02x24 - First Flight

Episode transcripts for the TV show "Star Trek: Enterprise". Aired: September 26, 2001 – May 13, 2005.*
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Set in the 22nd century, a hundred years before the events of The Original Series, it follows the adventures of the Enterprise, Earth's first starship capable of traveling at warp five, as it explores the galaxy and encounters various alien species.
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02x24 - First Flight

Post by bunniefuu »

It could be a phantom reading.

Background radiation.

Even your scientists
have confirmed

the existence of dark matter.

Never in such
dense concentrations.

That's the point.

If it really is
a dark-matter nebula,

we'd be the first
to directly observe one.

Even with modified sensors,

there wouldn't be much to see.

I've heard of Vulcan experiments

where they were able
to excite dark matter

by bombarding it
with metrion particles.

Those tests involved
very small quantities.

This structure is nearly

ten million kilometers
in diameter.

Could you rig some kind
of spatial charges?

Something that would

spread the metrion particles
over a wider area?

Well, if I can, it should
put on a hell of a show.

Sorry to interrupt, Captain.

It's Admiral Forrest.

Get to work on those charges.

Aye, Captain.

This is good timing, Admiral.

We just picked up

some very interesting
sensor readings.

I'm afraid I've got
some bad news, Jon.

It's A.G.

He was back on Mount McKinley.

There was an accident.

He was k*lled.

I'm sorry.

♪ It's been a long road ♪

♪ Getting from there to here ♪

♪ It's been a long time ♪

♪ But my time is finally near ♪

♪ And I will see my dream
come alive at last ♪

♪ I will touch the sky ♪

♪ And they're not gonna
hold me down no more ♪

♪ No, they're not gonna
change my mind ♪

♪ 'Cause I've got faith ♪

♪ Of the heart ♪

♪ I'm going where my heart
will take me ♪

♪ I've got faith to believe ♪

♪ I can do anything ♪

♪ I've got strength
of the soul ♪

♪ No one's gonna bend
or break me ♪

♪ I can reach any star ♪

♪ I've got faith ♪

♪ I've got, I've got, I've got ♪

♪ I've got faith ♪

♪ Faith of the heart. ♪

You've got six spatial charges.

I rigged them myself.

What are their ranges?

If there's any dark matter

within 500 kilometers,
you'll know.

Thanks.

You sure you
don't want some company?

If this nebula exists,
we don't know

what effect it could
have on the shuttlepod.

All the more reason
to bring your Engineer along.

Not this time, Trip.

I still can't believe it.

All the close calls
he had flying warp trials.

And he gets himself k*lled
climbing Mount McKinley.

I've brought
some sensor enhancements.

Thanks.

We'll find them useful
in mapping the nebula

if it's there.

We?

This is a scientific mission.

It's only logical to bring
your Science Officer.

I'd prefer
to handle this myself.

Commander Tucker obviously
didn't remind you

that Starfleet regulations

prohibit the Captain from
leaving the ship unaccompanied.

We should reach
the edge the phenomenon

in two hours, 46 minutes.

I can pass the time
by meditating,

but if you'd prefer to talk...

Go ahead and meditate.

Would you like to join me?

You seem quite unsettled since
your call from Admiral Forrest.

I'm fine.

Commander Tucker was reluctant
to discuss it as well

though he did mention...

an old colleague had d*ed.

A Starfleet Captain.

A.G. Robinson.

I wouldn't be out here
if it weren't for him.

I'm somewhat familiar
with Starfleet history.

I've never heard
of a Captain Robinson.

I'm sure
there's a paragraph about him

in the Vulcan database.

We were in the NX-Test Program,

trying to break
the warp 2 barrier.

There were just a few of us.

Gardener, Duvall, A.G. and me.

We all wanted the first flight,

and I was cocky enough to think
I'd be the one to get it.

Come in.

Sorry I'm late, Commodore.

I came straight
from the test bay.

At ease, Commander.

I heard your got the warp
reactor up to 90 percent today.

Ninety-two.

Sir...

you didn't call me here
to ask about an engine test.

We all know the assignment's
about to be handed out.

I'm guessing this is either
really good news or...

We're going
with Commander Robinson.

A.G. is a fine pilot.

It wasn't an easy decision.

You'll be backup.

Sounds good.

You know, I've spent more time
in the simulator than anyone.

If I can do anything
to help A.G. prepare for...

Jon.

It's your father's engine.

I know how important
this was to you.

