Picard Makes Sarjenka the Mission
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
Picard rescinds his order, commanding Data to keep Sarjenka with him on the bridge—not as a child to be hidden, but as central to the action, sealing the moral redefinition of the mission’s purpose.
Sarjenka, still clutching Data’s hand, settles between ops stations, her physical attachment now a silent vow—and Data, with chilling calm, requests his hand back as Worf announces the torpedoes are firing, tying the child’s survival to the success of the mission.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Panicked and desperate; relief slowly begins as she experiences Data's protective touch.
Sarjenka is terrified, clinging to Data with frantic sobs, rejecting Troi's approach, shouting 'NO!' and burying herself against Data's shoulder, only calming when he embraces her.
- • Stay with Data, whom she trusts
- • Avoid being taken away by unfamiliar adults
- • Seek immediate comfort and safety
- • Data is safe and will protect me
- • Other adults are dangerous or frightening
- • Clinging to a trusted figure is the only way to feel secure
Nervous and watchful — eager to learn and constrained by deference to senior officers.
Wesley remains at his accustomed place on the bridge, observing the scene with tension; he does not intervene but is attentive to both the human drama and the operational countdown.
- • Maintain situational awareness and readiness at his station
- • Absorb the leadership and ethical example provided by Picard and Riker
- • Be prepared to follow orders and assist if asked
- • Senior officers know best and will guide responses
- • Operational duties must be balanced with emergent humanitarian needs
- • Observation is a key part of learning command presence
Angry and frustrated at the breach, but quickly tempered by compassion — resolute, conflicted, and pragmatic in converting feeling into command.
Picard arrives on the bridge, registers Data's action with a slow, furious clarity, then translates private moral conflict into a command ordering Data to keep Sarjenka at his station and making her the ship's responsibility.
- • Reassert command authority and contain an unauthorized intervention
- • Protect the child while minimizing procedural collapse
- • Preserve the ship's mission by integrating the humanitarian decision into operational command
- • The chain of command must be maintained even under emotional stress
- • Lives in immediate danger can justify exceptional measures
- • Institutional responsibility can be invoked to avoid precedent-less personal actions becoming chaotic
Confused but gently protective — an emerging empathy overlays his usual procedural clarity, producing tender, uncertain care.
Data appears carrying Sarjenka, explains the child's fear, kneels and physically comforts her, hugs her close and strokes her hair. He resists orders that would place her 'in the way' and complies only when Picard gives explicit permission that she stay with him at his station.
- • Keep Sarjenka safe and comforted
- • Comply with the captain's order while minimizing harm to the child
- • Maintain the child near himself so he can observe and protect her
- • A frightened child needs immediate reassurance and proximal safety
- • Physical closeness provides security and reduces trauma
- • His actions as a sentient officer should aim to prevent harm even if rules are stretched
Stoic and focused; unaffected by the bridge's emotional disruption as he prioritizes mission-critical timing.
Worf repeatedly announces the countdown (three minutes, two minutes, thirty seconds) and, despite the emotional distraction, reports 'Firing torpedoes,' keeping mission tempo and tactical procedures in the foreground.
- • Ensure resonator launch and torpedo firing proceed on schedule
- • Maintain operational readiness and enforce ship procedures
- • Prevent personal or emotional incidents from degrading tactical function
- • Mission parameters and safety procedures take precedence
- • Emotional displays must not interfere with the ship's functions
- • Clear, clipped reporting preserves order under stress
Relieved at Data's presence but quickly uneasy and concerned about the implications; supportive but cautious.
Riker stands with Picard, initially relieved at Data's arrival but then visibly unsettled; he offers a moderating voice, trusting Data will explain, and defers to Picard's ultimate order while managing consternation.
- • Support the captain's authority and the ship's mission
- • Defend or explain Data's behavior to avoid immediate disciplinary escalation
- • Ensure operational focus is restored to the bridge
- • Data generally acts from logic and can be trusted to have a reason
- • Chain of command and procedure must be preserved
- • Crew cohesion requires measured responses rather than immediate reprimand
Gentle, professionally concerned, curious — engaged and willing to yield to what seems to be the child's attachment to Data.
Troi moves to comfort Sarjenka, reaches out with soothing words and offers treats, attempts to guide the child to Sickbay but relents when Data asks to take over, watching the unfolding intimacy with clinical interest.
- • Calm and reassure Sarjenka and offer medical/psychological safety
- • Follow Picard's command by preparing Sickbay as a refuge
- • Support Data and the captain by de-escalating the scene
- • Physical reassurance and comforting ritual help a traumatized child
- • Starfleet medical/psychological resources are the appropriate sanctuary for the child
- • Emotional attachments are important data for counseling and triage
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
The aft turbolift doors open and physically deliver Data carrying Sarjenka onto the bridge; their hydraulic hiss punctures the room's hush and marks the transition from private corridor to public command space, turning a clandestine act into an immediate institutional concern.
Although not physically shown, the converted Class One probes (harmonic resonator payloads) are the implied mission hardware driving the countdown. Their imminent launch creates the temporal pressure that frames the ethical crisis — the bridge's attention is split between the child and the probes' deployment via torpedoes.
The bridge ramp acts as the physical route Troi takes to approach Data and Sarjenka; it channels movement, frames proximity between officers and the child, and amplifies the visual of the child shrinking back into Data's protection as Troi ascends.
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
The forward stations/ops area becomes the immediate place of refuge where Data seats Sarjenka between consoles; it is both operational nerve center and accidental cradle, forcing the crew to perform duties around an active emotional scene.
The aft turbolift acts as the arrival portal — its opening initiates the event by admitting Data and Sarjenka into the bridge's public view, converting a private corridor crossing into an ethical confrontation.
Sickbay is invoked as the designated clinical refuge when Picard instructs Troi to escort the child there; though not physically reached in this scene, it functions as the ship's promised sanctuary and the institutional alternative to keeping the child on the bridge.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
"Worf occupying the captain’s chair while Wesley stands at Ops visually inverts hierarchy—a microcosm of the larger inversion: Data (the machine) becomes the moral authority, while Picard (the captain) must now obey the moral imperative. Their positions mirror the moral inversion where authority is not in rank, but in empathy."
"Data entering the bridge with Sarjenka is not just a surprising entry—it shatters the professional decorum of the ship. Her terror, clinging to him while Troi tries to help, transforms Data’s act from a violation into a sacred moment of connection, far more powerful than words or logic."
"The arrival of Sarjenka on the transporter pad immediately triggers Picard’s demand to know Data’s whereabouts. The breach becomes visible, public, and inescapable—escalating the implicit moral crisis (in Picard’s ready room) into an overt, undeniable catastrophe on the bridge."
"The arrival of Sarjenka on the transporter pad immediately triggers Picard’s demand to know Data’s whereabouts. The breach becomes visible, public, and inescapable—escalating the implicit moral crisis (in Picard’s ready room) into an overt, undeniable catastrophe on the bridge."
"Data entering the bridge with Sarjenka is not just a surprising entry—it shatters the professional decorum of the ship. Her terror, clinging to him while Troi tries to help, transforms Data’s act from a violation into a sacred moment of connection, far more powerful than words or logic."
Themes This Exemplifies
Thematic resonance and meaning
Key Dialogue
"PICARD: "He has brought that child aboard my ship and onto my bridge.""
"DATA: "Hush, it is all right now. No one will harm you. These are my friends.""
"PICARD: "Take your station, Mister Data, and keep her with you. This does directly concern her.""