Lya Three (Starfleet Command)
Detailed Involvements
Events with rich location context
Lya Three is cited as the Starfleet Command origin of the incoming Priority One; it never appears physically but its institutional presence imposes a deadline and chain‑of‑command obligation on Picard's choices.
Authoritative and bureaucratic despite physical absence.
Origin point of orders and operational directives.
Embodies higher authority and the burden of obedience to command.
Operational Starfleet Command node — not directly accessible to the Enterprise crew during transmission.
Lya Three is identified as the origin of the Priority One transmission; its naming adds bureaucratic weight and specifies the institutional source of the impending guidance that will compress Picard's decision window.
Impersonal command authority projected across distance; the presence of Lya Three creates a bureaucratic urgency.
Remote Starfleet Command node and sender of the secured Priority One message.
Represents centralized authority and the reach of hierarchical command into field decisions.
Secure Starfleet facility; transmission is sent on a secured channel implying restricted access.
Events at This Location
Everything that happens here
On the bridge Picard orders Data to isolate and magnify sensors on the Nelvana system; repeated, meticulous sweeps register no anomalous activity. The negative readout crystallizes the episode's central dilemma …
On the bridge Picard and Data scrutinize the Nelvana system: repeated sensor passes return nothing, heightening Picard's frustration at an enemy he cannot see. As Picard orders the system magnified …