The most important thing to me
is that we succeed.

Is there anything else?

No, Commander.

Dismissed.

Thanks, Ruby.

You all right?

Sure. Why?

The last time you
had this much to drink

was the day Caroline
moved to New Berlin.

My guess is, Forrest

gave out the assignment today.

Sherlock Holmes
has nothing on you.

They'll need a pilot
for the next flight.

You remember
what Buzz Aldrin said

when he stepped on the moon?

No.

Nobody does.

Because Armstrong went first.

Congratulations.

You mean that?

Of course not.

I'm waiting for Forrest
to realize

what a horrible mistake he made.

Until then...

let me buy you a drink.

No, I'll buy you one.

Consolation prize.

Two more, Leo.

To Commander A.G. Robinson.

We all worked hard
to get this flight,

but in the end,
the best pilot won.

Just ask him.

To A.G.

To A.G.

Hear, hear.

Take it easy, Commander.

You're doing the simulator
at 0700.

First flight's in two weeks.

You know why you didn't
get this assignment?

I bet you're going to tell me.

You tried too hard.

You did everything by the book.

You b*rned the midnight oil
in that simulator.

18, 20-hour days.

You shut everything
and everyone out of your life

just so you could be the first.

And?

You still don't understand.

Starfleet doesn't just want
a great pilot.

They want a great captain.

You said Captain Robinson
was a close friend.

That's right.

From what you've told me,
your relationship seemed...

adversarial.

Only one of us was going
to get to fly that ship.

Nothing wrong with a little
healthy competition.

He did have a point.

It does take more than piloting
ability to command a starship.

I agree.

Fortunately, you seem to have
developed the necessary skills.

Was that a compliment?

An observation.

I assume Captain Robinson's
flight was successful?

Not exactly.

He was lucky to come out of it
in one piece.

NX Control,

I thought we built a warp ship
so we could go to warp.

Maintain your orbit.

We're trying
to run down a problem

with the stabilization
protocols.

I just saw Italy go by again.

If this is going
to take much longer,

maybe you
could send up some food.

What can I get you?

How about some of those

deep fried mushrooms
from the 602?

I'll send Ruby up
to take your order.

We are clear
on the stabilization protocols.

Restart countdown at 30 seconds.

Good news, A.G.

I just got word
from the powers that be

that you're good to go.

Acknowledged.

WSP is nominal.

APUs are good.

Warp field initialization
in 20 seconds.

I'm breaking orbit.

At least the thrusters work.

I did get a little variance
on the RCS.

We noticed that here.

Do you want to bring her back
to the garage?

Not on your life.

We've got a stable warp field.

NX-Control to NX-Alpha.

You have permission
to go to warp.

See you in a few light-years.

Warp 1.

1.5.

That little bump you just felt
was warp 2.

Congratulations.

Now, let's see

if you can get
it up to 2.1.

She's getting a little shaky.

Are you sure you got

that stabilization problem
ironed out?

Field integrity's
down to 20 percent.

The warp field won't hold.

A.G., we're getting

some pretty unusual
telemetry down here.

We need you to go sublight
until we get it sorted out.

Did you hear me?

I'm at 2.1.

I think I can get
a little more out of her.

Negative; abort.

Warp 2.15.

This is Forrest.

Drop to impulse.
That's an order!

2.2.

The field's collapsing!

A.G., you've got
to get out of there.

We've lost telemetry.

NX-Control to NX-Alpha, come in.

A.G.

Can you hear me?

The particle density
is increasing.

We should be entering
the nebula.

The readings could
be misleading.

As Dr. Phlox would say,
"Optimism."

Optimism doesn't alter
the laws of physics.

Time to put Trip's charges
to the test.

Three seconds.

Anything?

We need to move deeper
into the nebula...

if it exists.

What happened?

The field emissions

on the charges
could have been too low.

Or maybe we're just
on a wild-goose chase.

I was referring
to Captain Robinson.

His test flight.

He made the record books

for being the first person
to deploy an escape pod at warp.

But he lost
one of two NX prototypes.

Nearly derailed
the entire program.

Are you all right?

A little shaky.

Trust me, you don't want to pass

through the warp barrier
in one of those.

Should make a nice addition
to the Starfleet museum.

What went wrong?

I'm not sure, sir.

The closer I got to 2.2,

the more trouble I had
keeping the field stable.

You were ordered to abort.

The abort call was premature.

We had some instability
on the previous tests,

but it always settled down.

