Captain's log, star date 45156.1.
Our mission to Mudor V has been completed.
Since our next assignment will not begin for several days,
we're enjoying a welcome respite from our duties.
If it's a boy, Michael, after my father.
Wait, we decided on Hiro, after my father.
- We talked about this last night. - And decided on Hiro.
Wait, I've got it. William. It's a great name, William O'Brien.
It's got a nice ring to it.
It's alright. He's just doing somersaults.
Here, feel.
Right there.
- He's gonna be a hell of a gymnast. - May l?
Sure. There, feel it? When he's not turning, he's kicking or punching.
When I wanna sleep, he wakes up.
At this point, I just wish it were over.
I have to go. Transporter simulation on the bridge.
Bye-bye, Michael.
No.
Come on, Geordi.
No.
Just try it once. It is not as hard as you think.
I'm telling you, you will be terrific.
Alright.
I feel silly.
I am the very model of a modern major-general
I've information, vegetable, animal and mineral
I can't do this, I cannot sing in front of people!
You were terrific!
A little off-pitch, but I can take care of that.
OK, La Forge as a modern major-general.
Captain, I'd like to introduce you
to the winners of the primary-school science fair.
This is Marissa, Jay Gordon and Patterson.
- They're here for their tour. - Hello.
Can we see the battle bridge and torpedo bay?
No, I'm afraid not.
But we will visit the hydroponics and astrophysics laboratories.
I'm sure you'll have a wonderful time.
Well, if you'll come with me.
I'm not sure who to feel sorry for, the Captain or the kids.
I want you to know, we're proud of our science-fair winners.
Perhaps some of you will... choose to pursue a career in Starfleet.
Well, then...
What did you do for your science projects?
I planted radishes in this special dirt and they came up all weird.
I see. That's very, very commendable. And you?
An analysis of the life span of the swarming moths on Gonal IV.
They only live for 20 hours, then they all die.
How interesting. And you?
We're falling!
What happened?
Sensors show subspace distortions and high-energy particles to starboard.
Looks like we ran into a quantum filament. Damage report.
We lost primary life support. Switching to secondary.
Impulse and warp engines are off line.
Another filament approaching, sir.
All decks, brace for impact.
- Counsellor? - I'm alright.
Medical team to the bridge.
Troi to sickbay.
Counsellor Troi to Capt Picard.
Troi to Engineering.
Counsellor Troi to any crew member. Please acknowledge.
Medical team to the bridge.
Computer's down. Looks like we still have impulse power but not much else.
Lt Monroe!
Chief O'Brien.
The turbo lifts aren't working. We're trapped.
Are you children alright?
Bridge, this is Picard.
This is the Captain. Anyone read me?
Why don't they answer?
I don't know.
- They're all dead. - They're not dead.
Communication is down, that's all.
We're going to die, too.
We most certainly are not!
Now listen to me. No one here is going to die.
The bridge will be sending a rescue party soon.
So I want you all to stop crying.
Everything is going to be alright.
This is the Starship Enterprise calling any vessel in range.
We are in distress and need assistance.
Please respond.
I'm not sure if we're even transmitting.
I'll set it on auto-repeat, see if we get a response.
- Are you alright? - I'm alive. What the hell happened?
We were hit by a quantum filament.
Most systems are down. We can't contact anyone off the bridge.
Don't count on leaving through there. An emergency bulkhead closed.
- Confinement mode. - Isolation protocol.
I'm not really familiar with that protocol.
If the computer senses a hull breach,
it closes emergency bulkheads to isolate it.
Until we clear those, we're cut off from the rest of the ship.
Partial sensors back on line.
Picking up sporadic life signs throughout the saucer section.
There are survivors.
- What about ten-forward? - Ten-forward?
My wife's there.
Sorry. The readings are not that specific.
Can you scan the drive section?
No life signs in the drive section.
- Could it be a sensor malfunction? - No way to know.
Without the main computer, I can't run a full diagnostic.
Can you sense anything, Counsellor?
There are a lot of people still alive.
Many are hurt, but I can't tell where they are.
We need emergency procedures. Who's the duty officer?
Lt Monroe was in command, but she's dead.
I believe Counsellor Troi is the senior officer on the deck.
Counsellor Troi?
She carries the rank of lieutenant commander.
I'd appreciate some suggestions.
I recommend we initiate Emergency Procedure Alpha Two.
Bypass computer control and place all systems on manual override.
- Very well. - Aye-aye, sir.
May I suggest that our next priority be to stabilize life support
and to re-establish communications?
Yes. Mr. Mandel, I'd like you to assist Ensign Ro.
Yes, sir.
- How are you feeling? - OK. A little foggy.
Lie still. We'll get you to sickbay soon.
OK.
Report.
