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Night Terrors

Captain's Log, Stardate 44631.2.

We are proceeding through the rim

of an uncharted binary star system

where we may have located the U.S.S. Brattain.

The missing science vessel

failed to arrive at its destination,

and has not been heard from

since a distress call 29 days ago.

On screen.

Magnify.

RIKER: That's the Brattain, all right.

The ship is intact, sir. with no indication of structural damage.

Engines?

DATA: All propulsion systems are shut down.

The ship is drifting, sir.

Life-form readings?

DATA: Inconclusive.

Counselor?

There is life on board, but...

What is it?

I don't know.

Something...

Number One, assemble your team.

Dr. Crusher, report to transporter room three.

Worf. Data.

Commander...

I need to come too.

There is no malfunction in any of the main systems, sir.

WORF: Commander.

Here's another one.

This was done by a phaser on a setting of six or seven.

And more over here.

The entire bridge crew.

Whoever did this could still be on the ship.

TROI: There is someone still alive, but he didn't kill these people.

Here.

I think he's Betazoid.

It's all right. We're going to help you.

( inhales sharply )

Who did this?

Who did this to you?

(Captain Jean-Luc Picard) Space, the final frontier.

These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise.

Its continuing mission--

to explore strange new worlds,

to seek out new life and new civilizations,

to boldly go where no one has gone before.

CRUSHER: We've almost finished the autopsies, Captain.

How long will it take to compile the data?

It's complicated.

The dead were found all over the ship.

Some were found locked in their rooms, barricaded with weapons piled all around them.

Others were found in the corridors, where they'd obviously had hand-to-hand combat.

It's going to take some time to analyze and sort through the details.

We've identified him as Andrus Hagan from Betazed.

Scientific advisor.

He's in a profound catatonic state.

I'm not getting much, Captain.

A few words, disconnected phrases.

I can feel his terror, but I can't seem to get through to him.

Stay with him, Counselor.

We're examining the Brattain for clues, but... this is the only man left who knows what happened there.

TROI: I'm here.

I'm right here.

HAGAN: Out there...

voices...

Voices? What do they say?

Both things...

No... no...

Keep talking to me.

I'll try to understand.

All the engines check out perfectly, Commander.

Once we get them started, the Brattain can get back to starbase under her own power.

Let's give it a try.

Pre-heating injectors.

Data, fuel flow?

Matter valves are open and operating.

Magnetic containment of antimatter pods is constant.

Okay, open injectors.

Injectors open.

There is no engine activity at all, sir.

What's wrong?

Nothing's wrong.

I don't understand it.

( door chimes ) Come.

I've been studying the autopsy reports.

The conclusion is appalling.

There was no outside source, no alien presence.

All 34 of them appear to have killed each other.

What could have caused such an event?

Drugs?

A virus? Poison? Toxicological tests showed no unusual substances in their systems.

And they all appear to be in good health, but for whatever reason they seemed to turn against each other, using phasers and knives and bare hands.

I'd like you to see this, Captain.

It's from the logs of the Brattain.

Captain Zaheva's mental condition deteriorated steadily once they had become stranded.

She began talking of plots and mutinies.

This was the last entry in the log, made after they had been adrift for over three weeks.

First Officer Brink and his men were behind it.

They got to the engines.

They don't work anymore.

Had to eliminate Brink.

The ship is out of... out of...

We're running out... too dangerous... out of Brink... and his men!

( gasps )

SIGHING VOICE: Eyes... in the dark...

One moon...

Where are you?

I'm coming, where are you?

Eyes... in the dark...

One moon...

Eyes... in the dark...

One moon... circles...

See the eyes... in the dark...

One moon...

Where are you?

In the dark...

one moon...

( gasps, panting )

Captain's Log, Stardate 44635.8.

Four days have passed,

but we have made little progress

in solving the mystery of the Brattain.

I have decided we should return

to Starbase 220, and to that end,

Commander La Forge is rigging the Brattain for towing.

