Star Trek The Next Generation
S2E11
· Contagion (Star Trek: The Next Generation)

Lock on the Captain — Emergency Retrieval Ordered

In the blackout-lit transporter room Riker strides in, abrupt and focused, converting assessment into action with a single command: lock on Picard and bring him back. O'Brien runs the terse systems check, confirms a transport lock, and what had been technical triage becomes an urgent rescue. The beat crystallizes Riker's assumption of command under crisis, reveals the crew's reflexive trust in procedure, and propels the narrative from containment to a hands-on effort to recover Picard before the Iconian catastrophe reaches its climax.

Plot Beats

The narrative micro-steps within this event

4

Lights slam up across the Enterprise; Riker strides in with razor focus and drops over a terminal, signaling immediate, hands-on command.

darkness/uncertainty to urgent purpose ['Enterprise interior; ship-wide lights come up']

O'Brien reports tersely, 'All systems functioning,' delivering a technical status that stabilizes the moment and frames the next orders.

tense uncertainty to controlled assurance

Riker snaps an order — 'Lock on the captain and bring him back' — converting assessment into an urgent retrieval mission and directing all hands to act.

commanding resolve to decisive action

O'Brien runs the scan and announces, 'Scanning, sir. Got him,' supplying the confirmatory lock that shifts the room from anxious effort to immediate retrieval.

anxiety to pragmatic relief

Who Was There

Characters present in this moment

2
Miles O'Brien
Chief Petty Officer, Transporter Chief
 primary

Focused professionalism: calm exterior, attentive to the fragility of makeshift fixes and aware the equipment may still fail under strain.

O'Brien stands at the transporter console, runs a quick systems check, reports 'All systems functioning,' begins a scan for the captain and promptly confirms a transport lock, executing technical procedure under pressure with professional brevity.

Goals in this moment
  • • Validate transporter readiness and secure a lock on the captain.
  • • Execute the transport safely and without error despite the blackout and ongoing crisis.
Active beliefs
  • • Starfleet procedures and transporter protocols are the best chance to retrieve the captain.
  • • Technical competence and concise communication are essential in high-risk recoveries.
Character traits
efficient steady procedural
Follow Miles O'Brien's journey
William Riker
Commander
 primary

Determined urgency: outwardly composed but driven by an undercurrent of anxiety to restore command and protect the captain.

Riker storms into the darkened transporter room, leans over the console, issues a single, urgent command to lock on the captain and bring him back, turning analysis into action and asserting temporary tactical authority.

Goals in this moment
  • • Recover Captain Picard from the hazardous environment off-screen as quickly as possible.
  • • Translate ambiguous technical readiness into an immediate, successful transport operation.
Active beliefs
  • • The captain is the mission-critical node whose survival is paramount.
  • • Swift, authoritative orders plus competent execution will avert further catastrophe.
Character traits
decisive commanding practical
Follow William Riker's journey

Location Details

Places and their significance in this event

1
Enterprise Transporter Room (Transporter Platform)

The Enterprise Transporter Room functions as the operational staging ground for the rescue: its consoles and coils provide the interface and machinery that convert Riker's command into a physical recovery, compressing improvisation and protocol into a single urgent action.

Atmosphere Clinical, urgent and tightly focused; darkness broken by sudden, stark lighting that heightens the sense …
Function Staging area and technical hub for the emergency transport/retrieval operation.
Symbolism Represents the thin margin between order and loss—where procedure, not rhetoric, can reclaim a leader …
Access Restricted to qualified personnel (senior officers and transport crew); effectively controlled by command intent.
Initial blackout followed by abrupt restoration of lights across the room. Console terminals and transporter coils are the primary technological elements in play. Compressed, hushed dialogue and the mechanical hum of systems diagnostics.

Narrative Connections

How this event relates to others in the story

No narrative connections mapped yet

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Key Dialogue

"O'BRIEN: All systems functioning."
"RIKER: Lock on the captain and bring him back."
"O'BRIEN: Scanning, sir. Got him."