All language subtitles for Star.Trek.Discovery.S04E12.WEBRip.x264-ION10

Previously on
Star Trek: Discovery...

DETMER:
We're officially out of
the galactic barrier

and into extragalactic space.

Whatever happened here
with Oros, it drives you.

TARKA:
I built my own transporter
to get back to him.

Whatever we think we know

about Species Ten-C,
we're wrong.

However we think first contact
will go, it won't.

BURNHAM:
The Ten-C are hidden
inside a hyperfield,

and right now I have no idea
how to get in,

what we'll find once we do,
or what they even look like.

If I know Michael,
she'll find a way

into the hyperfield
before we do.

TARKA:
I can create a patch.

It'll numb the sensors

on a section of
Discovery's hull,

just big enough
to attach your ship

without Zora realizing it.

My ship will enter
into the hyperfield

attached to Discovery.

Tarka will find the DMA's
power source and disable it.

That'll stop the DMA.
Earth will be safe.

How do I fit in to all of this?

Stay in contact. That's it.

So that's the hyperfield.

There is a planet

about two light-years away
from it.

I really think
we should check it out.

We sent DOTs down
to the planet's surface.

They recovered
16 unique compounds.

Nothing like coming home to an
unexpected hostage, am I right?

♪

♪

Commander Detmer,
how close are we?

DETMER:
We're 250,000 kilometers out.

-Hold position at 200.
-Aye, Captain.

From Earth's sun out to Mars.

OWOSEKUN:
Yes, ma'am.

It has a radius of 1.5 AUs.

Gravitational presence is
approximately 1.3 solar units.

To build anything that big...

Lieutenant Christopher,

have they responded
to our message?

Still nothing.

BURNHAM:
Keep hailing on all frequencies.

CHRISTOPHER:
Aye, Captain.

Should we raise shields?

No, we don't want to signal
threat or aggression.

Owosekun, do scans show
any sign of weapons?

OWOSEKUN:
Negative, Captain.

There's no sign of anything--

no change of any kind
in the hyperfield.

It's like they don't even know
we're here.

Madam President,

I think it's time
we let our first contact team

implement the contingency plan.

The message we have been sending

has been vetted
by all delegates.

We need to give it more time
to work.

Logically speaking,

if Species Ten-C
wanted to respond,

they would have done so already.

We've got 15 hours

before United Earth and Ni'Var
start to feel

the effects of the DMA.

We need to try something new.

♪

We collected 16 complex
hydrocarbon compounds

from the Ten-C's former planet.

Each conveys a different
emotion-- terror, love,

sadness, curiosity,
peacefulness.

HIRAI:
Which is the one
that concerns us now.

Our contingency plan entails
using that hydrocarbon

to try to start
the communication process.

Basically, "we come in peace,"
in chemical form.

I'm told someone from Science
is prepping the operation?

That would be Commander Stamets.

He has replicated
the hydrocarbon

and is presently loading it
into a fleet of DOTs,

which will apply it
to the hyperfield's surface.

Won't we need to move closer
to the hyperfield

in order to deploy them?

Yes, General, we will.

And at such close distance,

the hyperfield's radiation
may impact the warp core,

making it more difficult
to retreat if attacked.

Well, the power drain
will be small,

but it is
statistically significant.

Is taking on this level of risk
really prudent?

We won't get
a different response

without a different input.

Besides which,
given what we know

about the Ten-C's
technological capabilities,

there's no guarantee we could
evade any weapons they may have,

even at full warp.

SARU:
Commander Stamets,

are you ready to proceed?

Just 11 more DOTs to go.

You can load that one up next.

ZORA:
Commander, do you have a moment?

Uh, yeah, if you can talk
while I'm working.

I'm worried.
For several hours now,

something has felt off.

I've run multiple diagnostics,

but there seem to be
no irregularities.

-Isn't that good news?
-It should be.

-But I've learned to trust
in my feelings...
-Sorry.

...and this one
hasn't gone away.

Something's unaccounted for
in some part of my system.

And given the importance
of our mission,

I need to be sure
that nothing will impact it.

Well, if anyone can help,
it's Hugh.

When I'm done here,
let's talk to him.

We'll figure it out, Zora.

I appreciate the support.
Thank you.

I never knew being kidnapped
could be so boring.

You're not kidnapped.
You're temporarily detained.

Eh. Potato, po-tah-to.

BOOK:
I'm sorry about this, Commander.

We both are.

TARKA:
Just finished going through
the intel from Ndoye.

It's fascinating what they found
on the planet.