I'm gonna try... recalibrating the field generators.

I still don't see why we can't get the engine started.

It just... doesn't make any sense.

( clanging sound )

( clanging sound growing louder )

Someone's still here.

What did you say, Ensign?

Can't you hear it?

( clanging sound )

There's someone still alive on the ship.

( clanging stops )

I heard-- I--

I mean, I... thought I heard something.

The ship was searched thoroughly.

There's nobody left on board.

Sorry, sir, my mistake.

Don't worry about it. There were 34 people found dead on this ship.

That's enough to make anybody uneasy.

Thank you, sir.

TROI: I'm here.

Can you hear me?

Tell me about the voices you hear.

HAGAN: Bright... bright...

out there...

I don't understand.

Bright what?

Tell me more.

( sighs ) Boy, what a day this was.

I'm doing an isozyme study on some populations of Cardilia, but they're turning out to have these really weird polymorphisms.

( sighs ) What a headache.

Is that why you're late?

Oh, no, I had a conference with Dr. Balthus.

She wants to do a study on the laticifer ontogeny of the Kaladian thorn flower.

But I don't have time to oversee another project.

Was Tom Corbin there?

What?

Tom Corbin, from the science lab.

Remember him?

Of course I remember him, but--

You use any excuse you can to pay him a visit.

Miles, what are you saying?

I think you know exactly what I'm saying.

If I didn't know better, I'd say you were jealous.

Do you take me for a fool?

Hello, Chief.

Having coffee?

No, I'm drinking too much coffee.

Kind of a surprise to see you here at this hour.

Yeah, why is that?

You're not out of the honeymoon yet.

Usually newlyweds can't keep their hands off each other.

She has work to do.

She heads up the plant biology lab, you know?

Any strange things going on down there?

Like what?

I've been hearing things.

Kenicki, in Engineering, told me he saw a man in an old Starfleet uniform riding the lift near the engine core.

When the lift got to the top, there was no one on it.

Ghost stories?

There's more. There's lots more.

There are strange things happening on this ship, O'Brien.

I'm surprised at you, Gillespie-- a Starfleet officer?

I have more things to worry about than shades and spirits.

( door chimes )

Come.

( door chimes )

Come!

( door chimes )

( door chimes )

Yes, yes.

( door chimes )

( door chimes )

( door chimes )

( knocking )

Come?

What..?

Captain, do you have a moment?

We're concerned. We're afraid whatever happened on the Brattain may be starting here. Explain.

Well, Beverly and I have been getting unusual reports.

People behaving strangely.

Others hearing sounds that aren't there.

Are we talking about hallucinations?

In some cases, in others just erratic behavior.

We can't track down any element that might be responsible.

But everything started when we found the Brattain.

Yes. Captain, we have to get the Enterprise away from here before it gets any worse.

We're preparing to take the Brattain in tow.

We'll be on our way within the hour.

PICARD: Ensign, maneuver us into tractor beam range.

Aye, sir.

Is there a problem, Ensign?

I... can't seem to remember how to enter the coordinates, sir.

Ensign Lin.

Ready now, Captain.

Report to sick bay, Ensign Rager.

PICARD: Ready tractor beam, Mr. Worf.

Captain, thrusters are losing power.

Impulse engines-- ahead minimum power.

Impulse engines are not responding, sir.

Geordi, what's going on down there?

LA FORGE: I don't know, sir. Nothing's responding.

Go to warp engines, factor one.

Engage.

Captain, we don't have warp drive, either.

We have no functional propulsion systems?

No, sir.

Apparently, we do not.

We're adrift.

Just like the Brattain.

Captain's Log, Stardate 44639.9.

The Enterprise has now been adrift for a total of ten days.

We have sent subspace distress calls,

but, because of our distant location,

we cannot expect a response for at least another two weeks.

After analyzing the sensor logs of the Brattain and the Enterprise as well as the data from the last series of probes,

I conclude that we have become trapped in a massive rupture in space into which energy is absorbed.

