

(written from a Production point of view Real World article

Commander Riker fights for his life in sickbay after he is infected by an alien parasite while on an away mission. Dr. Pulaski soon discovers that the only way to save Riker's life is to force his mind to relive painful memories. (Season finale)

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Summary

Teaser

The USS Enterprise-D orbits an unexplored planet named Surata IV. An away team of Lieutenant Geordi La Forge and Commander Will Riker are on the surface in an alien swamp, teeming with strange lifeforms. La Forge finds Riker sitting on a log, injured. Something has bitten his leg. La Forge, not taking any chances with alien biology on a world unknown to the United Federation of Planets, calls for the transporter.

Transporter Chief O'Brien delays, getting an alert signal from the biofilter in the transporter, as Riker's body has been infected with some type of unidentified microbes. Doctor Pulaski is summoned, as the chief medical officer must authorize any transportation of unfiltered biomaterial.

Pulaski reluctantly uses the transporter – a rare occasion for her – to beam down and verify if it is safe to bring Riker aboard. She materializes and inspects Riker's wound with her tricorder. He complains of no pain, but of a numbness near the bite. La Forge hasn't had any luck finding what might have infected the wound. Pulaski beams them directly to sickbay. Two medical orderlies help Riker to the bed. He tries to shrug off their help, but when he takes a step his leg suddenly gives out.

Act One

Captain Picard records a log entry detailing Riker's predicament. He chides Riker for putting his foot where it didn't belong, but Riker maintains he is just trying to keep the doctors busy. Pulaski informs them that Riker's nervous system is being invaded by a microbe which combines elements of both a virus and a bacteria. She uses a medical scanner to illustrate the microbes bonding themselves to Riker's sciatic nerve and multiplying. They are not damaging his nerves, just preventing them from functioning – and they are progressing towards his brain.

Meanwhile, Picard decides to send La Forge and Lt. Commander Data to the surface to locate the source of the infection. Data protests at risking La Forge for the mission. However, La Forge tells him that he knows exactly where Riker was standing when he was injured. Data, using his android reflexes, prevents his Human friend from being hurt. They find a thorned vine in the swamp using parasites to paralyze animal life. Data records significant fossil remains around the area of the vines, which, judging by their fast motion attacking La Forge, are predatory in nature. When La Forge cuts off the thorn, the vine writhes in (futile) resistance. The officers call O'Brien for a beam-out and the thorn sample is delivered to sickbay while Data reports on the predatory nature of the vines to the captain.

Act Two

Pulaski is hard at work analyzing the samples and Riker's condition, but is unable to find what characteristic in Human nerves causes the microbes to thrive. Riker is continuing to grow more numb, but acts stoic when Picard expresses regret at Riker's condition. As Counselor Deanna Troi watches unseen, Riker even tries to cheer up the medical technicians with stories. Troi attempts to reach out to her imzadi, but Riker soon falls unconscious. Pulaski attempts to stabilize him, but estimates he will die within an hour.

In order to prolong Riker's life, Pulaski puts him into a neural stimulator, hopefully keeping them active and resisting the virus. This causes Riker to dream of his past adventures aboard the Enterprise.

Act Three

At first, Riker's dreams are of reasonably neutral occasions, such as his first meeting with Data in the holodeck and his attempt to help Wesley with meeting Salia. He also remembers saying goodbye to Deanna when he considered the USS Aries promotion. Soon, his dreams become more pleasurable, perhaps even erotic, including meeting the cheerful young Edo women on Rubicun III, or the matriarch Beata on Angel I, the attractive Bringloidi woman Brenna Odell, and the computer-generated holodeck woman Minuet.

However, while pleasing to Riker's mind, the passionate dreams actually worsen Riker's condition, with the organism's growth rate doubled.

Act Four

It is apparent that the organisms are sensitive to the nature of the dreams Riker is having. Pulaski hypothesizes that they are sensitive to brain endorphins, with positive endorphins attracting them. Pulaski and Troi therefore agree to try to make the machine evoke negative dreams instead. Riker then experiences dreams of the death of Lieutenant Natasha Yar and the apparent death of Troi's child Ian. Sure enough, this has the desired effect, as the negative endorphins drive the bacterio-virus growth down, but these endorphins are not strong enough.

Pulaski tries again, using the machine to evoke dreams of raw, primitive feelings of fear and survival. Riker then dreams of his experience aboard the Pagh, then fighting the parasite-infested Admiral Quinn. The growth rate now decreases significantly, but still not enough. Pulaski can focus her beam even tighter, but Riker is now very weak. Troi says they have no choice but to proceed.

Act Five

With Riker's vital signs very weak, Pulaski tries yet again. Riker is now dreaming more quickly through memories of pain, of T'Jon's attack on him, then being attacked by the Ferengi on Delphi Ardu IV and being enveloped by the tar creature Armus. The organism's growth rate is now very low, but still too high. His blood pressure dropping, Pulaski calls for the tricordrazine.

Riker now remembers tense situations, like setting the Enterprise auto-destruct sequence, saving the Klingons from the Talarian freighter that was about to explode. The organism's growth rate continues to decrease, but it needs to decrease even more. He relives his memories again at a much quicker pace, but also his encountering the neural parasite's mother creature, Data repairing the ship which was about to explode, the killing of one of the inhabitants of Solais V, the destruction of the SS Tsiolkovsky and the USS Lantree. Finally, the treatment resulting in the negative emotions releasing brain chemicals that eradicate the parasite once and for all cause Riker's vital signs to head back to normal.

Riker recovers to his well-adjusted, humorous self. Pulaski asks him who he is, and, seeing Picard walk in, he wittingly says he is Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the USS Enterprise. Picard in turn refers to Data as "Admiral", saying they were worried about him. Data obviously doesn't get it.

Log entries

Memorable quotes

"I hope these are the right coordinates. Just kidding, doctor. I know how much you love the transporter."

"About as much as I love comical transporter chiefs."

- Chief O'Brien and Dr. Pulaski



"Let's try something. Maybe it likes Humans more than androids."

"If you are correct, you are placing yourself in grave danger."

"Well, I'm counting on those great android…"

(A vine suddenly lashes out, but Data catches it.)

"…reflexes of yours."



- La Forge and Data



"For Commander Riker's sake, I hope my hypothesis is in error."

"Unfortunately Commander Data, your hypotheses rarely are."

- Data and Picard



"They're waiting on me hand and foot. I just… I hope they don't find out that I'm faking it."

"I wish you were faking it."

- Riker, talking to Picard while he lies on a biobed in sickbay



"If you drop a hammer on your foot, it's hardly useful to get mad at the hammer."

- Riker, explaining to Picard his lack of anger on his current situation



"Deanna, facing death is the ultimate test of character. I don't want to die but if I have to do, I'd like to do it with a little pride."

- Riker



"My great-grandfather was once bitten by a rattlesnake. After three days of intense pain, the snake died."

- Riker



"There may be some residual memory loss. I just want to be certain that you still know who you are."

"Of course I know who I am. I'm Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the USS Enterprise."

"I'm delighted that you're feeling better… captain. The admiral and I were worried about you."

"Captain, I do not believe you have the authority to promote me to the rank of admiral."

- Dr. Pulaski, Riker, Picard, and Data



"She's dead."

- Beverly Crusher (her only dialogue in the whole episode)

Background information

Production history

Story and production

Cast and characters

Continuity

Reception

Video and DVD releases

Starring

Also starring

Special appearance by

Guest star

Uncredited co-stars

Stand-ins

Flashback appearances

The following people appeared in footage used from previous episodes.

References

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Other references