The Ten-C know
what it's like to lose a world,

and they created the DMA anyway.

I don't know what to do
with that.

Do with it whatever you like.

What matters is
what Discoverydoes with it,

and if they can use the data
to get inside.

Preferably,
before they realizes we're here.

Hey, uh, blood sugar's dropping
back here.

I'd kill
for some black licorice.

How long will it take
to stop the DMA once we're in?

TARKA:
Depends on the location
of the power source,

the defense mechanisms.

We have less than 15 hours.

TARKA:
Well, there's only
so much I can do

until we get in there.

BOOK:
Commander.

Licorice, made to order.

Much obliged.

DETMER:
We've reached 1,000 meters
from the hyperfield.

Hydrocarbon compounds are loaded
and the DOTs are ready, Captain.

Okay, then...

let 'em rip.

[crackling]

Any changes?
A response of any kind?

No, Captain.

Nothing yet, Captain.

NILSSON:
Captain, the DOTs are
registering something.

What's happening? Owosekun?

I'm getting significant
energy spikes

on this hyperfield surface.

TARKA:
Are you seeing this?

What the...?

BURNHAM:
Commander Nilsson,
pull them back.

NILSSON:
I'm trying, Captain.

Whatever that is, it's too fast.

NILSSON:
They're gone.

Well, it seems we've gotten
their attention.

-Shields up. Red alert.
-[alarm blaring]

Another spike,
and this one's massive.

Commander Detmer, get us
out of here, now. Maximum warp.

Aye, Captain.

-BURNHAM: What's happening?
-DETMER: I'm losing engines.

RHYS:
Weapons systems are dropping
off-line.

-NILSSON: Shields are failing.
-BURNHAM: Commander Detmer?

DETMER:
I can't get us out, Captain.

♪

♪

♪

♪

[original Star Trektheme
plays]

-[alarm blaring]
-Status report.

The ship is enclosed in
a membrane of unknown substance.

It appears to be
an orb of some kind.

Basic life support's
still fully functional.

Shields, engines and weapons
systems are all off-line.

They've enacted a selective
shutdown of some kind.

We need to get those systems
back up and running.

-Trying, Captain.
-DETMER: Working on it.

BURNHAM:
Owosekun, what else
are scans telling us?

Well, it looks like we're now
inside the hyperfield.

No sign of the DOTs.

There's a solar system in here,
three gas giant planets.

Mass and chemical composition
are all identical.

The orb is taking us
to one of the planets.

We're like a bug in a jar.

BURNHAM:
Lieutenant Christopher,

tell Stamets to assemble a team
and figure out a way

to get us out of this thing.

Aye, Captain.

I'm alone now. We can speak.

We've got no weapons,
shields or propulsion.

NDOYE:
Same withDiscovery.

-What the hell happened?
-We sent a hydrocarbon message

to the Ten-C, the hyperfield
captured us in this orb.

That's all I know.

Any idea if Zora's picked up
on our presence yet?

Not that I've heard,
but I'll look into it.

-Have you found
the DMA's power source?
-TARKA: Just did.

Scans show it's on the far edge
of the hyperfield,

in a casement of
silicon-ellanium alloy.

Once we breach that,
we can simply pull it out.

Was expecting something
a little more surgical.

Take a look at
the functional flows here.

It'll work.

The DMA'll stop immediately.

Okay.

-General, you'll keep us posted?
-Of course.

One more thing.

How's Michael?

Scared, same as the rest of us.

She just hides it better.

I have to go.

Hey. What are you doing?

Just making some adjustments
to the energy-transfer rate

so my transporter will work when
I hook it to the power source.

Why don't you find a way
to get us out of the orb first?

I'll work on systems,
get us back on line.

♪

[whispers]:
Come on.

Come on.

Shit.

Captain, the orb we're in
has stopped moving.

Looks like we're
in the upper layers

of the planet's atmosphere.

Sensors show life signs
all around us.

Hundreds of them.

They're also scanning us.

Every millimeter of the bridge.

Any progress restoring systems?

Engineering says that the orb is

somehow keeping them
powered down.

Nothing they've tried
has worked.

Have them try something else.

SARU [over comm]:
Captain, we need you

for a first contact discussion.

Commander Rhys,
you have the conn.

Let me know if anything changes.

STAMETS:
She says there's a malfunction
in her system somewhere,

but I checked the logs,
Zora ran diagnostics,

nothing seemed
out of the ordinary.

Well, sometimes getting
to the root cause of a feeling

is helped by focusing
on the feeling itself.

We'll talk.

I appreciate that.

Thank you.

