Wesley's Casual Request, Riker's Tightening Doubt
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
Wesley moves to Riker and asks to return to the Enterprise to monitor his plasma-physics experiment. Riker’s distracted probe and tightening frown meet Wesley’s too-casual tone, triggering suspicion about his true intent.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Anxious but engaged; uncertain about resource availability yet willing to act under senior instruction.
Nagel follows Worf's direction at the science station, asks where to obtain the opti‑cable, and listens as Worf physically supplies an improvised solution by grabbing the dangling wires.
- • Execute Worf's proposed routing bypass correctly and quickly.
- • Secure the necessary hardware (opti‑cable) to complete the bypass without further delay.
- • She must rely on senior crew judgment in unfamiliar emergency workarounds.
- • Quick improvisation is necessary to recover functionality even if the method is imperfect.
Relaxed on the surface, eager and a little self‑concerned about academic consequences; his breeziness masks the urgency he assigns to the device.
Wesley enters from the turbolift, crosses to Riker at the command chair and asks, in a casual tone, for permission to return to the Enterprise to shut down an experiment he left running.
- • Obtain authorization to return to the Enterprise and personally shut down/monitor his experiment.
- • Protect his academic reputation (final grade) while maintaining professional responsibility for the device.
- • He is the best person to safely manage his experiment and must personally ensure its stability.
- • Framing the request as routine and grade‑related will make it seem low‑risk and easy to approve.
Distracted by broader responsibilities but sharpening into cautious concern; protective of crew and mission integrity.
Riker sits at the command chair, listens with a distracted posture, asks a curt question about the importance of the experiment, and responds to Wesley with a visible frown that signals growing suspicion.
- • Assess whether Wesley's request is operationally safe and mission‑compatible.
- • Maintain command control and prevent unnecessary risks or distractions from the primary crisis.
- • Personal experiments left running during a crisis are potentially hazardous and warrant scrutiny.
- • Decisions that pull resources or personnel from the ship require prioritization and justification.
Focused, materially decisive; calm confidence in a tactile solution rather than anxiety.
Worf points out a section of the science station to Nagel, then reaches up and yanks several fiber‑wires from the ceiling, freeing them amid showering dust to enable an on‑the‑spot routing bypass.
- • Create a functioning routing bypass to restore or disguise sensor/communications capability.
- • Provide a tangible, immediate solution to support Hathaway's damaged systems and the bridge team's plan.
- • A hands‑on, strength‑backed solution will be quicker and more reliable than bureaucratic options.
- • Improvisation and physical action are honorable and necessary under pressure.
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
The Science One console is the locus of Worf and Nagel's technical discussion; Worf points to a routing location on the station and directs the bypass work. It functions as the procedural heart of the hardware improvisation and the place where the Opti‑Cable will be connected or rerouted.
The Opti‑Cable (represented by fiber‑wires dangling from the ceiling) is the physical solution for Worf's proposed routing bypass. Worf grabs and yanks the filaments free to supply Nagel with immediate cabling material, transforming ceiling detritus into a tactical tool for restoring or masking systems.
Wesley's running plasma‑physics experiment is invoked as the reason for his request to leave. It operates offstage on the Enterprise and functions narratively as a potential risk source and character motivation — a personal responsibility that may conflict with present operational needs.
The Captain's Chair serves as Riker's physical anchor during the exchange; Wesley approaches it to request leave and Riker's occupancy frames his distracted authority and the weight of command behind the decision.
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
The Hathaway bridge is the cramped, noisy stage for parallel actions: Worf's physical improvisation at the science station and Wesley's social maneuver at the command chair. It concentrates operational stress, making small acts (a yank of cable, a casual request) carry outsized consequences for command and safety.
The turbolift functions as Wesley's point of entry: a narrative beat that converts private motion (arrival) into public request. Its mention timestamps Wesley's entrance and emphasizes the immediacy of his access to command in the cramped bridge environment.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
No narrative connections mapped yet
This event is currently isolated in the narrative graph
Key Dialogue
"WORF: Anywhere."
"WESLEY: Sir, I left an experiment running on the Enterprise. May I go back and shut it down?"
"RIKER: (a little distracted) It's that important?"