Your engine design
is obviously unsound.

There's nothing wrong
with that engine.

You have something to add,
Lieutenant...?

Tucker, sir.

I'm on Captain Jefferies'
Engineering Team.

We've never pumped
this much antimatter

through the injectors before.

It's going to take us

a little time to get
the intermix right.

That's precisely the point.

Your program is

moving too quickly.

Just because it took you

a hundred years to cr*ck

warp 2 doesn't mean
it'll take us that long.

Lieutenant!

Sorry, sir.

He's right.

This is a new engine.

It's bound to have
a few bugs to work out.

Those "bugs"
just scattered your ship

across 5,000 kilometers
of space,

and nearly k*lled your pilot.

We're not going to get anywhere
without taking some risks.

I know where you stand
on this, Commander.

We've got a lot of data
to analyze

before we know what happened.

We should be grateful
we only lost the ship.

Cyrus.

Cyrus?

Who's Cyrus?

It was my great-
grandfather's name.

Keep trying, Tucker.

Chester.

How about Rosalie
if it's a girl?

Come on, give me a hint.

She's had names for her kids
picked out since she was ten.

Says she'll marry

the first man to guess them.

What's your name, Lieutenant?

Charles Tucker, sir,
but everybody calls me Trip.

Trip?

My dad's Charles Tucker,
and so was his dad,

and that makes me the third,
so, triple...

Trip.

Thanks for your help today

with our...
Vulcan friends, Trip.

My father would have
appreciated it.

I don't get it.

It's... it's like
they want us to fail.

I gave up trying
to figure out the Vulcans

a long time ago.

Commodore.

At ease.

May I?

Of course.

Can I, uh...
buy you a drink, sir?

It's the least you could do
after that outburst today.

I'm sorry, sir,
I-I didn't mean to...

I'll have a beer, Mr. Tucker.

It's been a while
since I've been in here.

I see it hasn't changed much.

Is there something
on your mind, sir?

I came here to tell you...

at the urging

of the Vulcan Advisory Council,

that Starfleet Command
has decided

to put the NX-Program on hold.

For how long?

Indefinitely.

Gentlemen?

One beer.

What do you mean, indefinitely?

They want to go back
to the drawing board, Jon.

Develop a new engine
from scratch.

We have an engine
that works now.

If we start over,
it'll be decades

before we get into deep space.

Starfleet's made its decision.

Permission to speak freely, sir?

It's your father's engine.

His life's work.

You can't let them do this.

Bourbon, straight-up.

I suppose you heard?

This is really going
to throw a wrench

in my career plans.

Thanks.

Last call;
anything else?

I'll have another.

Where have you been all day?

Debriefing.

After the flight surgeons
were done with me,

I got hauled in front
of the Starfleet senior staff

and the Vulcans.

What did you tell them?

What do you think?

The subspace field destabilized
at warp 2.2.

Primary flight controls failed,

resulting in the loss
of the vehicle.

Aren't you forgetting something?

What?

The possibility of pilot error.

I'm not interested
in your opinion, Lieutenant.

You should be.

The Vulcans have been leaning
on Starfleet for years

to rein in this program.

You walked in there today,

ruled out pilot error,

and told them
just what they wanted to hear...

Our engine doesn't work.

Sorry to be the bearer
of bad news, Archer,

but it doesn't work.

The engine's sound.

We just need more time
to balance the intermix.

We need more than time.

I agree.

We need a pilot
who listens to orders.

If you'd aborted,

we'd still have a ship

and probably another chance.

Another chance to what,
get k*lled?

At the first sign of trouble,
you should've throttled down.

It wouldn't have made
a damn bit of difference.

I guess we'll never find out.

You weren't in that cockpit.

There's nothing wrong
with that ship!

There's plenty wrong.

You just refuse to see it.

What the hell's that
supposed to mean?

Every time there's a problem
with this project,

you blame it on pilot error
or gravitational anomalies

or some technical malfunction.

Well, you're going to have
to face the truth this time,

because there's nothing left
to point a finger at.

Your father
designed a lousy engine.

That's enough!

Do something!

Come on, come on, break it up!

Break it up!

You think this is going
to get either of you

any closer to warp 5?

The fight was interrupted?

Not before I got

two bruised ribs
and a cracked molar.

I suppose we'll never know.

Who would have won.

Main power is fluctuating.

That's all right.

Auxiliary's kicking in.

