Object

Picard's Hand Phaser (Shuttle Bay Two)

A palm-sized, standard-issue Starfleet handheld phaser with a matte-black alloy casing, ergonomic grip, small circular blue emitter lens and tactile safety selector. In Shuttle Bay Two it hums into readiness, emits a short controlled stun discharge and snaps the dazed future Picard (P2) out of a fatal compulsion. Picard draws, fires non‑lethally, and immediately calls for Dr. Pulaski; the weapon’s brief blue flash and sharp crack puncture the scene and leave Picard visibly shaken yet decisive.

2 appearances

Purpose

To deliver a controlled, nonlethal energy discharge for disabling or interrupting dangerous or compulsive actions.

Significance

Acts as the decisive instrument that breaks the sacrificial loop, enabling Picard to reject fatalism and reassert command; the phaser’s use marks the turning point from passive inevitability to intentional intervention and carries emotional weight as a catalyst for change.

Appearances in the Narrative

When this object appears and how it's used

2 moments

S2E13 · Time Squared

Shattering the Sacrificial Loop

Picard pulls and fires a standard‑issue phaser nonlethally to interrupt P2's compulsive movement toward the shuttle. The weapon functions as an immediate kinetic intervention — a shocking physical break in P2's psychological loop — and as a moral punctuation: Picard uses force to preserve agency and life.

Before: Holstered/at the ready on Picard's person or in a standard accessible position; not yet deployed.

After: Recently fired; in Picard's possession and active evidence of forced intervention; the discharge has snapped P2 out of his single‑minded state.

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S2E13 · Time Squared

Breaking the Loop, Reclaiming Command

Picard draws this standard-issue phaser to physically interrupt P2's attempt to board the shuttle. Its brief, controlled discharge functions as a non‑lethal corrective shock — a violent punctuation that breaks P2's compulsion and asserts the present Picard's authority and refusal to accept fatalism.

Before: Holstered/accessible on Picard's person in Shuttle Bay Two, unused but available.

After: Fired once under Picard's control; remains physically in his possession and has been used to subdue or interrupt P2's action.

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