Original subtitles

Chief Medical Officer's Log, Stardate 44161.2.

We are docking at Starbase 133 for scheduled crew rotation.

I look forward to welcoming aboard

my mentor and dear friend, Dr. Dalen Quaice

who will be traveling with us to his home planet, Kenda ll.

Dalen!

Oh, it's good to see you again, Beverly.

You look wonderful.

A lie I can live with.

It's kind of your Captain to ferry me home.

It was on our way.

Thanks, O'Brien.

My pleasure, Doctor.

Dalen, I was sorry to hear about Patricia.

She had been ill for some time.

Is her death the reason you're giving up your post here?

Well, we had a lifetime together

doing all the things we'd ever dreamed

and more.

But when she was gone

I couldn't continue to work in that office

sleep in that bed without her.

The absence of her was too distracting.

I'm not sure that I'm making any sense.

Jack and I didn't have a lifetime together

only a few short years, but I understand.

When you realize

someone you love is lost forever...

You know what the worst part of growing old is?

So many of the people

you've known all your life are gone

and you realize you didn't take the time

to appreciate them while you still could.

Oh, I'm sorry.

There's no reason to load all this emotional baggage on you.

I usually travel light.

Wes, time for the experiment is over.

I want my warp engines back now.

I'm almost done, Commander.

Almost isn't good enough.

You want to be the one to explain

when the Captain says "engage" and we just sit here?

I just need a couple of more minutes.

I'm ready to try the new warp field.

Mom?

Don't let me interrupt.

Wesley!

Right. Okay.

Computer

run a level-2 diagnostic on warp drive systems.

Antimatter containment positive.

Warp drive within normal parameters.

Wesley, talk to me.

That shouldn't have happened.

Why would there be any visible phenomena

outside the warp drive?

Prepare for umbilical disconnect.

Are you done?

Yeah.

Mom?

Clear all moorings, Engineering.

Aft thrusters.

Aft thrusters, aye.

Impulse power to the helm.

Dalen?

Dalen, it's Beverly.

Computer, current location of Dr. Dalen Quaice.

There is no Dr. Dalen Quaice aboard the Enterprise.

Space, the final frontier.

These are the voyages of the Starship Enterprise.

Its continuing mission--

to explore strange new worlds

to seek out new life and new civilizations

to boldly go where no one has gone before.

Come.

Lieutenant Worf, yesterday, before we left Starbase

an old friend of mine came onboard, Dr. Dalen Quaice.

I requested quarters for him.

He was assigned here.

I was not aware of this passenger.

I'm sorry. I thought it was

standard procedure for you to be informed

after Captain Picard approved passage.

It is. Please proceed.

We were to meet for breakfast

but I can't seem to find him or his belongings.

Computer, where is Dr. Dalen Quaice?

There is no Dr. Dalen Quaice aboard the Enterprise.

Lieutenant, Dr. Quaice is very old and rather frail.

If he fell somewhere

if his communicator were damaged...

I will order a search immediately.

Thank you.

Even if Dr. Quaice had been injured

why would his belongings be missing?

Sir, I have several teams

conducting a deck-by-deck search.

It is not yet complete.

I have scanned the entire ship, Captain.

Other than the Enterprise's regular complement

I could find no one else onboard.

Your sensors wouldn't detect him if he were dead.

That is correct, Doctor.

Could, um...

your friend have returned to the Starbase

without telling you-- an emergency of some sort?

There were a lot of people going back and forth

between the ship and the Starbase yesterday.

We could easily check the transporter lD traces.

By all means, check the trace log

but even if the results are negative

contact Starbase Command.

We should leave nothing to chance.

Aye, sir.

One moment, Doctor.

I'm sure you're aware

of the procedure involving passengers.

Of course. I don't know why

Lieutenant Worf wasn't told about Dr. Quaice.

Well, I was not informed either.

But I sent in a request weeks ago.

Then it must have been intercepted

before it reached me.