Hugh. Are you all right?

Yeah, I just...

I keep thinking about
what I felt down on that planet.

Peace, calm, comfort.

It's been a long time
since I had that, and...

I'm not sure how to get
back there, you know?

Well, I need to get back
to Adira and the team.

But when this is all over,
we're taking a vacation.

-[chuckles]
-Just the two of us.

Deal.

All right, let's get started.

ZORA:
How?

Well, we'll play the Trill game
while we talk.

Helped you before.

I'll set it up for us.

RILLAK:
But why would the Ten-C
bring us in here,

scan us extensively, and then
not even engage with us?

I might speculate that they are

attempting to understand our
technology before proceeding.

Speculation is of little use
in this moment.

We require answers.

Could it be that they're using
a communication frequency

-we're unaware of?
-More likely they're waiting

for us to communicate
a sense of purpose.

Our message conveyed no intent,
merely a lack of threat.

NDOYE:
We cannot hope to conduct

effective diplomacy
as prisoners.

Communication is
our only option right now.

We don't even know
how to get them to speak to us.

BURNHAM:
I have an idea.

For centuries,
it's been Federation tradition

to present a gift
during first contact

as a way of building trust.

Stamets collected
a few samples of boronite

from the site
of the DMA implosion.

Gift-giving can be
culturally complex.

The Ten-C may not perceive it
as we intend.

It's the only thing
we know for sure they want.

I'm not sure
what other choice we have.

Hmm.

H-How could we possibly
deliver it?

We could beam the particles
directly onto the orb membrane.

It sized itself to fit our ship.

It has to have
sensor capabilities.

Let's give it a shot.

Engines, shields, weapons,
all still down.

Nothing's working.

TARKA:
The Ten-C must be blocking
those systems. Don't worry.

They'll come back
once I get us out of this orb.

You found a way?

When a nightsprey's
done nesting,

there's only one way
to leave the jajtspat.

RENO:
Hey.

Why exactly did you team up
with that guy?

He seems a couple of cherries
short of a sundae.

He lost someone and made a vow
to get back to him.

I respect that.

My mentor, Cleveland Booker,
used to say

the measure of someone is in
how they honor their promises.

RENO:
You share a name with someone?

That's not confusing at all.

He's not called Book anymore.

In the courier world,
trust is everything.

Trust that someone will do
the job you paid them for,

not rip you off or sell you out.

The name Cleveland Booker
earned trust for generations,

passed from one to another.

Mine was the fourth in the line.

When he retired,

he gave his name
and his clients to me.

I became the fifth.

You think he'd approve of Tarka?

I think he'd understand him.

When my wife died,
I needed a focus.

So I joined the Hiawatha.

After we crashed,

there was an ensign,
horribly burned.

He begged me to let him go.

I told him it was my duty
to keep him alive.

I kept replicating skin grafts.

It took 11 days for him to die.

After he finally did,
that's when I saw that

his eyes were
the same color as hers.

The exact same green.

That is why
I couldn't let him go.

Not because of him,
because of me.

You and Tarka have made
some dubious choices,

because you're both in pain,
and you can't see it.

I see you're trying
to work on me.

Doesn't mean I'm wrong.

How much longer
until we're free?

TARKA:
Soon.

SARU:
The boronite has been sent.

No response yet, Captain.

You're feeling it out as you go,
adapting, making choices.

I respect that.

But a soldier has to accept
when they've hit a wall.

That's when the truly
hard choices need to be made.

I used to think
there was no wall.

As captain, my experience
has taught me otherwise.

General,
we haven't hit it yet.

ZORA:
Captain, scans show changes

to the orb membrane
near the shuttle bay.

BURNHAM:
Here we go.

Something is coming.

A life-form.

♪

Seems they've decided
to say hello.

It has visual receptors
and pheromone glands.

Not sure if these are auditory
receptors or electrical sensors.

Its brain structure is
wildly unusual.

The universal translator
won't be helpful.

So we'll have to learn another
way to talk to each other.

ZORA:
Captain, the being is excreting

a mist of large organic
molecule clusters.

-BURNHAM: Can you analyze them,
Zora?
-Of course.

All of the supramolecules
are identical.

Each is comprised of dozens
of the same hydrocarbons

you found on their home planet.

Which hydrocarbons, exactly?

Each molecule is 25% joy,
22% sadness,

17% peacefulness,
14% irritation,

12% surprise
and ten percent fear.

That's six of the 16 emotions
we know they can feel.

It's nonsensical.

Perhaps it is attempting
to convey all six emotions

simultaneously.