I have surveyed all the turbo lifts and service crawlways.
- Access to the bridge is severed. - Sickbay?
Heavy damage to section 23A has cut off access to sickbay.
Security will bring casualties here until further notice.
Assume the worst, that everyone on the bridge is dead.
No one controls the ship.
In that circumstance, re-establishing control is our priority.
- Agreed. Can we get to Engineering? - No, sir.
The most direct route is blocked, but we can use a crawlway.
OK. You and I will try.
Mr. Worf, this room will fill up with wounded, needing help.
- Stay in charge here. - Yes, sir.
Let's go.
- Over here. - Yes, sir.
OK.
- Clear the power shunt. - The shunt is cleared.
Right. And bypass the flow current and...
The computer still won't release the doors.
Can we force them open?
We can try. There's an emergency hand actuator.
- Geordi? - Yeah?
This wall is hot!
Where?
I'm alright.
But I think we have a new problem. One of the energy conduits
must have ruptured and ignited the polyduranide in the bulkhead.
- That's a plasma fire. - Putting out a lot of radiation.
We can't stay here for long.
We got a bigger problem than that.
The quartum in those containers is used in emergency thrusters.
It's normally stable, but expose it to radiation,
it has a way of exploding.
The external power is cut off.
We're going to die.
- What was that? - I don't know.
Your name is Marissa, is that right?
Well, Marissa, I need a first officer to help me.
You're the eldest, so that makes you my number one.
Number one?
That's what I always call my first officer.
So, here.
There.
Now, Number One, we need a crew to help us get that hatch off.
Don't you think Jay would make an excellent science officer?
Jay, will you join our crew?
- It's Jay Gordon. - Of course.
Forgive me, Jay Gordon.
I accept.
Here.
- There. - Can I be an officer, too?
Well, let me see.
Your science project involved radishes, did it not?
Yes, sir.
Then I appoint you my executive officer in charge of radishes.
There.
Right. Then let's get to work.
1365 Baker. That puts us right behind shuttle bay two.
Correct. We have 52 meters remaining in this crawlway
before we can safely exit into a corridor.
Coolant leak!
We can withstand this radiation for three or four hours
without permanent damage. We'll need hyronalin treatments.
Radiation levels in the quartum?
They're at 83 rads and rising at four rads per minute.
That stuff gets unstable at about 350 rads.
I still can't get power to this transporter.
The radiation level is 20 percent lower at this end of the bay.
- Let's move the containers here. - Good idea. It'll buy us some time.
We'll have to do this by hand.
With all this radiation, we can't trust the antigrav units.
There. Just before the second hit. See the subspace distortion?
Yes.
- How big is a quantum filament? - It can be hundreds of metres long.
But it has almost no mass, which makes it very difficult to detect.
So, it's like a cosmic string?
No, that's a completely different phenomenon.
How did you do that?
I diverted power from the phaser array
and dumped it in the Engineering control system.
- You what? - Engineering station's on line.
But that's a completely improper procedure!
You can't dump raw energy into a bridge terminal...
We will not get out of this by playing it safe!
What is our engine status, Ensign?
We've got half-impulse power available.
But I've got odd readings from the warp drive.
I read a spike in the warp-field array.
It looks like a containment deviation.
Switch to primary bypass.
Nothing. Field strength's at 40 percent and falling.
We've got a problem.
The quantum resonance caused a polarity shift
in the antimatter containment field.
When the filament hit, the ship was momentarily charged,
as if it came in contact with a live electrical wire.
That weakened the containment field around the antimatter pods.
The field strength is at 40 percent and falling.
If it falls to 15 percent, the field will collapse
and we'll have a containment breach.
- Which means? - Which means the ship will explode.
Commander, the current cannot be shut off from this relay box.
We can't just sit here.
If the energy were interrupted by a non-conductive material,
it is likely the circuit would be broken.
We have nothing to handle so much current.
Commander, much of my body framework is made up of tripolymers,
a non-conductive material.
- You're suggesting we use your body? - Yes, sir.
There's half a million amps in that arc.
Could your body handle that?
The power surge would cause a systems failure in my processors
and melt my primary power couplings.
But there is a chance the damage would not be irreparable.
No.
Commander, our options are very limited.
Android or not, I wouldn't ask anyone to take that risk.
And if the computer is not working in Engineering
I'll need your help to control the ship.
My positronic brain has shielding to protect me from power surges.
It is possible for you to remove my cranial unit and take it with you.
Let me get this straight. You want me to take off your head?
Yes, sir.
- Is something wrong, sir? - Well, Data...
Would you be alright?
My memory and neural nets are self-contained. I would be fine.
Well, like you said, our options are limited.
Data!
A remarkable experience.
Are you alright? Did the shielding work?