And someone else sent approval?

Why?

Dr. Quaice had been stationed at the Starbase for some time?

Six years.

Perhaps it would be prudent to find out

if he had acquired any enemies there.

Course laid in for Durenia lV, sir.

Thank you, Number One. Mr. Data?

Sir, Starbase 133 has no record at all

of a Dr. Dalen Quaice.

You said he was stationed there for six years.

Not according to their computer.

I have also accessed Starfleet records.

There is no doctor

currently serving in Starfleet named Quaice.

In fact, I can find no service record whatsoever.

There are no birth records with that name.

I can find no...

Data, I interned with him on Delos lV.

I've known him for 15 years.

I do not doubt you, Doctor but I have tried

173 phonetic variations of the name, and l...

His name is Dalen Quaice. Q-u-a-i-c-e.

Whatever your records say, they're wrong.

Mr. Worf?

We have completed our search, Captain.

We cannot locate Dr. Quaice.

You're not alone.

He was onboard.

I met him myself in Transporter Room Three.

Then it appears, for reasons unknown

someone has taken great pains to erase all traces

of this man.

Who was on transporter duty when he came aboard?

Dr. Quaice?

Was he part of the regular crew rotation?

No, he's a friend of Dr. Crusher's.

When did he arrive?

Yesterday at 1600 hours.

That was my watch.

I beamed this man onboard?

Yes. I was here to meet him.

An elderly man, not in the best of health.

I'm sorry.

I remember you being here for a short while

but you were alone.

Wa-Was he invisible?

Did I carry on a conversation with thin air?

No, Doctor.

As I recall, you came in

and you looked around for a few moments.

I asked you if I could help you with anything.

All you said was "Thank you."

I said, "My pleasure" or something.

And that was the end of it.

There was no one else here.

I can't believe

that Chief O'Brien might be lying.

Well, he believes what he says

and there is no trace imprint for Dr. Quaice.

Will, I didn't just conjure up

one of my best friends from a test tube.

Well, if the ship's records have been tampered with

the transporter records

could have been changed, as well.

And with everybody coming and going yesterday

maybe O'Brien just doesn't remember.

Or...

Or?

It might be a good idea to run a diagnostic on him.

To make sure he wasn't tampered with.

What do you think?

It's worth a try.

I'll check the replicator activity logs.

18 hours is a long time to go without food.

Or without someone seeing him.

Chief, this examination should only take a few minutes.

But I feel fine.

Sit down.

Doctor, it's no use checking my eyesight.

I didn't see your friend.

I'll be a little more comprehensive than that, Chief.

Dr. Crusher to Dr. Hill.

Respond, please.

Dr. Selar, your present location?

Computer, current whereabouts of Doctors Hill and Selar.

There is no Dr. Hill or Dr. Selar

aboard the Enterprise.

Doctors Hill and Selar and four other members

of my medical staff have all vanished.

All record of their ever having been on the Enterprise

has been excised from the computer's memory.

Did they come onboard with Dr. Quaice?

No, they've been onboard for months

but my two duty nurses don't remember them.

Their families don't even remember them.

As O'Brien didn't remember Dr. Quaice.

I checked O'Brien thoroughly.

I found no physiological abnormalities.

Crusher to Captain Picard.

Go ahead, Ensign.

I'm in Engineering, sir.

There's something down here I think you'd better see.

It may be connected to Dr. Quaice's disappearance.

On my way.

Progress, Number One.

No one's seen him.

The replicator in his quarters has not been used.

Mr. Worf, check hull and shield integrity

for any sign of intruders.

Yes, sir. But I have been

closely monitoring all onboard sensors.

There has been no indication that anything...

Then give me a level-1 diagnostic

of any onboard sensors, and run a manual sweep

of any anomalous airborne or electromagnetic readings.

I want some answers.

I've been experimenting

with Kosinski's warp field equations

trying to improve engine efficiency.

I've read your reports.

