02x10 - Hegemony

[bunniefuu]

♪

Previously on Star Trek:
Strange New Worlds...

PIKE: When we seek out the unknown,

we will find things that challenge us.

I want to help, but it would appear

all that I'm doing is making it worse.

- I just need some personal time.
- You brought me home.

That's what happened on Rigel VII.

- [DISTANT CLUCKING, GROWLING]
- What is that?

It's the Gorn.

It is not safe to leave the ship.

It isn't safe inside the ship.

We are prey.

We do not give in to fear.

No!

[GROWLS]

[SCREAMING]

♪

BATEL: Captain's Log, stardate . .

The Cayuga is just
outside Federation space,

in orbit of the colony
planet of Parnassus Beta.

Their founders designed
it on the small town model.

Made to look like the old
Midwestern United States.

We've been tasked with
assisting the colonists,

who are dealing with
challenges on several fronts.

We're helping to stabilize
their agricultural crop,

as well as providing
necessary vaccinations.

CHAPEL: Okay. You ready?

Three, two, one.

Done.

It's the last one.

Should all be up-to-date
on their inoculations.

Thanks again for your help.

Yeah, I'm just grateful for the ride.

Dr. Korby doesn't mind you
arriving a little early?

Eh, I mean, it's space.

Does anyone ever get there
when they say they will?

Fair point.

If you don't need me anymore,

I'm gonna go back to the ship.

Just got a lot to do
before we head out tomorrow.

Don't let me stop you.
Thanks again, Christine.

Chapel to Caguyga, one to beam up.

Energize.

[PADD CHIRPS, BEEPS]

Hello there, Captain.

To what do I owe the
pleasure of this call?

Do I need a reason to call?

I thought we were past that.

Yes, but I'm a very busy woman.

I can't just pick up every
subspace call that comes my way.

Fair enough. Next time,
I'll book an appointment

through your yeoman.

I would appreciate that.

How are you holding up?

I mean, I'm not bursting into song

every ten minutes, so
that's a minor victory.

- Very minor.
- And how are the esteemed residents of Parnassus Beta?

It's a little complicated down here.

Federation membership can protect them,

but they also see it

as potentially putting
a target on their heads.

So it's tricky.

- Have you tried...
- Chris.

I do this for a living, you know.

I know. [STAMMERS]

I just... miss you.

Wow.

Note the date and time.

Was that so hard to say?

Not so hard.

♪

Doug.

We having issues with
comms? Mine just went out.

Let me check with Cayuga.

Appel to Bridge. Do you read?

[STATIC CRACKLES]

[NEARBY WHOOSHING]

Is that one of ours?

- [expl*si*n]
- [PANICKED CHATTER]

Get Cayuga on comms, now.

Ensign?

♪

[BELL CHIMING RAPIDLY]

My God.

[CHIRPING]

- Captain.
- Play it, Nyota.

BATEL: To any Federation
vessels in range...

emergency transmission...

Captain Batel, Cayuga... need help...

immediate evacuation...
under att*ck... Gorn...

Repeat, under att*ck by the Gorn.

Ortegas, make for Parnassus Beta.

Everything she's got.

Nyota, get me Admiral
April on a secure line.

The Federation is at a dangerous
point in our relationship

with the Gorn Hegemony.

I know they've been massing
on the border for some time.

Right now, whatever this is,

it's technically happening
outside the Federation.

This incident could spark
a w*r between us and Gorn.

Starfleet would like to avoid that.

At what cost?

- The Gorn att*cked us.
- They didn't att*ck us.

They att*cked a colony
outside of our jurisdiction,

and we need to know why.

I think it's safe to say that
we don't understand the Gorn.

Well, I've seen them
up close and personal,

and they're not hard to understand, Bob.

They're monsters.

"Monster" is a word to describe

those who don't understand us.

Sometimes a monster is just a monster.

I need your utmost
caution here, Captain.

Reconnaissance only, we can't risk

further aggravating the situation.

Chris, I know you and Marie are close.

I just want to make sure

it's not gonna color your judgment.

ORTEGAS [OVER COMM]:
Coming out of warp, sir.

It won't.

Pike out.

♪

Yellow alert.