You mean a Tyken's Rift.

A what?

A rare anomaly named after Bela Tyken, a Melthusian captain who first encountered it.

Tyken's Rift.

That would explain why we don't have engine power.

The ship's energy is being drained into the fissure before we can utilize it.

I was detained.

DATA: When Tyken was trapped in the rift, his analysis determined that a massive energy release might overload and dislocate the anomaly.

Fortunately, his cargo included anicium and yurium, which he used to detonate the explosion.

He then escaped through the ruptured center of the rift.

But we aren't carrying anything that could produce that kind of an explosion.

Not even our photon torpedoes would be enough.

Couldn't we replicate the elements Tyken used?

No, sir, we no longer have the power to reproduce complex elements in the replicator.

We must find a way to generate a violent energy release without using conventional means.

Data, in Tyken's experience, did the crew exhibit behavioral changes?

No. There were no reports of unusual conduct among the crew.

What about nightmares?

There were no records of sleep disturbances of any kind, Counselor.

Then... what is it?

What's happening to us?

The only one who doesn't seem affected by all this is Data.

Bridge.

Number One, how are...

Sir?

Any hallucinations?

Nightmares?

No... but I'd be a liar if I said I felt like myself.

I've had to bite my tongue to keep from snapping at people.

Couple of times, I've... gone to my quarters and felt as if there was someone else in there, waiting for me.

I've had similar feelings.

With everyone succumbing, it's even more important that one of us attempt to keep control of his faculties.

I want you to turn in-- take a nap.

I'll be on the bridge.

You can relieve me in four hours.

Yes, sir.

Deck eight.

No!

Sir?

As you were.

Mr. Data, will you join me in my ready room?

( snakes hissing )

Commander La Forge and I have come up with a potential solution to our predicament.

Perhaps the modifications used to increase firepower against the Borg would be effective here.

Channeling power to the main... um... deflector dish.

Yes, sir. I believe that within six hours we could generate a concentrated burst of energy which might disrupt the Tyken's Rift.

Very well. Proceed.

Mr. Data.

Yes, sir?

It appears that I am not... immune to the strange forces that are at work on this ship.

Yes, sir.

It's a terrifying prospect-- to lose control of one's mind.

When I was young...

I remember watching my grandfather deteriorate from a powerful, intelligent figure to a frail wisp of a man who could barely make his own way home.

Mr. Data, it is my responsibility... somehow-- to see that this ship is guided to safety.

I will need to rely on you from now on.

We may need to count on you for our very survival.

I will do my best, sir.

I'd like to do more cross-sections on the brain tissue of some of these bodies.

Set up the positron emission sensor in sick bay, and I'll decide which ones I want to study.

Yes, Doctor.

( rustling sound )

Go away.

CRUSHER: Captain, let me ask you this-- since we located the Brattain, can you remember any of your dreams?

I hardly ever recall dreams.

Most people don't, but think-- have you even had a dream in the last ten days?

I don't recall.

I'm willing to bet you haven't.

What's more, neither has anyone else onboard this ship, except for Troi.

I began to realize that when she talked about having nightmares.

I've done some... additional brain tissue scans on the bodies... some of the bodies from the, uh... the...

The Brattain, Doctor.

Right, and I've also done some scans on a random cross-section from our crew.

They both have the same results-- a unique chemical imbalance.

Caused by?

Dream deprivation.

Every night, when we... we... enter into... sleep...

I believe what the doctor means is that humans enter into what is known as R.E.M. sleep-- rapid eye movement.

It is the level of brain-wave activity at which one dreams.

We have to dream in order to survive.

If we don't reach R.E.M. sleep, we don't dream, we... we begin to lose our cognitive abilities.

We find it hard to concentrate.

We forget how to do the most ordinary task.

Then we become irritable, paranoid.

Some people experience hallucinations.

You're describing the situation on this ship, but counselor Troi reported nightmares.