We did a test run while we were still at the Starbase.

Here's what the computer recorded.

This is the static warp field

we created inside the warp drive.

The experiment was designed to see

if we could keep a bubble like this intact.

As you'll see in a moment, we couldn't.

There was a momentary flash of light.

It was all over the spectrum.

I remember that.

Are you suggesting that a bubble

could have made Dr. Quaice disappear?

If he were caught in it, yes, sir

it would seem to us like he'd disappeared.

Where would he go?

Who knows?

Could even end up outside of our space-time continuum.

Was Dr. Quaice in Engineering during your experiment?

No, sir.

And the bubble never expanded beyond Engineering?

No, sir.

Then how could it have trapped Dr. Quaice

or the others?

There are others missing?

Yes, and they weren't anywhere near Engineering.

It doesn't make sense.

I doubt that a warp bubble

could alter computer records or erase memories.

Keep at it, Ensign, Mr. La Forge.

It's our only working theory for now.

Has something else happened?

Sick Bay is totally empty.

Apparently, I no longer have any staff.

And that surprises you, Doctor?

Surprises me? I'll say it surprises me.

There should be at least four members

of my staff on duty at all times.

I am afraid ship's records do not concur, Doctor.

What are you talking about?

You do not have a staff.

You're telling me, I'm the sole medical officer

on a ship with over 1,000 people onboard?

Excuse me, Doctor

but the entire ship's complement is 230.

What?

Doctor, may I see you in my ready room?

Would you care for something?

So, Beverly...

Tea, Earl Gray. Hot.

You're saying that this ship has lost

nearly 800 of its personnel.

I know how it sounds.

None of the scans show any anomalies.

No signs of an intruder.

Wesley's experiment clearly did not have the scope

to affect an entire Starship.

Captain, the Enterprise is in serious danger.

You must believe me.

I have no choice but to believe you.

The safety of my entire crew is at stake.

But l... I must be sure.

That I haven't lost my mind?

I just examined myself

and being the only doctor onboard

I had to do it myself.

There were no signs of dysfunction.

Yes, there was

an increased elevation of adrenaline

but I think that is understandable.

Did you find anything that might suggest

why you're apparently the only one among us

unaffected by this... this phenomenon?

No.

I'll talk to Troi.

It wouldn't do any harm.

Captain, please.

Return this ship to Starbase 133 for a full diagnostic.

I realize you have my word only to convince you.

Mr. Riker?

Captain?

Set a course for a return to Starbase 133 immediately.

Aye, sir.

Your word has always been good enough for me.

I've had a team in Sick Bay for two hours.

We've run the mass spectrometer on all particulates.

We've scanned the EM spectrum in case there was a wave guide

somehow leaking radiation.

We've even crawled around in the life-support ductwork.

Captain, I don't know what this vortex was

that Doctor Crusher saw.

I didn't just see it, I felt it.

I barely escaped from it.

Well, there's nothing there now, and no sign there ever was.

Is there any possible connection with Mr. Crusher's experiment?

Could this "warp bubble" be floating about the ship perhaps?

No, sir.

That bubble was definitely contained in Engineering.

There's no way it could possibly

have affected anything up on deck 12.

Sir, I have completed level-1 computer diagnostics.

There are no malfunctions.

Have any other ships responded to our queries, Data?

The Wellington is

the only Federation vessel in this sector.

It reports normal operations.

A Ferengi ship within communications range

also reports nothing unusual.

Are all the members of the crew accounted for?

Yes, Doctor.

How many are there?

There are 1 14 people on the Enterprise.

That is the exact number there should be.

There are now over 900 missing.

Deck after deck of this ship is deserted now.

How do you account for all the empty rooms?

If there are only supposed to be 1 14 people onboard

why all the extra space?

Transportation of colonists

diplomatic missions, emergency evacuations...

Thank you, Mr. Data.

Have security confine

all non-essential personnel to their quarters.