There was a surge
in the EPS grid.

We must be getting close.

Trip said the dark matter

might affect the
shuttle's systems.

He'll be happy to
hear he was right.

It was probably nothing more

than a simple malfunction.

I don't think so.

Our prelaunch checks
were all fine.

Something else
caused that surge.

I'm not detecting
any dark matter.

Have a little faith, T'Pol.

Even if you're right,
it may be dangerous to proceed.

Another surge
could disable life support.

One thing
I learned from A.G.:

You're never going
to get anywhere

without taking risks.

You obviously admired this man.

Quite a bit.

And yet he cracked your molar?

Yeah, humans can have funny ways

of forming friendships.

To say the least.

He would have loved it out here.

Too bad he never got the chance.

God knows he earned it.

I thought you said
he was responsible

for nearly ending the program.

He was also responsible
for getting it back on course.

With a little help
from me and Trip.

I see you're
not losing any time.

We're done flying.

No use hanging around.

Here you go.

I'm not clearing out just yet.

Suit yourself.

I've been thinking about
what you were saying last night.

About my father's engine.

Look, I was out of line.

You were right.

I wanted to see this thing
fly so badly,

it kept me from being objective.

That's good of you
to admit, but...

doesn't really matter now.

It may.

I got my hands on the telemetry
from your flight.

It looks like Tucker was right

about the intermix,

but I think we can
compensate for it.

You heard Forrest.

The program is on
hold indefinitely.

We can take this to Starfleet.

Make a case
to get off the ground again.

What about the Vulcans?

They'll look at your data
and say we need

to run computer simulations
for another ten years

to prove that you're right.

Commodore Forrest
will back us up.

Forrest answers
to Starfleet Command.

It's out of his hands.

Even if his two senior pilots
insist that this ship can fly?

If the three of us
go in there together,

we might be able
to change their minds.

You just went faster than
any human being ever has.

And now you're going
to walk away?

Let them put the ship
in mothballs

when we're so close
to breaking warp 3.

You're always talking
about taking risks.

What have we got to lose?

If you want to convince
the Vulcans,

you'll have to do a lot
better than showing them

a bunch of antimatter
calculations.

I'm open to suggestions.

We only lost one ship.

Still have one left.

They'll never give us clearance.

Can you think of a better way
to prove it'll fly?

You want to talk
about taking risks?

You're a great pilot.

Maybe as good as me.

But you're never going

to get out into deep space
by playing it safe.

When the first
warp 5 starship is built,

its captain won't be able
to call home

every time he needs
to make a decision.

He won't be able to turn
to the Vulcans.

Unless he decides
to take one with him.

We should be 20,000 kilometers
inside the nebula.

Let's load up two more charges.

The history of your early warp
flights is well-documented,

but I've never read anything
about two Starfleet pilots

stealing the warp 3 prototype.

It wasn't the kind of thing
Starfleet Command

wanted to advertise.

Don't you believe me?

I have no doubt it happened,

though I find difficult
to believe

you had to be convinced

to participate.

Well...

you didn't know me then.

I was a little more by-the-book.

The particle density
has nearly doubled.

Shall we try again?

Perhaps we should head back.

We still have two more charges;
let's keep looking.

Was your test flight successful?

Promise you won't put this
into the Vulcan database?

We decided on a night launch.

I've routed
the intermix controls

to the Engineering station.

If it becomes unstable, you'll
be able to adjust it manually.

Thanks.

If I came along, I could
monitor the antimatter flow.

I'll keep an eye on it.

You're going to have
your hands full.

I'm going to need you down here.

Don't worry. You'll
get out there someday.

If I had my own ship, I'd
sign you up in a second.

I'm going to hold you to that.

Thanks, Trip.

No response
from the auxiliary APUs.

That's because they
haven't been installed yet.

How's it coming, Trip?

I've disabled
the tracking sensors.

But I'll need a minute
to divert the telemetry.

How long?

Don't wait for me.

I'll be ready
by the time you break orbit.

Acknowledged.

Not too late to call this off.

Head over to the 602 for a beer.

Not on your life.

Anyone notice we're gone yet?

As far as they know,

the doors are closed
and the lights are out.

But New Berlin
should be picking you up

in about six minutes.

By the time they figure out
what's going on,

we'll be halfway to Jupiter.

Come in.

You're working late.

We just got a call.

New Berlin's detected
the NX-Beta.

What?

Internal sensors show
it's still in the hangar.