Apparently so, sir. My neural nets are still fully operational.
You may begin by opening the ventral access panel
two centimeters below my right ear.
- Can you climb up? - Yes, I think so.
Good.
Look down the sides of the lift. Can you see two big clamps?
Yes, I see them.
Can you see if those clamps are attached to...
..long beams inside big grooves?
Yes.
But one of them looks broken.
It's half out of the groove.
Alright. Come down.
Alright.
Number One.
Those big clamps are part of the emergency system.
If anything goes wrong, they hold the turbo lift in place.
But it would seem that they're damaged.
Is that why we keep shaking?
That's right.
Now, when they give way, we shall fall.
So you've got to get your crew out of here before that happens.
Now there is a ladder that runs along the wall of the shaft.
You can climb up that until you come to an open doorway.
What about you?
My ankle is broken. I will just slow you down
when you need to move quickly.
Now, you are the leader.
And that's an order.
We have to climb up the shaft.
I want to stay here with you, Captain.
Patterson, you're an officer. You have to obey orders.
I don't wanna be an officer any more. I wanna stay with you.
If the Captain stays here, we won't make it. We'll all die.
We don't have time to argue. You must go now.
The crew has decided to stick together.
We all go or we all stay.
Alright. I'll try.
But I want you to know, this is mutiny.
Now, Number One, look at that control panel.
Now, the yellow control pad, hit that once.
Now the one below it, hit it twice.
That should release the panel underneath.
Yes, it did.
Now, you can pull it away.
- OK. - Good.
That bundle of wires, that's optical cabling.
See how much of that you can pull out.
The levels are still rising.
There must be a way to put that fire out.
It's fed by the ship's internal power grid. We can't get near that.
The only way to stop it would be to eliminate its supply of oxygen.
Wait a minute!
Doctor, I've got an idea.
It's wild, but we just might kill two birds with one stone.
- Let's hear it. - OK. We open the external door,
depressurize the cargo bay to suck these containers out.
At the same time, the lack of oxygen should put out the plasma fire.
- What about us? - We hold on to something
while the air evacuates. Then, we close the door, repressurize the bay.
What about this?
Yeah, that ought to do it.
There, that should do it.
There will be a sharp pain as I set the bone. Prepare yourself.
Good. You bore that well.
Keiko?
- I'm alright. I think. - Perhaps you should lie down.
I'm having contractions.
That is not uncommon in the late months of pregnancy.
No, I mean contractions. I'm going into labour.
You cannot. This is not a good time, Keiko.
It's not open for debate!
Like it or not, this baby is coming.
If the containment-field strength continues to drop at this rate,
we still have two hours before it's critical.
You're ignoring the fact that the power coupling is also damaged.
If it overheats, the field strength could drop a lot faster.
- We could have a breach in minutes. - What do you suggest?
We should separate the saucer,
and get as far away as we can from the drive section.
Excuse me, sir, but that's damn cold-blooded!
- What about the people there? - There's no evidence anyone's alive.
No evidence they're dead, either!
If you were trapped, would you like us to just leave?
No, of course not. But I also wouldn't expect the bridge crew
to risk the ship and hundreds of lives to rescue me.
There is no way to stabilize the containment field from here.
Could it be done from Engineering?
Yes. But my readings indicate there's no power there.
They don't even have monitors to say there's a problem.
Could we divert energy from the bridge to those monitors?
- Yes, sir. - I will say it again,
there is no reason to believe that anyone is still alive in Engineering.
We're wasting time talking about it. We have to separate the ship now!
I believe there are still people alive down there.
I'm going to give them every chance.
If they're alive, they're hoping someone can help them.
So we'll help them.
Divert the power to Engineering.
Aye, sir.
I remind you, Counsellor,
that power coupling could overheat at any moment.
By not separating the ship, you could be responsible for all our deaths.
Thank you, Ensign.
Proceed.
I can't open this door.
We're going to have to climb up to the next deck.
What if that one doesn't open either?
- Then we'll never get out. - Quiet, both of you.
That's an order.
- We're going up. Ready? - Ready, sir.
The lift's falling! Hang on!
We're alright.
We'll keep on climbing. Just don't look down.
- What's wrong? - He's scared.
We're right with you, Patterson. You're not going to fall.
It will be alright if you keep climbing.
What we need is a climbing song.
Marissa, is there a song you sing at school?
The Laughing Vulcan and his Dog?
I'm afraid I don't know that one.
I know. Frére Jacques.
That's a song I used to sing at school. Patterson!
Do you know that one? Good.
It goes like this.
Frére Jacques, frére Jacques
Dormez-vous? Dormez-vous?
Sonnez les matines, sonnez les matines
Ding-ding-dong, ding-ding-dong
Very good. Now keep singing.