Computer, go to Red Alert.

I'd like Lieutenant Worf to program onboard sensors

to monitor all personnel.

If we can catch the moment...

I'm sorry.

Whom did you say?

Worf. Chief of Security.

The big guy who never smiles?

The Klingon!

Whoa.

Deanna?

I need you to tell me if I've gone completely mad.

If you can ask the question, I'd say no.

Don't evade the question.

Well, then, ask me one I can answer.

Deanna, I've delivered babies that no longer exist.

No one else remembers them.

Yet I can close my eyes and see their faces

clearly as I see yours now.

What if it's not some huge conspiracy?

What if it is just me?

What if it is just you?

Then I've delayed a mission

and frightened a lot of people, including myself.

So what?

You have acted in the best interests

of your ship and crew.

What more could you ask of yourself?

And if this turns out to be a mistake

then we'll be a little late arriving at Durenia lV.

That's all.

It's not a mistake.

I wish it were.

When we reach Starbase, I'll order a complete workup

both physical and psychological.

If we reach Starbase.

Wesley.

Where's Wesley?

Wesley!

Mom?

Are you all right?

No.

We may have very little time left.

You don't believe me.

Look, Mom, I don't know...

I don't have time to convince you.

Hundreds of people are now missing

and your experiment is the only possible explanation we have

that we can work on right now.

Well, there it is.

I don't know what else to do with it.

Then find someone who does.

Someone who knows something about... about warp bubbles.

I've already talked to Kosinski on subspace

and he can't explain it, either.

And this is based on his equations.

There is someone who may be able to help

but I can't reach him.

-Who? -He was Kosinski's assistant.

He was an alien from Tau Alpha C.

He said he was some kind of "Traveler."

Somehow, he combined warp technology

and the energy from his own thoughts.

Yes, I remember.

Wesley, do you think it's possible

that you've accidentally recreated

something that he did?

Something that could alter reality?

I don't see how.

He's the only one who could explain it to us.

I've sent a message to Tau Alpha C

but it's so far away, it could take days to get there.

Maybe the Captain can help us.

We've got to find him. Come on.

I don't even know if he's still alive.

He was very sick.

Well, we can't stand around here doing nothing.

It's a chance.

We have to try to...

Wesley.

Wesley!

They're all gone?

Riker, Troi, Data?

Wait a minute. Let me guess.

You never heard of any of them.

You know, Doctor, I have been more than fair.

I've done everything I can to substantiate your...

your perceptions of a crew...

Will Riker.

Your First Officer.

He's-he's very good

at playing poker, loves to cook.

He listens to jazz music, plays the trombone.

I cannot find any evidence of a Will Riker...

Commander Data, the android who sits at Ops.

Dreams of being human.

Never gets the punch line of a joke.

Doctor... we'll be arriving at Starbase 133 in a few hours.

Deanna Troi, your ship's Counselor.

Half-Betazoid, loves chocolate.

The arrival of her mother makes you shudder.

O'Brien, Geordi, Worf.

Wesley, my son.

They all have been the living, breathing heart of this crew

for over three years.

They deserve more than to be shrugged off, brushed aside

just pinched out of existence like that.

They all do.

They deserve so much more.

Beverly...

perhaps it would be best

if you were to confine yourself to Sick Bay until we arrive.

It's all perfectly logical to you, isn't it?

The two of us roaming about the galaxy

in the flagship of the Federation.

No crew at all.

We've never needed a crew before.

I don't suppose you remember an alien from Tau Alpha C

who was onboard once?

He called himself a "Traveler."

Jean-Luc, I don't know how, but you and l

have got to find this Traveler, or another from his race.

If anyone can help us...

I give you my word, when we arrive at the Starbase

I will make every effort to find him.

It's not a delusion.

It is not a dream.

There is a physical, measurable phenomenon

at work here.

Perhaps you could help me to identify it.

How?

I'd like to use the ship's computer to monitor

your life functions.

