Now you are asking me to sabotage that achievement, to send them back into the Dark Ages of superstition and ignorance and fear? No! We will find some way to undo the damage we've caused. Number One, tell me about this group's leader.
RIKER: Nuria. Exceptionally clear-minded, sensible. The Mintakans trust her judgment. If we can convince her that you are not a god
PICARD: She might be able to persuade the others.
BARRON: And how do you propose to convince her?
PICARD: She believes the Picard is a magical figure. I'm going to show her how the magic works. I'm going to bring her aboard.
[Assembly hall]
DATA [OC]: Counsellor, sensors indicate five Mintakans in your immediate vicinity. Four are motionless. The fifth is eight meters away, proceeding south. Is Nuria one of these five?
TROI: Mmm hmm.
[Bridge]
DATA: Was that intended to be an affirmative?
RIKER: Yes, Data, it was.
DATA: Is Nuria the closest of the five?
TROI [OC]: Uh un.
RIKER: Negative.
[Assembly hall]
DATA [OC]: Is Nuria the one in motion?
TROI: Mmm hmm.
[Bridge]
RIKER: Lock sensors on Nuria.
DATA: Locked on. We can beam Nuria aboard at will.
PICARD: Data, when sensors indicate she's alone, beam her directly to transporter room one.
DATA: Aye, sir.
[Transporter room]
PICARD: Ensign Hoy?
DATA [OC]: Captain, Nuria is alone.
PICARD: I'll handle this.
(Hoy leaves, and Picard beams Nuria aboard)
PICARD: Nuria, don't be afraid. No one is going to harm you.
NURIA: Who?
PICARD: I am Jean Luc Picard.
(Nuria falls to her knees, face down)
PICARD: Please, get up. Get up. You must not kneel to me.
NURIA: You do not wish it?
PICARD: I do not deserve it. Look at me. Look at me. Feel the warmth of my hand, the rhythm of my pulse. I'm not a supreme being. I'm flesh and blood, like you.
NURIA: Not like me.
PICARD: Like you. Different in appearance, yes. But we are both living beings. We are born, we grow, we live and we die. In all the ways that matter, we are alike.
NURIA: But you are the Picard!
PICARD: There is something I want you to see.
(The doors open and she jumps back)
NURIA: What a wondrous place. Even the walls obey your command.
PICARD: Wondrous, yes, but not miraculous. The doors merely work differently from the ones you know.
[Observation lounge]
NURIA: That is my home?
PICARD: Seen from far, far above.
NURIA: Yet we do not fall. I never imagined I would see the clouds from the other side. Your powers are truly boundless.
PICARD: Nuria, your people live in huts. Was it always so?
NURIA: No. We have found remnants of tools in caves. Our ancestors must have lived there.
PICARD: So why do you now live in huts?
NURIA: Huts are better. Caves are dark and wet.
PICARD: If huts are better, why did you once live in caves?
NURIA: The most reasonable explanation would be that at one time we didn't know how to make huts.
PICARD: Just as at one time you did not know how to weave cloth, how to make a bow.
NURIA: That would be reasonable.
PICARD: Someone invented a hut. Someone invented a bow, who taught others, who taught their children, who built a stronger hut, built a better bow, who taught their children. Now, Nuria, suppose one of your cave dwelling ancestors could see you as you are today. What would she think?
NURIA: I don't know.
PICARD: Put yourself in her place. You see, she cannot kill a hornbuck at a great distance. You can. You have a power she lacks.
NURIA: Only because I have a bow.
PICARD: She's never seen a bow. It doesn't exist in her world. To you, it's a simple tool. To her, it's magic.
NURIA: I suppose she might think so.
PICARD: Now, how would she react to you?
NURIA: I think she would fear me.
PICARD: Just as you fear me.
NURIA: I do not fear you any longer.
PICARD: Good. That's good. You see, my people once lived in caves. And then we learned to build huts and, in time, to build ships like this one. NURIA: Perhaps one day, my people will travel above the skies.
PICARD: Of that, I have absolutely no doubt.
[Assembly hall]
(A storm is making itself heard)
LIKO: It's not the season for lightning. It must be a warning.
FENTO: We've had storms like this before.
OJI: Not like this one.
LIKO: It must mean something. The Picard is angry with us. He blames us for letting Palmer escape.
FENTO: Liko, we don't know that the Overseer is responsible for this storm.
LIKO: Will he also send floods? My wife died in last year's floods. Will we all die now? We must find Nuria.
[Ready room]
NURIA: Picard, you have shown me wonders I could never have imagined, and I am grateful beyond words. Might I request something for my people?
PICARD: You are indeed a leader.
NURIA: You have shown me such generosity. I wish my people could share in it. Six Mintakans died in a flood last winter. Four of them children. Would you bring them back to life?
PICARD: That is not in my power.