Bring us around to the far
side of the moon slowly, Erica.

Aye, Captain.

♪

♪

PIKE: Space.

The final frontier.

These are the voyages of
the starship Enterprise.

Its five-year mission:

to explore strange new worlds,

to seek out new life

and new civilizations,

to boldly go where no
one has gone before.

♪

♪

♪

♪

[INDISTINCT CHATTER OVER COMMS]

No assumptions here.

Spock, scan for life
signs and escape pods.

We don't know what
happened to that crew.

My scans are not functioning.

Communications, too.

- Transporter is down as well.
- What's going on?

I detect a counterfrequency
emanating from the planet.

It appears to be negating
all scans, communications,

- and transporter signals between here and there.
- Any idea what's causing it?

LA'AN: I believe the Gorn might
have an interference field,

a w*apon to deploy during invasions.

Renders their enemies blind,
unable to communicate or move.

So there's no way to beam anyone
off that ship, or the planet?

That is correct, Captain.

Then we need to think harder.

When I last spoke with Captain
Batel, she was on the surface,

which means she's probably still there.

- Along with a lot of her crew as well.
- Remember your training.

Starfleet protocols would
have any survivors of Cayuga

trying to figure out a way to
reach anyone who can listen.

Uh, comms are down, but we
still have line of sight.

She's right.

Survivors could use that
to send us signals...

fires, lights, smoke.

Start observations.

If there's anyone alive down
there, I want to know it.

Incoming warp signature detected,

- in orbit of Parnassus Beta.
- Red alert.

- [ALERT BLARING]
- Do we have visuals?

Yes, Captain.

I believe it is a Gorn hunter ship.

La'An, prepare phasers
but hold your fire.

Phasers locked and holding, sir.

- [CHIRPING]
- Captain,

I'm receiving a secure communication

from outside the interference field.

- It's from Starfleet.
- What does it say?

They've received a
message from the Gorn, sir.

A message? Saying what?

- It's an image.
- Put it on screen.

Stand by.

It looks like a demarcation line.

UNA: With Parnassus
Beta and all their forces

on the far side of the line.

Starfleet has ordered us

to maintain our side of the line.

Command crew, ready room, now.

On Starfleet's orders, we are
holding to our side of the line.

And the Gorn, so far,
are holding to theirs.

Unfortunately, that is where I believe

our people are being held.

I don't plan on leaving them behind.

You want to cross the line?

Which is why I'm not ordering
any of you to join this mission.

I'll take volunteers, but
I'll go alone if I have to.

I will go.

I want to do what I can
to help save Captain Batel,

and Nurse Chapel, who I hope
made it to the surface as well.

I certainly feel the same way.

Not to speak for the crew,
but I believe we all do.

Thank you, Number One,
Mr. Spock, Ensign Uhura.

But I was thinking we
might need the three of you

along with your
particular skill sets here

to keep us out of w*r with the Gorn.

SAM: If you're taking volunteers,

I'd like to sign up.

Last time I saw the Gorn,
I was scared out of my wits.

But I'd appreciate another chance

to study them up close.

With a phaser?

How else would we determine
how best to k*ll them?

I would like to aid in that study.

LA'AN: I'd like them dead as much,

if not more, than the rest of you.

But that's not enough.

We don't know what we're
walking into down there.

Phasers might not be enough.

I have something that might help.

Pike to transporter, Chief Jay,

is in-ship transport still functional?

JAY [OVER COMM]: Yes, sir.

Could you transport crate
directly to ready room, please?

Authorization Pike epsilon C- .

Acknowledged, Captain. Transporting.

Ever since the Gorn started massing

on the edge of Federation space,

Starfleet's been working
on weapons to counter them.

Now all our ships carry these, in case.

"Gorn Protocols. To be
distributed upon an encounter

with the hostile species."

"Break in case of Gorn"?

"Phaser harmonics adjustments.

"To better counter their defenses.

- Scanner re-calibrations."
- SAM: Last time,

- our tricorders couldn't detect Gorn at all.
- Now they do.

Nitrogen grenades?

Renders anything in a
ten-meter range frozen.

Deadly for a cold-blooded lizard.

Deadly for anyone.

