Riker Survives Armus’s Assault; Picard Orders Immediate Evacuation
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
Beverly and Picard investigate Riker's condition, discovering his skin is severely burned but he remains alive; Riker weakly acknowledges the entity's attempt to rid him through distortion.
Picard commands the immediate evacuation of the away team, asserting control to safeguard them from further threat.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Determined and steady, masking the high stakes with controlled resolve and moral clarity.
Captain Picard leans over Riker, questioning his condition and issuing authoritative commands to beam up the away team immediately. He negotiates tersely with Armus for evacuation permission, asserting control by choosing to remain behind to confront the entity personally.
- • Secure safety of the away team through evacuation
- • Confront and contain the threat posed by Armus directly
- • The crew’s survival depends on swift extraction from danger
- • Facing Armus personally is necessary to protect his people and uphold Federation ideals
Composed and focused, processing information logically without visible emotional disturbance.
Data stands slightly back, observing the medical assessment and evacuation preparations with calm analytical detachment, monitoring the situation and maintaining readiness to assist if needed.
- • Support the away team’s safe extraction
- • Analyze environmental and medical data to inform next steps
- • Maintaining situational awareness is essential for mission success
- • Logical assessment underpins effective crisis response
Focused and professional, committed to following orders to ensure team safety.
Worf’s voice is heard over com, acknowledging Picard’s beam-up order promptly and dutifully, representing disciplined execution of command from the Enterprise, bridging ship and surface coordination.
- • Coordinate the beam-up effectively
- • Maintain communication between surface and ship
- • Obedience to command is paramount in crisis
- • Efficient communication saves lives
Weak and disoriented physically, yet mentally defiant and frustrated at his near defeat.
Commander Riker lies badly burned and disoriented but shudders and opens his eyes, displaying a moment of confusion followed by stubborn effort to rise, signaling deep physical trauma coupled with fierce mental endurance.
- • Survive the brutal attack and remain conscious
- • Maintain dignity and resolve despite physical suffering
- • Armus’s cruelty is a test to be endured and overcome
- • His survival is vital to crew morale and mission success
Concerned and determined, balancing clinical detachment with genuine care for Riker’s fragile state.
Beverly Crusher leans over the badly burned Riker, taking immediate medical readings and issuing calm but urgent assessments. She cautions Riker not to move, showing professional concern and readiness to stabilize his condition amid the hostile environment.
- • Assess and stabilize Riker’s physical condition
- • Ensure the safety and survival of the away team
- • Riker’s survival is critical to the mission and crew morale
- • Prompt medical intervention can prevent further harm despite environmental hazards
Anxious yet steady, committed to supporting the crew through technical means despite personal worry.
Geordi La Forge stands slightly back, visibly concerned by Riker’s acid-like injuries and the dire situation. He watches the evacuation orders, ready to support and maintain ship systems.
- • Ensure successful beam-up operation
- • Monitor and maintain ship systems to assist rescue
- • Technical support is crucial to crew survival
- • Rapid extraction minimizes further casualties
Resentful and cautious, manipulating events to maintain psychological upper hand while begrudging compliance.
Armus asserts control by blocking the beam-up operation until reluctantly granting permission, exerting dominance to manipulate the timing. The entity’s dark motion causes Picard’s transporter-like disappearance, emphasizing its eerie, otherworldly power.
- • Maintain control over the rescue operation’s timing and conditions
- • Intimidate and isolate Picard by forcing him to stay behind
- • Power lies in control over others’ fate and movement
- • Prolonging crew’s suffering increases its own satisfaction
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
The Flight Control Computer is indirectly referenced through the shuttle’s damaged condition and the urgency of the rescue operation. Though not actively used in this moment, the shuttle’s systems failure led to the critical injuries and the need for immediate beam-up authorization.
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
The desolate surface of Vagra 2 serves as the grim battleground where Riker’s acid-like injuries are assessed and the away team’s extraction unfolds under Armus’s looming control. Its barren, hostile environment amplifies the crew’s vulnerability and heightens the tension of the rescue and confrontation.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
"The detection of Armus’s energy shield drop enables the final transporter rescue of Troi and Prieto, coordinated by Picard."
"The detection of Armus’s energy shield drop enables the final transporter rescue of Troi and Prieto, coordinated by Picard."
"The detection of Armus’s energy shield drop enables the final transporter rescue of Troi and Prieto, coordinated by Picard."
"Picard’s assessment of Riker’s condition prompts the immediate evacuation order, emphasizing leadership decisiveness."
"Picard’s assessment of Riker’s condition prompts the immediate evacuation order, emphasizing leadership decisiveness."
"Picard’s assessment of Riker’s condition prompts the immediate evacuation order, emphasizing leadership decisiveness."
"Picard’s assessment of Riker’s condition prompts the immediate evacuation order, emphasizing leadership decisiveness."
Key Dialogue
"BEVERLY: He's alive."
"PICARD: I want you all out of here. (into com) Enterprise, beam up the away team -- immediately."
"ARMUS: You need my permission. PICARD: Do I have it? ARMUS: Yes. Are you going? PICARD: No. Not yet."