Until I disappear?

It will happen.

All right.

Computer, continuous scan

Captain Jean-Luc Picard, vital signs.

Audible readout. Begin now.

Body temperature, 37.2 degrees...

I promise you, I will continue to do

whatever I can to find out what's happening

and to bring you all back.

Blood pressure, 122 over 76.

I'm sorry I lost my temper.

You do remember that?

Vividly.

Electrolytic balance...

But if I have forgotten my closest friends and comrades

as you say, then I deserved every word.

Respiration, 17. Blood pressure...

For quite some time, I've been meaning to say something to you.

I might not have another chance.

Jean-Luc, you and l...

I won't forget.

I won't forget any of you.

Wesley, have you got it?

What's happening?

I'm losing it.

The link isn't holding, Commander.

I'll go to the secondary equations.

No.

Look.

I've lost it.

Damn, I'm sorry, Wesley.

It's over.

There's no way we'll get her back now.

It's not over, Wesley.

There's still a way.

Captain's Log, Stardate 44162.5.

Two attempts to retrieve Dr. Crusher have failed.

And now the Traveler--

a mysterious visitor from our past-- has reappeared.

Is she alive?

As long as she thinks she is alive, she is alive.

What the hell does that mean?

Your species have very narrow perceptions

of time and space and thought.

When Beverly Crusher was caught in the static warp bubble

she created her own reality.

Her thoughts at the precise moment she was trapped

determined its shape and form.

Can you go in and get her back?

No, it is her reality.

I cannot enter it

anymore than I can enter her thoughts.

But you said there's still a way.

I can help

but I can't do it myself.

Wesley...

there is a power within each of us

that most people haven't begun to realize.

But you have begun

or else I would not have known to come here now.

Together, we may be able to open a gateway for her...

but she must choose to walk through it.

Computer, we are going to apply precise diagnostic methodology.

Once we've cataloged the symptoms

we will proceed to determine the illness

and then find the cure.

We will start with the assumption

that I am not crazy.

If I am, it won't matter one way or another.

Computer, read the entire crew roster for the Enterprise.

Dr. Beverly Crusher.

Have I always been

the only member of the crew on the Starship Enterprise?

Affirmative.

If this were a bad dream, would you tell me?

That is not a valid question.

Like hell, it's not.

What date did I report onboard?

Stardate 41 154, 1400 hours, three minutes.

That sounds about right.

Computer, is there more than one USS Enterprise?

This vessel is the fifth Starship

to bear the name USS Enterprise.

It is currently the only one in service.

What is the primary mission of the Starship Enterprise?

To explore the galaxy.

Do I have the necessary skills to complete that mission alone?

Negative.

Then why am l the only crew member?

Aha, gotcha there.

That information is not available.

Computer, are you familiar

with the inhabitants of Tau Alpha C?

Affirmative.

Are any presently located on any Starbase or vessel

within communication distance?

Negative.

Estimated time to Tau Alpha C at warp 9.5?

123 days.

Lay in a new course for Tau Alpha C

and send a subspace message advising them of our arrival.

Acknowledged.

Engage.

Computer, did you change course?

State new destination or coordinates.

I stated it. Damn it.

Tau Alpha C.

There is no Tau Alpha C listed on current star maps.

Captain's Log, Stardate 44162.8.

At the direction of the Traveler

the Enterprise is returning to Starbase 133

and the precise position where the subspace bubble was formed.

Our goal will be to create a stable gateway

between our reality and your mother's reality.

We've tried. We can't stabilize the link.

Of course not.

The equations are only the first step.

We will be going beyond mathematics.

Just tell me what I have to do.

Begin by letting go of your guilt, Wesley.

It's my fault. I shouldn't have tried...

Focus on the present.

You will have to be here completely to help her back.

You must open yourself to time and space

and the intricate threads that bind them.

Begin entering your warp field equations.

Now close your eyes.

See past the numbers.