ORTEGAS: These are
super cool toys and all,

but how exactly are we supposed to even

get to the surface to use them?

There is a hunter ship
just waiting to blow up

anything that crosses
the demarcation line.

I don't know, Erica.

Maybe all we need is to
plot the right course.

UNA: I've tried several routes

using the gravity of
the moon as a slingshot,

and several others utilizing
a geosynchronous orbit

to take us off the same
plane as the Gorn hunter,

but there is no way to
get us to the surface

without coming into
sensor range of the ship.

If we cross the demarcation line,

the Gorn are gonna know about it.

ORTEGAS: Hmm.

- What's this stuff here?
- UNA: Debris from the Cayuga.

I mean, they're not sh**ting at that,

'cause they already did.

- Are you suggesting...
- Maybe the best way across is right in front of us.

That's brilliant.

Make ourselves look like
a piece of space debris.

The Gorn might just let us pass through.

Don't know if I love
the word "might" there.

Admittedly, we could use your expertise.

This is a pretty tricky
course we're talking about.

You want me to pilot the shuttle?

Come on, Erica.

Haven't you been bugging me for months

about joining a landing party?

[CHUCKLES]: Yes, I have.

Why have I been doing that?

Matched and maintaining debris velocity.

Current trajectory
passes the hunter ship,

in the fourth Lagrange
point, in seconds.

Entering Gorn scanner range.

We should look as dead as
whatever's left of the Cayuga.

Sorry, sir.

I didn't... I didn't mean to be...

No. My nerves are on edge as well.

I'd prefer we didn't get this close,

if we had any other choice.

♪

SPOCK: They do not appear
to notice the shuttle.

Because they look like space garbage.

Old zombie movie trick.

Zombie movie?

UNA: Yeah, dress up like you're dead

so the zombies don't notice you.

You've never seen one?

A zombie, no. A movie, yes.

But I will add some to my research.

[COMPUTER BEEPING]

Shuttle appears to be
entering the atmosphere.

They're out of range.

And on their own.

♪

You gonna start the engines
sometime soon, Erica?

[CHUCKLES]: You gonna
back-seat drive me, sir?

I'm waiting until we're
under , meters,

to stay below their scans.

- Whoa.
- Don't worry.

I did this a hundred
times during the w*r.

♪

[PIKE PANTING]

I thought you were a test pilot?

I was.

ORTEGAS: Come on, it's like...

- it's like riding a bike.
- Yeah.

- At the speed of light.
- [ORTEGAS CHUCKLES]

[EXHALES SHARPLY]
You were born for this, Erica.

♪

Still trying to scan for life signs?

I theorized I might be
able to find a frequency gap

through the interference field,

but I have not managed
to discover one yet.

Spock, I don't think
anyone's alive over there.

Spectrometric analysis
suggests there are still

pockets of oxygen on board.

It is possible someone
could have survived.

I would never tell you not to hope.

I want Chapel to be alive, too.

Things did not end well between us.

We were in a fight.

All things that seem
trivial in the face of death.

I wish to apologize to her.

Spock, what happened is not your fault.

The Cayuga rotates once every two hours.

Sickbay should be visible shortly.

We can try a targeted scan.

Perhaps then we'll see
further proof of life.

Computer, magnify Cayuga's saucer.

MITCHELL: Sickbay is...

gone.

♪

PIKE: Any idea what that is?

It doesn't look native.

LA'AN: It's Gorn.

There was something similar
on the breeding planet.

My brother Manu always thought

it was a beacon to trap passers-by.

Let's move up.

PIKE: I'm guessing
that might be the source

of the interference field.

Good guess.

It's blocking any signals
from surface to orbit.

So they drop that,

and no one on the
ground can call for help.

You reading any bogeys nearby?

Negative.

Looks like they fought back.

LA'AN: I think they made a
stand in some of the buildings.

And they lost.

There's , people here.

Bound to be survivors.

- I wouldn't bet on it.
- You made it out.

Sir, I'm reading a bogey. Nine o'clock.

LA'AN: Yep, I've got it, too. Solo.

- Size suggests a Gorn youngling.
- PIKE: Copy. Take cover.

♪

[GROWLING, CLUCKING NEARBY]

[GROWLING, CLUCKING]

The new phaser settings work.

