Star Trek: Strange New Worlds · Season 1
Sir, I would suggest knowledge of death is vital for effective leadership.
Knowledge is one thing, Spock, but I experienced it. How will it live in me? Will it make me hesitant? Cautious? Not cautious enough? I'm already second-guessing myself. And that's the last thing a captain can afford.
Suffering can be transformed into insight. You must seek out the good in knowing your own death. Use it to be the man you most essentially are.
And who's that, Spock?
The captain.
We have been in conflict with a seditious faction for centuries. This is our opportunity to end that conflict.
Through mass murder?
Have your people never put down civil unrest?
Negotiation. Debate. These are the tools to build a lasting peace.
Tell me: Are there groups who refuse to negotiate with you? Powerful groups?
Oh, yes.
And with those?
You remember that, when elephants fight, it's the grass that suffers. The Kikuyu people of Kenya, Africa, on Earth, they teach us that lesson every day.
You've given me a proverb, which is less useful than a big stick. Whoever has the biggest stick wins.
What good is a rule if you're not willing to die for it? Or break it.
Just like you said -- whoever has the biggest stick wins. And in this case, that is me.
Hi. Sorry to interrupt. I'm Christopher Pike. My world is called Earth. And though it's far from here, my people and yours are very much alike. This is my world today. But we were not always peaceful. This is Earth in our 21st century. Before everything went wrong. It's a lot like your world today. Recently, I was treated to a glimpse of my future. It was not all I'd hoped. After all, what good is there in knowing your future? A friend of mine asked me that recently, and I didn't understand what he meant. Until now. I've seen my future. Let me show you yours. Our conflict also started with a fight for freedoms. We called it the Second Civil War, then the Eugenics War, and finally just World War III. This was our last day. The day the Earth we knew ceased to exist. What began as an eruption in one nation ended in the eradication of 600,000 species of animals and plants and 30% of Earth's population. Global suicide. What we gave you is the means to exterminate yourselves. And from the looks of you, you're gonna do it. You'll use competing ideas of liberty to bomb each other to rubble, just like we did, and then your last day will look just like this. Perhaps all your ends are written as indelibly as mine, but I choose to believe that your destinies are still your own. Maybe that's why I'm here. To remind you of the power of possibility. Maybe that's the good in seeing my future, that I might remind you that right up until the very end, life is to be worn gloriously. Because, 'til our last moment, the future's what we make it. So go to war with each other or join our Federation of Planets and reach for the stars. The choice is yours.
I told Captain Pike the truth about myself, and he defended me. Told me I was exemplary, that he would fight for me. So why do I feel terrible? What if I hadn't saved all those lives? Would the captain feel the same? What would he do if I wasn't a hero? One of the 'good ones'? When will it be enough to just ... be an Illyrian?
Attention. This is the captain speaking. Many of us have known those who have made the ultimate sacrifice. Officers, scientists, civilians who gave their lives in the hope for galactic peace. Today we remember the friends and comrades we lost. Exploration can exact a heavy toll. As captain, there is no loss more devastating than that of a crew member. Remembrance Day is about them. Those of us left behind wear the insignia of past ships on which we served together. As we honor the lives that have been given, let us also be grateful to be still on the journey.
Stay awake! Okay? Let's get you talking. So, an Aenar in Starfleet. How's that even work? Thought you guys were all pacifists.
I actually wanted to be a botanist. I love flora. I will not fight for Starfleet, but I will defend its ideals. Pacifism is not passivity. It is the active protection of all living things in the natural university.
Space really wants us dead.
Humans waste so much life worrying about death. The Aenar believe the end only comes once you have fulfilled your purpose. It provides meaning.
I like that. So, what was your purpose?
To fix what is broken.
[to Una and La'an] What do you two have planned for shore leave?
Are you kidding? They don't shore leave. They shore stay.
[laughing] Oh, right. The nickname.
[Nurse Chapel discreetly clears her throat and shakes her head.]
[now backpedaling] I don't know what I'm saying. I should probably go. Chief Kyle?
What nickname?
I can't remember. It's, uh...
"Where fun goes to die." It's stupid. The yeomen don't know what they're talking about. If they did, they wouldn't be yeomen.
Thank you for your advice. If I can ever return the favor, please do not hesitate to ask.
What are friends for?
[whispers] "What are friends for..."
That was a rhetorical, Spock.
[a beat] Oh, I know. Humans are almost as easy to tease as Vulcans.
[in T'Pring's body] You must answer (the door). These are my quarters. Anyone who comes here will expect me to answer the door.
[in Spock's body] I know how a door works. [door chimes] If they go away, that may give us enough time to fix this situation.
[in T'Pring's body] Logic suggests the easiest way to get them to go away is for you to answer while pretending to be me.
[in Spock's body] Spock, I do not like hijinks.
[in T'Pring's body] In that, we are in agreement. But it appears that hijinks are the most logical course of action.
So, Captain. Tell us... why should we ally ourselves with your Federation?
Easy: you shouldn't.... Why would you turn our enemies into your enemies? We're just a few years clear of the Klingon war. The Romulans are out there biding their time. And who knows what species we'll piss off next. It's not like we're coming to you with any great respect for your culture. We barely know anything about it. And what would you get in return? The hypothetical benefits of new trade markets? Scientific advancement? Our promise of support in the event of a crisis, which will probably only come about because you've thrown in your lot with us? No. The Federation has lots to offer, sure, but it always exacts a price. You have good reason to suspect that price is too high for you to pay.
Chris, what the hell was that?
Playing a hunch.
You're risking an alliance that could be the key to the Federation's security on a hunch?!
[shrugs] It's a good hunch.
These quotes come from Wikiquote's Star Trek: Strange New Worlds pages and are available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.