Maybe it's because she's betazoid.

I don't know why.

All I know is that there's more going on here than being caught in a Tyken's Rift, and I don't know how or why it's happening, but I do know this.

There is an inevitable conclusion to this pattern, and if I can't find a way to stop it, we will all go insane.

SIGHING VOICE: Eyes... in the dark.

One moon circles...

Where are you?!

SIGHING VOICE: Eyes... in the dark.

One moon circles...

TROI: I'm still here.

I haven't gone anywhere.

Do you remember anything more?

Double...

double...

What does that mean?

Is something doubled?

Deanna, nothing's working.

I've tried somatic drugs.

I've tried inducing theta waves into the entorhinal cortex.

No matter what I do, no one can reach R.E.M. sleep.

No one can dream... except for you.

Except me... and all I have is nightmares.

I can hardly sleep at all anymore.

In the end, I'll be like him.

Just like him.

GILLESPIE: Well, I think it's some kind of experiment.

See, Captain Picard is trying to see how long we'll take it-- stuck here like rats.

Oh, you couldn't be more wrong.

It's like we're laboratory animals.

I don't wanna sit here and wait for death to sneak up behind me.

What's that supposed to mean?

You heard about them on the Brattain-- shut in their rooms, dying alone.

That's not for me.

I'd rather go out fighting.

Okay, all power has been channeled to the, um... the...

The main deflector dish.

Yes, right, the deflector dish.

( sighing )

So, uh... what do we do now?

Data to bridge.

Mr. Worf, activate the deflector.

WORF: Aye, sir.

Deflector power banks approaching maximum.

Discharge in 15 seconds.

Data, this detonation better work.

We're not going to last much longer.

Discharge in three seconds.

Two, one.

Nothing. It just fizzled out.

DATA: Captain, it appears the energy output has been absorbed into the rift.

PICARD: Data, can we try again?

No, sir, if we draw more power we risk losing life-support systems.

PICARD: Understood. Keep me apprised, Commander.

Lujpu'...

jih'e...

alexandrijn.

Worf, no!

You will not stop me.

Security, Worf's quarters immediately.

No one can stop me. Why?

What is it?

I am no longer a warrior.

I am no longer strong.

I... I feel...

What?

What do you feel?

I feel fear.

To admit that you are afraid gives you strength.

Something is waiting for us.

I am not strong enough to fight it.

No, Worf.

It's just an illusion.

It's not real.

Please, put down the knife.

Counselor?

It's all right.

Everything's fine.

Thank you.

Let me take you to sick bay.

DATA: Acting Captain's Log, Stardate 44642.1.

I have assumed command of the Enterprise

at the request of Captain Picard.

Our situation is deteriorating.

Many of the crew are unable to function,

and our life-support systems are beginning to falter.

TROI: Once before, you said "double."

What did you mean?

What is double?

HAGAN: Mates...

too bright...

twin... cannot leave the twin.

One moon circling...

What do you mean?

You can't leave?

No, no.

Please... can't.

You want to leave.

Why can't you?

Can't go.

Help.

One moon... circling.

Eyes...

that's it...

eyes...

in the dark.

"Eyes in the dark."

That's what the voice said in my dream.

Is that where you heard it?

In a dream? Over and over?

Beverly, I know what it is.

I know what's happening.

What?

My nightmare. It's not a dream!

It's not a dream at all, it's a message.

R.E.M. sleep occurs at a different frequency for betazoids than for other humanoids.

I believe the beings are using that frequency to... communicate telepathically.

DATA: It is possible that this telepathic communication is creating interference in the R.E.M. sleep of other species

That would explain why the rest of our crew is not dreaming.

Counselor, what are these... beings trying to tell us?

They're calling for help.

I think they're trapped, just like we are.

"Eyes in the dark" could mean this twin star system.

Your hypothesis is certainly plausible.

There may be another ship... on the other side of the fissure where we cannot detect it.

Is there a way we could block their signals?