Why a youngling?

I mean, why set up this elaborate tower

and then send babies out to face us?

They spread their eggs to soften
up a planet for conquering.

That tower, that's just
them locking the door.

M'BENGA: It looked hungry.

If that's true?

There's no food left.

PIKE: People could still be alive.

Just hiding.

Look around.

Uh, guys, we need to move.

- We have got bogeys... plural... incoming.
- How many?

- Dozens.
- That's a lot of bogeys.

Barber shop, now.

[CLUCKING NEARBY]

[GROWLING IN DISTANCE]

PIKE: Lights off.

[GORN CLUCKING, GROWLING]

[SCREECHING, CLUCKING]

- Uh, Commander Pelia?
- [GRUNTS]

I could use your help.

Yeah, well, I'm listening,
but I still need to finish

recalibrating the deflector
shield power conduits.

Right. We might need those.

Um, I've been trying
to get to the bottom of

how the Gorn are managing
to block communications.

What did you discover?

- That I need an engineer's help.
- Oh, please.

I have this crazy theory.

Huh.

Oh, well, it's-it's not that crazy.

- I just thought you might be...
- Yes, w-well, don't sugarcoat it.

I love a crazy theory.

[DOOR WHOOSHES OPEN]

[GORN GROWLING]

LA'AN: It doesn't make sense.

They shouldn't be gathering
like that, the younglings.

They should be fighting for
dominance, not working together.

PIKE: If you don't understand them,

it means there's something about
the Gorn we've yet to discover.

Maybe instead of finding
a way to fight them,

we-we...

[SIGHS] find some way to...

reach them, or...

Ever the optimist.

Sometimes...

hope is a choice.

Yeah, you've told me that one before.

Maybe I'm just saying it
'cause I need to hear it.

I...

It's why we're here, on this planet.

♪

Captain Batel is tough, sir.

I mean, if she can handle you,

the Gorn should be a piece of cake.

[SCOFFS]

[WHISPERS]: Looks like
the Gorn have moved on.

Sam, you reading anything?

Yeah. I've been picking
up an anomalous signal

- coming from down the street.
- Gorn?

No. Human.

♪

♪

LA'AN: Whoever they are,

they aren't being careful enough.

[DEVICE BEEPING STEADILY]

- No one?
- They can't have gone far. Sam?

The signal's been coming from this.

[WHIRRING, WHOOSHING]

You're not Gorn.

Obviously.

You shouldn't have walked
into my Gorn trap, then.

We detected humans in here.

We were trying to rescue them.

Yeah, the humans you detected is

that wee box right there.

Programmed to send out auditory

and pheromonal life signs
at regular intervals.

Not to mention heat signatures.

Fools those dumb lizards
and, uh, most scanners.

Yeah.

So, you're just gonna leave us in here?

Oh, sorry. [CHUCKLES]

Where are my manners, eh?

[WHIRRING, WHOOSHING]

Montgomery Scott at your service.

Lieutenant, junior grade.

Captain Pike of the USS Enterprise.

This is Lieutenant
Noonien-Singh, Dr. M'Benga,

Lieutenant Ortegas and Lieutenant Kirk.

That's a lot of lieutenants.

- There'll be a quiz.
- [SCOTTY LAUGHS]

Lieutenant Scott.

I don't recognize you
from the Cayuga's roster.

I'm not from the Cayuga.

Uh, I'm-I'm from the Stardiver.

Or at least I was.

- The solar research vessel?
- SCOTTY: Aye.

We were monitoring solar flare activity,

one system over when the
Gorn caught us by surprise.

- They att*cked you?
- They overwhelmed us.

The ship's gone, I'm afraid.

Uh, whole crew.

PIKE: How did you escape?

In a shuttle.

You ran from the Gorn in a shuttle?

How are you not dead?

Firstly, I-I jury-rigged the engines

to increase their capacity.

And secondly, I...

Well, I figured out how
to hide in plain sight.

Sounds resourceful.

And mysterious.

When an armada of human-eating
lizards come my way,

I can get quite, uh, creative.

PIKE: Mr. Scott,

do you know if any of the
crew from Cayuga made it?

♪

Chris.

You found us.