[whirring]

Incredible.
What could that mean?

That complex of a pattern has to
be for communication, somehow.

ZORA:
You may be right, Captain.

The light pattern was identical
both times.

If that's their language,
then the hydrocarbons

must convey emotional inflection
and context.

We need to mirror
the light pattern back to them.

How will that move us forward?

It'll show them
we recognize this

as an effort to communicate.

From there,
we'll need to find a way

to convey simple
and then more complex thoughts.

Sounds like the start of
a frighteningly long process.

Could be.

Hmm.

Zora, can you project the light
pattern back to the Ten-C?

ZORA:
Yes, Captain,
I just need a moment.

Something's happening
near shuttle bay.

Hey, take a look.

Lights of some kind.

What are they?

Doesn't matter.

You found us a way out?

-[comm beeps]
-NODYE: It's Ndoye.

-We have a problem.
-What is it? Is everyone okay?

[sighs] Fine,

except that the universal
translators won't work,

communication needs to start
from scratch,

and we have only 12 hours
before the DMA reaches Earth.

Won't take nearly that long
to get us out of here,

but we will need help
pushing off Discovery.

What kind of help?

I need to ignite a plasma stream

so I can burn a hole
in the Ten-C's orb.

From there, a simple reversed
tractor beam will repel us

back out of the hole,
no engines required.

NDOYE:
Where do I come in?

You'll hack Discovery'ssystems
and vent the plasma

through the starboard nacelle.

You must be joking.

TARKA:
I assure you, I'm not.

Feeding information is
one thing.

This is a betrayal.

Well, if diplomacy starts
working, we'll stand down,

but right now, it sounds like
we can't even say hello.

This will stop the DMA.

No one else has to die.

Please.

We can't do this without you.

[sighs] Let me know
when he's ready.

Sending the override codes now.

And, General...

thank you.

Once Zora projects
the pattern back to them,

hopefully the Ten-C respond
with a new message.

Mr. Saru, stand by for analysis.

-Ready, Zora?
-ZORA: I am.

Sending the message now.

♪

What happened?
Why is it leaving?

Did Zora replicate
the light pattern exactly?

She did.

Uh, the Ten-C sent the same
pattern back to us once again.

Curious.

Maybe they want us
to answer back, not just mimic.

It is possible they do not yet
see us as sentient beings.

We have a spaceship.
We warped here.

Clearly we're sentient.

Compared to them,
our technology's primitive.

They've achieved level two
on the Kardashev scale,

maybe beyond.

It's like comparing a human
to a monkey with a rock.

[Burnham sighs]

Zora, compare the pattern
to both Federation

and non-Federation
linguistic databases.

ZORA:
Great minds think alike,
Captain. I was just doing so.

Unfortunately,
there's no known comparison.

I'm not seeing
the redundancy and patterning

I'd expect from language,
either.

You're saying
it's not a language?

It may be, but it's unlike any
I've ever encountered.

We lack the tools
to understand it,

in which case,
it may as well not be.

Well, there is a pattern here,
we just have to find it.

SARU:
Well, solving the hydrocarbon
mystery required

a variety of perspectives.

Perhaps that would help us
again?

Detmer, Nilsson, Christopher,

please report to shuttle bay,
now.

-[quiet chatter]
-CULBER: Nice move.

-Your sine wave is stabilized.
-ZORA: The game's helping.

I still can't identify
the exact moment

I started feeling so distracted,

but I found an anomalous event

that occurred
around the same time:

a replicator-system malfunction.

Commander Reno fixed it.

Oh, well, maybe she can shed
some light.

Commander Reno,
it's Dr. Culber.

Zora, where's Commander Reno?

My sensors show her
in Engineering.

Oh. She's probably helping
Paul figure out

a way out of this orb.
I'll talk to her.

One of my professors
at the Academy used to say

that if a problem stumps you,
examine your assumptions.

Now, we're assuming
that the hydrocarbons are

only about emotions, but...

what if it's also a language
of some kind?

How could
the hydrocarbons contain

emotional and semantic content?

NILSSON:
Maybe it's like music.

A piano piece evokes emotion
but also has

a structure of pitches,
note lengths, tempo.

BURNHAM:
Yes, what if the hydrocarbons
are the structure?

If each is a symbol, or a word,

then the molecules themselves
are the message.

Zora, will you display a holo

of one of the molecules
we received?

Okay, if we're meant
to read this,

how do we do it?
Where do we start?

Which direction do we go?

It's like an encrypted message,
but we're missing a key.

Maybe the lights are a key.

