Object
Royale Hotel Room Keys
A small set of guest keys presented on a compact keyring with a numbered room tag — cold metal and worn edges suggesting frequent handling. The Assistant Manager produces and palms them in a rehearsed, hospitable gesture; Riker accepts them while the bellboy flinches and Data records the exchange. The keys feel ordinary but function as a tactile prop that concretizes the hotel's scripted civility and lures the away team deeper into the construct.
2 appearances
Purpose
To provide physical access to assigned guest rooms in the Royale (serve as the hotel's guest-room credential).
Significance
Acting as a performative token of hospitality, the keys validate the away team's expectation of safety and arrival, mark the transition from curiosity to entrapment, and heighten dramatic tension by making the hotel's fiction feel materially real before its hollow, life‑signless nature is revealed.
Appearances in the Narrative
When this object appears and how it's used