[PIKE GRUNTS]

- They couldn't stop me from coming.
- You idiot.

Okay, not the welcome I was expecting.

- Why are you here?
- Isn't that obvious?

Coming for me... for us... was...

It was a crazy idea.

I would never want you
to endanger yourselves.

Well, a little late for
that, and not your call.

- g*dd*mn it, Chris.
- Hey. Don't blame me.

If you didn't want me
showing up unexpectedly,

you shouldn't have hung up on me,

so there.

You were safe.

Now you're...

you're here.

Yeah, I'm here. And
Enterprise is in orbit.

- We can get you out of here.
- Transporters don't work.

- Lucky me, I have a shuttle.
- We can't all fit in a shuttle.

- We can get some people out.
- It's not enough.

Besides, the second you
try, they'll sh**t you down.

- What about Mr. Scott, the engineer?
- What about him?

He said he ran from
the Gorn in a shuttle.

SCOTTY: The Stardiver was
stationed one system over.

The-the Shangdi system.

It's a red supergiant.

- Really spectacular specimen.
- Okay, okay.

- But where do the Gorn come into it?
- I'm getting there.

Um, Shangdi released

a truly dramatic series of CMEs.

- What's a CME?
- SAM: Coronal Mass Ejection.

Like a solar flare
but a lot more violent.

They're not common, at least,
not like the series we saw.

Really amazing.

Like, blast after blast,

f*ring off into the solar system.

And all of a sudden, there they were,

like a swarm... The Gorn.

But you didn't detect them before?

Starfleet would've warned them first.

Something about the
flares brought 'em out.

SAM: With locusts, environmental factors

can trigger a swarming instinct,
causing them to consume.

What if it's the same with the Gorn?

CMEs, in certain sequences,
set off a consumption cycle?

Are you suggesting they
invaded because of...

- sunspots?
- SAM: You showed us

how they communicate
ship-to-ship through light.

What if they evolved with some deep,

ingrained sensitivity to it?

BATEL: If that's true,
it's critical intel.

If they react instinctively
to solar activity,

we might be able to
use that against them.

All the more reason to
find a way off this planet.

You said earlier you figured
out a way to hide in plain sight.

With the Gorn, best I can explain,

I-I did a quick assessment
of their scanning tech,

and I saw how they
recognized each other.

It's similar to our transponders,

and, well, I-I built one.

Um, pretty quick. [CHUCKLES]

You built a Gorn transponder?

Using equipment from our solar array.

Uh, basically, to a scanner,

the shuttle looked like a Gorn ship.

If they couldn't recognize
you, how did you not get away?

Well, I took damage.

Uh, by the time I was hidden,

I was leaking antimatter.

This was the closest
planet I could set down on,

and it happened to be right
where they were headed.

Could you build another
device like the one you made?

Not unless you have a Hubble
K C Stellar Assessment Array

I can cannibalize.

[ELECTRONIC TRILLING]

Could you use some help, Doc?

Always.

Grab a dermal regenerator.

Thought you were off planning
the next stage of the fight.

[EXHALES SHARPLY] Leaving
that to the captains.

Did you ask about Christine?

She beamed back to the Cayuga.

Gonna be honest.

That is not great news.

No.

It isn't.

But if Christine were here,

she'd tell us to pick up the pace.

"These people can't treat themselves."

[BOTH LAUGH]

[CHUCKLES]: That's a
pretty good Christine.

She does a better me.

SPOCK: Two warp signatures incoming.

Gorn hunters?

Yes.

They are holding to their side
of the demarcation line for now.

Can't make this red alert
any redder, Mr. Spock.

Commander? Can we talk to you
and Lieutenant Spock, please?

SPOCK: You've determined the
source of the interference field?

Not exactly.

We've determined the location
from which the field emanates.

SHORT VERSION: by adjusting our output,

we triangulated the point of
origin of the countersignals.

PELIA: Now, we don't have any photos,

because it's on the
far side of the planet.

But we do know it's not native.

There's no structure indicated

on any colony maps in that location.

I'm betting it's some kind
of machine the Gorn brought.

If we can destroy it,

we can resume comms
and transporter signals.

Only problem I can see,
is there's no way for us

to use weapons on it without
getting into a larger w*r.