NURIA: Why? You restored Liko's life. Did the six who died offend you in some way? Did I offended you? Should I have ordered the death of Troi? Please, you must tell me if there's anything I can do to change your mind.
PICARD: I've failed to get through to you, haven't I? Despite all my efforts.
[Assembly hall]
OJI: Nuria can't be found. No one knows where she's gone.
LIKO: Hali, any sign of Palmer or Riker?
HALI: They have escaped us. We searched everywhere.
OJI: What do we do now, father?
LIKO: We must do as the Picard wishes. Punish those responsible.
FENTO: Nuria would not allow us to
LIKO: Nuria isn't here. We can't wait.
(Liko gestures to Hali for his bow)
[Sickbay]
CRUSHER: Crusher to Picard. I think we're going to lose Warren.
PICARD [OC]: On my way.
BARRON: I'm here, Mary.
(Picard and Nuria enter)
CRUSHER: Prepare two cc's of norep.
(but Mary Warren gives up the struggle to breathe)
CRUSHER: I'm sorry.
(Crusher and Barron leave, and Nuria approaches the death bed)
NURIA: Picard, you could not save her?
PICARD: No.
NURIA: You do have limits. You are not masters of life and death.
PICARD: No, we are not. We can cure many diseases and we can repair injuries, we can even extend life. But for all our knowledge, all our advances, we are just as mortal as you are. We're just as powerless to prevent the inevitable.
NURIA: You are a remarkable people, but you are not superior beings. My people must be made to understand that.
[Assembly hall]
TROI: Liko, you don't want to kill me.
LIKO: I have no choice. I must do as the Picard wishes.
TROI: Are you sure you know what he wants? That's the problem with believing in a supernatural being. Trying to determine what he wants.
LIKO: We must do something.
OJI: But what if we do the wrong thing, father?
LIKO: Picard, we need your guidance. Is it your wish that this woman should die? Answer us. Speak.
(Picard and Nuria enter)
PICARD: Liko!
LIKO: The Picard. The Overseer has come.
PICARD: No. Liko. Liko, I am a man. I am not the Overseer. I am a traveller from a faraway land. Nothing more.
LIKO: But you have restored my life. I am your servant.
PICARD: You are no one's servant, Liko. I neither desire your obedience nor your worship.
NURIA: Picard speaks the truth. I have visited his people. I have seen how they live and how they die. When death takes one of their loved ones, they are as helpless as we are.
LIKO: Then how was I brought back to life?
NURIA: Liko, you were not dead. Picard's people have a knowledge that we lack. They are able to heal wounds that we cannot.
LIKO: No. No. He can bring back the dead. Show them, Picard. You can bring my wife back to me.
PICARD: I cannot.
LIKO: Why? Why won't you do this for me? Have I failed you in some way? Are you angry with me?
PICARD: I am not angry with you.
LIKO: Then I beg you, bring her back to me. I will give you my life in exchange. Please, take back what you gave me. Give it to her. Let her live!
PICARD: It is beyond my power.
LIKO: Nothing is beyond your power! You are the Overseer. I will prove it!
(He aims the arrow at Picard)
NURIA: Liko!
PICARD: If you believe I am all-powerful, then you cannot hurt me. If, however, I am telling the truth and I am mortal, you will kill me. But if the only proof you will believe is my death, then shoot.
NURIA: Liko, don't do it!
OJI: Father, no!
(Oji jolts Liko's arm enough to deflect the arrow into Picard's shoulder. Nuria holds up her blood-stained hand to Liko and he bursts into tears)
Captain's log, supplemental. Doctor Crusher has repaired my injury with her usual skill. Mister La Forge will supervise the dismantling of the observation post after I make one last visit to Mintaka Three.
[Hillside]
(Picard's arm is in a sling)
PICARD: Now, Mister La Forge.
LAFORGE [OC]: Aye, sir.
(The holographic camouflage comes down)
NURIA: What is that?
PICARD: A place where we can watch your people.
FENTO: But why?
PICARD: To study you. To understand your ways. Discontinue, Mister La Forge.
(The window vanishes again)
NURIA: Picard, why should a people so advanced want to learn about us?
PICARD: We were once as you are now. To study you is to understand ourselves.
FENTO: But why did you have to hide yourself from us?
LIKO: Because their presence would affect us, just as it affected me.
PICARD: It is our highest law that we shall not interfere with other cultures.
OJI: Then revealing yourselves was an accident.
PICARD: Oh, yes, and now we must leave you.
OJI: Why? There's so much you can teach us.
PICARD: But that, too, would be interference. You must progress in your own way.
NURIA: So we will. You have taught us there is nothing beyond our reach.
PICARD: Not even the stars.
NURIA: Pahkee.
(A little boy gives Picard a woven belt or some such memento)
NURIA: I wish you good journeys, Picard. Remember my people.
PICARD: Always.
2024-09-11 10:11:16 -
Pike:
Added the transcript.
