Kolrami's Formal Challenge — Picard's Kumeh Gambit
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
Command geometry locks into place: Picard holds the center, Data sits ready, Kolrami hovers in judgment, and Burke takes Tactical as the bridge crews brace for contest.
Picard snaps, "Screen on," and the Main Viewer throws Riker into view, commanders locking eyes across twin bridges.
Picard fires the starting pistol—"The hunt begins, Number One"—and Riker counters with playful bravado, claiming he has never lost.
Smiles flicker, then Kolrami jabs his control and commands, "Begin!", stamping official authority on the contest.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Alert and businesslike — focused on readiness and the technical execution of orders rather than the social theater unfolding.
Manned Tactical station, attentive to the bridge exchange, prepared to execute the commanded maneuver and monitor weapons and systems as Picard issues orders.
- • Ensure Tactical systems are ready and able to execute the Kumeh maneuver on command.
- • Protect the ship by monitoring any tactical implications of the strategema's escalation.
- • Follow the chain of command and execute validated tactical orders.
- • Procedural readiness is essential when rhetoric becomes operational.
Triumphant and clinical — confident that the formal ritual will expose the opponents' strategic character and force revealing choices.
Hovers near the bridge consoles, deliberately presses his computer button to formalize the contest and announces 'Begin!', converting conversational provocation into an official strategema.
- • Formalize the contest to test the tactical abilities and moral resolve of Starfleet officers.
- • Dominate the exchange intellectually and validate Zakdorn strategic methods.
- • Structured competition reveals true leadership and weakness.
- • Provocation and ritualized rules bring clarity to decision-making under pressure.
Calm, authoritative and deliberately performative — projecting control while masking the real urgency of a risky tactical choice.
Stands deliberately in front of his command chair, uses bridge systems theatrically to call up Riker, allows ritualized exchange, then abruptly cuts the viewer and issues precise tactical orders to initiate the Kumeh maneuver.
- • Maintain institutional authority and crew morale while managing an external provocation.
- • Control the narrative of the confrontation so tactical necessities (the Kumeh maneuver) can proceed on his terms.
- • Public ritual and protocol can be used to shape opponents' expectations.
- • He has a duty to both uphold Starfleet principles and protect his crew through decisive action.
Composed and observational; his detachment is analytic curiosity rather than human affect, attentive for any operational demands.
Seated at Picard's side on the bridge, quietly observing the exchange and Picard's commands without interjecting, ready to supply analysis or execute orders if requested.
- • Monitor bridge systems and be prepared to execute Picard's orders.
- • Collect data about the Zakdorn ritual and Picard/Riker interaction for later analysis.
- • Duty requires readiness to support command decisions immediately.
- • Objective observation of behavior yields useful tactical and social information.
Affable self‑assuredness — enjoying the competitive banter while mentally prepared to execute his role in the contest.
Appears on the Main Viewer from his bridge, delivers a confident, playful line asserting his undefeated record, and participates in the ritualized bravado that Kolrami then formalizes.
- • Project confidence in his command and reassure his crew (and Picard) of his competence.
- • Engage the Zakdorn contest on terms that preserve honor and tactical advantage.
- • Command presence and bravado can be an effective psychological tool.
- • He can meet competitive challenges without compromising crew safety.
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
Kolrami's computer button is the ritual trigger: his finger presses it to formally start the Zakdorn strategema, transforming informal banter into an official contest and focusing bridge attention and protocol on the confrontation.
The captain's chair functions as a visual prop: Picard stands before it, using its empty presence to anchor authority and stage his theatrical control, even as he deliberately refuses to sit and lets the ritual unfold.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
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Key Dialogue
"PICARD: "Screen on.""
"RIKER: "We're ready -- just remember, Enterprise -- Captain Riker has never lost.""
"KOLRAMI: "Begin!""
"PICARD: "Screen off. Set course two-two-three mark two-five-seven, full impulse power. Initiate Kumeh maneuver.""