We can't fire weapons,

but we already know

that the Gorn don't
respond to space debris.

So, all we have to do is find
a way to get a piece of debris,

large enough to survive reentry,
to crash into that structure.

The saucer section of the Cayuga.

- Mm-hmm.
- My goodness.

If you had answered
like that in my class,

I would've given you an A-plus.

With the right calculations

and a few well-placed retro rockets,

we can make it appear that

Cayuga's orbit is decaying naturally.

Just more space junk,
burning up in the atmosphere.

PELIA: While it is
descending to the surface,

we can make a few last-minute
attitude adjustments

so that it will crash
exactly where we want it to.

UHURA: And by the time the
Gorn realize what's happened,

- it'll be too late.
- We can beam our people up

and get the hell out of here.

SPOCK: Placing those rockets
is a near impossible task.

No human can do this.

I, however, can.

- Spock.
- The commander and the ensign are right.

If we want to rescue our
people on the surface,

this is our best chance.

I know losing Christine is hard, but...

Yes, I am upset.

But I have not given in to grief yet.

Logic dictates we do not
know Chapel's or Batel's fate.

And until we do, the best chance

we have to save them is
if Enterprise takes out

the Gorn's interference field.

Further, I am the
only member of the crew

who can pull this off.

If it is to succeed, it must be me.

♪

♪

♪

[WHISPERING]: Where do
you think you're going?

Oh, let me guess.

You're gonna try to
rescue all of us, somehow.

[WHISPERING]: I was going
to find Mr. Scott's shuttle.

If I could retrieve his
device, it might allow us

to take off without the Gorn seeing us.

And then what? We can't
all fit onto the shuttle.

One problem at a time.

If I can rescue anyone, it's a start.

Well, you're not doing this alone.

Don't try that stare. It's
not gonna change a thing.

I can see that.

I'd be happy for the company.

SCOTTY [WHISPERING]: You're never
gonna be able to retrieve the device

without my help.

It's kind of... it's
kind of fused in there.

I didn't mean to eavesdrop.

Wasn't my fault you decided
to have a secret conversation

right in front of my sleeping spot.

You want to come, too?

Truth is, I'm terrified, but, um...

I owe it to the crew of the Stardiver.

Thank you, Mr. Scott.

If we take the back way,

stay off the main street,

we might even be able to avoid the Gorn.

Oh, in case we don't.

COMPUTER: Warning. Oxygen will
soon reach critical levels.

Warning. Oxygen will soon
reach critical levels.

Warning. Oxygen will soon
reach critical levels.

Warning. Oxygen will soon
reach critical levels.

Warning. Oxygen will soon
reach critical levels.

Warning. Oxygen will soon
reach critical levels.

Warning. Oxygen will soon
reach critical levels.

Power low. Life support failing.

Power restored.

Life support will remain
functional for one hour.

An hour. Okay.

Yeah, we can work with that.

[CLICKING]

[GASPS, SIGHS]

♪

♪

[HISSES]

♪

[BEEPING, WHIRRING]

Spock has successfully
placed the first rocket.

He's moving into second position.

[BEEPING CONTINUES]

♪

Spock? Spock. Spock.

Spock! Spock!

♪

[ELECTRICAL CRACKLING]

Ah, there it is.

[GRUNTS]

Yeah, the fused part is
on the side right there.

Captain Pike, if you can help,

we might be able to pry it off.

Captain Batel, I think I left an
ion welder over there, if you see it.

[CLUCKING, GROWLING]

[SCREECHING]

COMPUTER: Please input command code.

Spock?

Please input command code.

[SNARLING]

- Command code invalid.
- [GROWLING]

Command code invalid.

[HISSING]

Command code invalid.

[GROWLING]

[GROWLS]

Command code invalid.

♪

Command code invalid.

[SCREECHING]

Marie.

Shh.

[GROWLING, CLUCKING]

[ROARS]

[GROWLS]

- What the hell just happened?
- BATEL: We got lucky.

You're telling me that

that thing just chose not to att*ck?

Let's not waste time questioning it.

Mr. Scott?

Uh...

I might need to break the quadrocoupler.

[STRAINING]: I can probably...

borrow another from the shield array.