There is no technology to block telepathic transmissions, Doctor.

Maybe communication through dreams can work both ways.

I could try and get them to stop.

Perhaps we could accomplish more than that.

If there is another ship, and we can reach them, we might be able to coordinate our efforts to free ourselves.

It is conceivable.

When working with patients with debilitating nightmares,

I've often used a therapeutic treatment called directed dreaming.

Dreamers can learn to control their dreams, retain a conscious memory, even while in R.E.M. sleep.

I could remember a short message and deliver it to them.

If it were possible, what would you say?

DATA: Working together with the aliens, we must discover a means by which we can produce an explosion more intense than either one of us could achieve alone.

What is it you're looking for?

DATA: These are the elements we have available.

Some of them could be used in the creation of an explosive reaction.

If we could communicate this inventory to the other ship, perhaps they would be able to--

No, Data, no.

This is too complex.

It has to be a simple, clear message.

I am uncertain if a simple transmission would be adequate.

Stop.

Go back.

Further back...

There. Stop.

"One moon circles."

Yes, Counselor.

One electron circles one proton.

This is a hydrogen atom.

"One moon circles." That's what they've been telling me, over and over.

Perhaps the aliens are thinking as we are-- to collaborate in producing an explosion.

If hydrogen is combined with another element-- calendenium, for example-- it is extremely volatile.

But would the message mean that they have hydrogen or they want hydrogen?

Well, if it's a distress call,

I think they'd be asking for what they need, not what they already have.

Then the proper course of action would be to release hydrogen into the rift and hope they have a substance that would detonate it.

How do I tell them what to do?

If you are correct, Counselor,

I believe they have already told us what to do and are waiting for us to do it.

When we are ready, the only message you should attempt to convey is "now."

I can help keep you in R.E.M. sleep for a while with this cortical scanner.

It will maintain electrical activity in your brain at the proper frequency.

Counselor, you will have to communicate with the other ship within two minutes of entering R.E.M. sleep.

TROI: Two minutes?

Is that all, Data?

Unfortunately, yes. We have only enough power to emit a hydrogen stream for that amount of time.

They must understand that they will have to detonate it immediately.

Captain, we are ready to implement the plan.

Proceed.

We will have to draw power from the life-support systems in order to discharge the collectors.

This is Acting Captain Data.

All personnel will report to the designated shelter areas immediately.

Life-support systems will continue only in emergency shelter areas.

You hear that?

Get us jammed into shelter areas.

We sit and wait to die.

Nobody'll ever find us.

Relax, Gillespie. Everybody relax.

Ten forward is a designated shelter area.

Relax.

Do we want to die here, like helpless children?

Security to Ten Forward immediately.

We don't even know what we're dying for.

Sit down, Gillespie, you're not helping matters anyhow.

What's wrong with standing up for ourselves?

MAN: Yeah.

Picard owes us some answers.

( beam whirs, sizzles )

What is that?

This is a little souvenir I picked up from Magus Three.

That was setting number one.

Anyone wanna see setting number two?

P.G.O. signals steady.

Visual cortex showing increased activity.

Rapid eye movements commencing.

Crusher to bridge.

She's in R.E.M. sleep.

Thank you, Doctor.

Activating bussard collectors.

SIGHING VOICE: Eyes... in the dark.

Where are you?

90 seconds remaining.

One moon... circles...

Where are you?

I have to find you!

I have to tell you.

45 seconds remaining.

One moon...

Please... Circles...

I must find you... to tell you.

30 seconds remaining.

Ten seconds remaining.

Nothing.

No explosion.

The counselor was unsuccessful.

Activate impulse engines.

Engines activated, sir.

We have cleared the rift, sir.

Warp engines are coming back online.

Set a course to...

Setting a course for Starbase 220.

Sir, as my final duty as Acting Captain,

I order you to bed.

I shall do the same for all personnel.

Very well, Mr. Data.

And Mr. Data... thank you.

Pleasant dreams, sir.