Frére Jacques, frére Jacques
Dormez-vous? Dormez-vous?
Sonnez les matines, sonnez les matines
Ding-ding-dong, ding-ding-dong
Frére Jacques, frére Jacques
Dormez-vous? Dormez-vous?
Sonnez les matines, sonnez les matines
Ding-ding-dong, ding-ding-dong
Frére Jacques, frére Jacques...
Your contractions are now only 30 seconds apart.
Dilation has gone to seven centimeters
since the onset of labour. That did not take long.
That's easy for you to say!
You are doing very well.
I'm sure the child will arrive soon.
Worf, has the baby turned?
- Turned? - So the head is down.
Dr Crusher told me a few days ago it hadn't. She wasn't worried
because I still had a month to go.
I am not certain. Can't you tell?
Worf, have you ever done this before, delivered a baby?
Yes.
No. I took the Starfleet Emergency Medical course.
In a computer simulation, I assisted in the delivery of a human baby.
Sometimes it doesn't go by the book, Worf.
I am sure everything will be fine.
Once the air is vented, you'll feel extreme pressure on your lungs.
Resist the temptation to exhale.
Next our hands and feet will get cold, then numb,
and some of the capillaries on exposed skin may burst.
Sounds like fun.
We will have about 15 seconds of useful consciousness,
then about ten seconds of disorientation, then we pass out.
OK. Once the air is evacuated,
one of us needs to get to that panel to repressurize the bay.
We're ready.
Are you OK?
The field strength is down to 20 percent.
We cannot risk staying here.
We're in no danger until it drops below 15 percent.
We can wait and see if Engineering notices those monitors.
Have you prepared to separate the saucer?
Yes. We're in stand-by mode for docking latches.
Thermal inversion in the power coupling!
Cross-connect to the transfer coil.
- That was close. - What happened?
What I said might!
The coupling overheating and the field almost collapsed.
O'Brien's fixed it temporarily, but it could go at any moment.
Next time we might not be able to stop it.
Don't let wishful thinking guide your decision.
It's time to leave.
We will separate the ship when I decide that it's time
and not before. Is that clear, Ensign?
Yes. Perfectly.
OK, try it.
Very good, Commander. You have established a connection.
I can now raise the door.
There's no power on this deck, yet these monitors are working.
The power reaching those monitors is diverted from the bridge, sir.
But why? Unless there's something they want us...
Something they need us to see.
Wait! The containment field is only 18 percent. Can you stabilize it?
No. I do not have access to the containment field.
You must establish a new link.
Locate the ODN conduit, sir.
- Got it! - Yes, sir.
You must now change the input matrix of my secondary optical port
and then connect the ODN conduit.
- That is not the correct port, sir. - Sorry.
You must hurry. The containment field has dropped to 16 percent.
I'm trying. You need a bigger head!
The field continues to drop. Collapse is imminent.
Try it now.
I have made a connection. I am now stabilizing the containment field.
Sir, the field strength is stabilizing.
18 percent.
20. 25.
I guess they got our message.
I was wrong, Counsellor.
You could have easily been right.
Congratulations. You are fully dilated to ten centimeters.
- You may now give birth. - That's what I've been doing!
Well, bearing down is the next stage.
It should start at full dilation.
- Why has it not begun? - I don't know!
I don't think it's up to me. It happens when it happens.
The computer simulation was not like this.
- That delivery was very orderly. - Well, I'm sorry!
Did you feel an uncontrollable urge to push?
Good. You are bearing down.
Now, you must push with each contraction.
I must urge you gently but firmly to push harder.
Push, Keiko. Push hard.
Push, Keiko! Push.
I am pushing!
The baby is emerging head first.
Good. One more contraction.
OK!
That's good. Push.
Push. Hard.
I have the baby.
I will smack the child to induce breathing.
I will cut the umbilical cord.
Blanket.
OK.
I believe she looks like Chief O'Brien.
Hello.
You were wonderful, Worf.
I couldn't have done it without you. Hello.
Captain's log, supplemental.
We are en route to Star base 67 to undergo repairs.
Life aboard the ship is slowly returning to normal.
Now just wait here.
Just can't stay away from the big chair, can you?
I'm not cut out to be captain.
First officer, maybe. I understand there aren't many qualifications.
Capt Picard to the bridge. Please!
Hello. It's good to see you again. What brings you to the bridge?
In appreciation for the way you helped us out of the turbo shaft
and the way you helped us not be scared,
we want to present to you this commemorative plaque.
Give it to him.
Thank you.
- Thank you very much. - I made the back piece.
A wonderful job you did of it, too.
This afternoon, we're going to finish the tour I promised,
starting with the battle bridge. I'll see you at 1400 hours.
Take the bridge, Number One.
- Aye, sir. - Aye, sir.