If I didn't use it already.

♪

[WHIRRING]

The saucer is moving.

[ALERT BLARING]

♪

♪

[SNARLING]

♪

[GROWLING, CLUCKING]

[SCREECHING]

♪

[SCREECHING]

[CHITTERING]

[HISSING]

[DISTORTED ROARING]

[CHITTERING STOPS]

Marie, talk to me.

Why did that Gorn run away?

I don't know, Chris.

Hey.

I came all the way here to find you.

Trust me with the truth.

[SIGHS]

It happened yesterday.

The eggs mature in
about a day and a half.

♪

♪

BATEL: I can't go with
you, you know that.

- You know what'll happen.
- You can't make this decision.

I won't endanger your
crew or the survivors.

It's what Hemmer did, Chris.

- Hemmer...
- He understood.

He was brave, but he
didn't give us a choice.

Here's my choice.

We free the device,
install it in your shuttle,

I fly it into the
Gorn tower, destroy it,

and you and the rest of the
survivors beam to Enterprise.

There's got to be a way to save you.

You have to let us at least try.

Marie...

♪

SCOTTY: I don't mean to interrupt,

but you both better grab onto something.

[WHIRRING]

The field is gone!

Transporters and comms are back on line!

SPOCK [OVER COMM]: Spock to
transporter, two to beam aboard

- as soon as possible.
- UHURA: Two?

Acknowledged and relayed, Lieutenant.

UNA: Number One to Pike, do you read?

PIKE [OVER COMM]: Boy, am I glad

to hear your voice, Number One.

UNA: No time to waste, Chris.

I don't know how much time we have
before the Gorn react.

I need you to track the colonists,
and beam them up.

They're in a building two klics
south-by-southwest.

What about you?

Three to beam up directly to sickbay.

We'll need a med team

and have Pelia meet us there, too.

Acknowledged.

♪

UNA: Welcome back, both of you.

Hate to do this to you, Nurse Chapel,

but we need you in sickbay
ASAP, and, Mr. Spock,

we could use your help on
the bridge right about now.

- Copy that.
- Understood, Commander.

Christine.

- I'm sorry.
- Don't. Save it.

There'll be time later.

♪

Christine?

You have no idea how
happy I am to see you.

Same here. What's happening?

Captain Batel is in need
of immediate sedation.

We'll also need a stasis field.

[WHISPERS]: Christine, if
there's one sign we can't stop it,

I need you to take me out.

I'm not giving up on her.

I have no intention of doing that.

Oh, uh, Commander Pelia,
this is Lieutenant Scott.

He needs your help.

Hello, Scotty.

- Professor.
- You two know each other?

One of my best students,

who sadly received
some of my worst grades.

Well, I'll leave you to it.

The hell is this supposed to be?

Something that could help
us hide from the Gorn.

- Oh.
- If we can fix it.

Captain on the bridge.

Wish it were better circumstances.

Just in time for more bad news.

A Gorn destroyer arrived in orbit.

We're facing four ships.

SPOCK: Long-range scans
have revealed more Gorn ships

in the vicinity, arriving in minutes.

Evasive maneuvers.

Uhura, I need to get a priority message

to Starfleet. We've
learned some critical intel

about the Gorn that they need to know.

Aye, Captain, I'll open a channel.

Number One, I need to buy time

to transport La'An,
Ortegas, Kirk, M'Benga,

and all the colonists off the planet.

Captain, the transporter
is not currently picking up

anyone on the surface.

- What?
- There's been no evacuation of any kind.

We have been scanning
since you first called.

We read no human life
signs on Parnassus Beta.

That's impossible, there are
hundreds of them. Check again.

I'm reading residual
transport signatures

from the center of the
town, non-Starfleet.

- What are you saying?
- The colonists and the landing party

appear to have been beamed up...

by the Gorn.

[RUMBLING]

- [PANICKED CHATTER]
- [ALERT BLARING]

♪

[YELPS]

Priority message from Starfleet.

Admiral April is ordering
our immediate withdrawal.

♪

Sir, do I respond?

But the Gorn still have our people.

UNA [ECHOING]: Captain?

Captain?

Orders, Captain?

♪

[RUMBLING]

♪