Trust yourself.

I can't.

I can't do it.

When the time comes, you will, Wesley.

You will.

Starbase 133, this is the Enterprise.

Starbase 133, this is the Enterprise.

Please acknowledge.

Viewscreen on.

It's not just people.

Everything is disappearing.

Computer, what is that mist I'm seeing?

Sensors indicate it to be a mass-energy field

705 meters in diameter.

It surrounds the ship?

Affirmative.

If there's nothing wrong with me...

maybe there's something wrong with the universe.

Computer, what is beyond the mass-energy field?

Sensors cannot penetrate the field.

Here's a question you shouldn't be able to answer.

Computer, what is the nature of the universe?

The universe is a spheroid region

705 meters in diameter.

Captain, approaching Starbase 133.

Slow to ten meters per second.

Mr. La Forge, prepare

for precision station keeping.

Acknowledged. Readying thrusters.

There.

There it is.

We're moving into phase now.

There's your warp bubble, Wesley.

What?

What's wrong?

It is... collapsing.

Computer, give me

a graphic representation of the universe.

I've seen this before.

Wesley's experiment.

The bubble.

Of course.

But that would mean

that I'm the one trapped in the bubble.

Computer, what's happening?

Explosive decompression, decks five through 14.

Sealing off forward sections.

Cause?

A flaw in the ship's design.

Show me.

Analysis.

No ship's structures exist forward of bulkhead 342.

Superimpose previous image over this one

same scale, and continue to monitor.

It's collapsing!

Hull integrity now compromised on decks three through 15.

Computer, how long can life-support be maintained?

Four minutes, 17 seconds.

Captain, we have reestablished exact coordinates and attitude.

Geordi, we're in position.

Your status?

The warp bubble is contracting

at a rate of 15 meters per second.

We're going to lose it in about four minutes.

It is time, Wesley.

We're ready, Commander.

Proceed.

I'll be in Engineering.

Let it go, Wesley.

Let go of the anticipation

the expectations

the demands upon yourself.

Let it all go.

Leave it behind.

Yes.

The ability is there inside of you.

You do not need to look for it.

Three minutes, 30 seconds to life-support failure.

The Traveler used his thoughts to alter warp fields.

Thoughts became reality.

Now I'm in a warp field.

Could my thoughts have changed this reality?

Come on, Beverly!

What's the next step?

What was I thinking at the moment Wesley's bubble formed?

Dalen Quaice.

He said all the people he'd known were gone.

I thought of Jack. I went to see Wesley...

The flash in Engineering...

That's when it started.

That's when...

I started losing everybody.

My thoughts created this universe.

Can they get me out of it again?

That information is not available.

I'm not talking to you.

Click my heels together three times

and I'm back in Kansas.

Can it be that simple?

Two minutes, 30 seconds to life-support failure.

Computer, hypothetical situation.

A person is trapped inside of a static warp bubble.

Determine a means of escape.

Escape would theoretically depend

on establishing a stable threshold

between the warp field and the outer environment.

Describe this threshold.

Negative. There are no known

practical applications of this theory.

Extrapolate from theoretical database.

How would it manifest itself?

A dynamic atmospheric disturbance of great intensity.

Disturbance?

The vortex.

They must have been trying to reach me.

But how do I find it?

Wesley, where do I go?

Help me.

Stable threshold.

They've been trying to create a stable threshold.

Where are they trying to do it?

Where did they do it the first time?

Engineering.

One minute, 30 seconds to life-support failure.

Engineering.

Failure in turboshaft four.

Unable to proceed to Main Engineering.

Just take me anywhere on deck 36.

We're losing the bubble!

Beverly?

Jean-Luc.

Oh!

You...

Do I have you to thank for getting me back?

No.

Oh...

Jean-Luc, if I might ask

how many people are there onboard?

1,014...

including your guest, Dr. Quaice.

Is there something wrong with that count, Doctor?

No. That's the exact number there should be.