Has anyone bothered to look?

Warp field is stable.

Something wrong?

Why don't you take it?

What?

I had the last flight.

You're due up.

Besides...

you could use the practice.

Hope you and Tucker
were right about that intermix.

We're about to find out.

This is Forrest.

What the hell is going on?

Just running
an engine test, sir.

Archer?

Turn around right now,
and I'll do what I can

to keep you out of prison.

If you knew...

Archer!

Perfect.

That's warp 2.

Here we go again.

I'm reading fluctuations
in the intermix.

We see it.

Your warp field's destabilizing!

Warp 2.15.

You better get that intermix
locked down,

'cause I'm not backing off
till I break your record.

You got it?

Almost.

Come with us, Lieutenant.

NX-Beta, do you read?

NX-Beta to Commodore Forrest.

You might want to check
your sensors.

You'll see we're holding steady
at 2.5.

Congratulations.

Now get the hell back here.

Not only was it in violation
of a direct order,

it was utterly reckless,
irresponsible

and maybe even criminal.

Sir...

I'm not done, Commander!

You are both suspended
from duty pending an inquiry.

And by the time Starfleet
Command gets through with you,

you're going to wish
that you had never come back.

You're supposed to represent
the best

that Starfleet has to offer.

Keeping this program
on track is hard enough

without our own
officers undermining it.

What did you think

that this stunt of
yours would accomplish?

That just because you didn't
get yourselves k*lled

that we'd ignore
the data we've collected,

the testing we've done,

the recommendations
of the Vulcan Advisory Council?

If we follow
all their recommendations,

we'll never make it
into deep space.

No one is suggesting

that your warp program
be dismantled.

Only that Starfleet proceed
with more restraint.

Get Lieutenant Tucker in here.

Ask any engineer on the project.

They'll tell you
this ship can fly.

Archer and I just proved it.

We're ready to go...
now.

That's not your decision
to make.

With all due respect,
it's not yours either.

You're right, sir.

We were reckless.

We knew there'd be consequences.

We knew we'd probably be
thrown out of Starfleet.

You may have been right.

A.G. and I may never fly again,

but it's a small sacrifice
to make

if it keeps this project going.

We didn't build this engine

to make test runs
around Jupiter.

We built it to explore!

If my father were alive today,

he'd be standing here asking,

"What the hell
are we waiting for?"

You obviously weren't dismissed
from Starfleet.

They must have found
your argument convincing.

Convincing enough.

We managed
to avoid a court-martial,

but they grounded us
for three months.

Still, the NX-Program continued.

Eventually.

The Vulcans had us run

every simulation they could
think of for over a year

before they finally admitted
the engine would probably work.

Eight months after that,

Duvall broke warp 3
in the NX-Delta.

Five years later, we laid
the keel for Enterprise.

You know the rest.

The particle density
has increased again.

I'd hate to see those last
two charges go to waste.

Anything on sensors?

It appears so.

Fascinating.

This data will certainly
cause a debate

at the Science Directorate.

T'Pol...

come up and look at this
a minute.

I have to monitor
the quantum field.

Let the sensors do it.

That's why A.G. and I

worked so hard to get out here.

Captain Robinson clearly wanted
to command Enterprise

as much as you did.

He wasn't alone.

But by the end,

A.G. and I were the only
two candidates left.

They made the final selection
six months before we launched.

Maybe I just got lucky.

Thanks.

Congratulations, Captain.

To Jonathan Archer,

first skipper of the
Starship Enterprise.

And one lucky S.O.B.

Luck had nothing to do with it.

It couldn't have been talent.

I'm just waiting
for Forrest to realize

what a horrible mistake he made.

Still...

they could've done a lot worse.

Anyway, I'd rather wait
for the NX-02.

Let you make all the mistakes

so I'll have
an easier time of it.

To the first skipper
of the NX-02.

Got to go.

I'm catching a shuttle
to Alice Springs at 0600.

More survival training.

'Night, Ruby.

Good luck, Jon.

Hey.

I'll see you out there.

Captain.

We should start back

if we're going to make
our rendezvous.

Right.

Welcome back.

How'd it go?

Your charges were effective.

Was it a good show?

You should've been there.

I'll remember to ask you
next time.

I believe there's a human custom

that says when you
discover something of merit,

you earn the right to name it.

What would you suggest...

The "T'Pol-Archer Nebula"?

I was thinking

the "Robinson Nebula"
would be more appropriate.
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