A star map is a 2D rendering
to help us navigate 3D space.

Maybe the Ten-C's light pattern
is a map

to help us read the hydrocarbons
in a specific order.

BURNHAM:
Zora, show us
the light pattern.

Can you turn this
into a 3D model

using maximum brightness levels
as the Z-axis variable?

ZORA:
Of course, Captain.

If I move the light map
over the molecule...

[gasps]

Zora, try the lights again.

BURNHAM:
And there we go.

Now we can read the message
in the order they intended.

What it means to "read"
a message, however...

-Zora, start analyzing.
-Yes, Captain.

Thank you.

I'll see you all on the bridge.

[sighs]

♪

Hey, Book the Fifth,

you've been replicating
my licorice refill

since the dawn of time.

It was literally ten seconds.

Be a gentleman.

Hand that to me
like the lady that I am.

Your friend Tarka's gonna
kill us all.

What are you talking about?

I saw his calculations.

If he pulls the power source
while the DMA's up and running,

the hyperfield will implode,

destroying everything
and everyone inside of it.

He said it'd be safe.

He lied.

And the subspace rift
it'll leave near Earth

will kill everyone almost
as fast as the DMA would.

You're just saying that
so I'll let you out.

Tell him to show you the math.

His equations
won't make any sense,

but the look on his face will.

Like I said,
pain makes people blind.

You need to make this right.

♪

BURNHAM:
Uh, how are we doing, Zora?

Were you able to decode
the molecule?

ZORA:
I believe so.

I assigned a letter to each of

the individual hydrocarbons,

and then placed them in the
order designated by the lights.

The resulting pattern seems
to represent

a series of
mathematical equations.

Of course.

You say that like it's obvious.

Take a look at this arrangement.

Three of hydrocarbon A,
one B, then one A.

Four A's, one B, three A's.

Here we have four A's,
one B, two A's.

That's the pattern.

The first group of A's is
always larger than the next.

Indicating that
the B compound in the middle

means "greater than."

Now, there are other patterns
as well.

T'RINA:
Mr. Saru?

SARU:
Uh, simply put,

they are trying to teach us
a bridge language,

-such as Lincos.
-Exactly.

Lincos?

BURNHAM:
A language based on math.

The 21st-century Earth
organization METI predicted

that it would be helpful in
extraplanetary communication.

The Ten-C must think that
their language is

too complicated
for us to understand,

so they're using
this simpler one.

They're reaching back.

From here, we can build
all sorts of communication.

If/then statements,
complex logic.

We need to show them
that we understand.

Can we send an equation
of our own?

If Zora gives me access
to the ship's replicator,

I can build a molecule and
beam it directly onto the orb.

Then she'd just
need to show them

the map of lights
so they can read it.

ZORA:
I'd be happy to assist, Doctor.

Great. Get to work,
both of you.

NDOYE:
President T'Rina,
may I have a word?

Shouldn't we be using this time
to try and get out of the orb?

Everything all right?

It seemed we were
getting along so well,

but at the meeting earlier, ah--

she was rather strident.

Ah. But there are
more important things.

It's not surprising.

Logic above all.

Vulcans often overcompensate
in public to prove a point,

especially when close
relationships are involved.

Sarek used to do it
all the time.

It drove me crazy.

Ah.

This context is
most appreciated.

[Burnham chuckles]

Happy to serve as a translator
whenever you need.

HIRAI:
Message is ready.

How do we feel about
"four plus five equals nine"?

I love math.

Let's just hope it's enough
to bring them back.

BOOK:
You said no one would get hurt.

You've already given up
so much for this.

I didn't...

I didn't want to make it
harder for you.

You lied!

What matters is
we're stopping the DMA.

I won't do to the Ten-C
what they did to Kwejian.

And I sure as hell won't
put Discoveryat risk.

You're talking like it's certain
the hyperfield will implode.

Maybe it won't.

Besides, total implosion will
take a good three minutes or so.

That's enough time for us
to warp to safety--

for Discoveryto get away, too.

-Maybe even the Ten-C.
-What about Earth?

By my calculations,

the void will take a month
to reach the planet.

That's plenty of time
for their scientists to find

-some sort of solution.
-No, you should've told me.

This has to be a last resort.

-I'm telling Ndoye
to stand down.
-No!

No.

In 40 minutes,
we're getting out of this orb.

We have ten hours
before the DMA starts to hit.

-And who knows what'll happen
in that time?
-Okay, we need to give

-first contact more time
before...
-We have to do something

-while we can!
-...we start something
we can't stop!

Step away!

Stay away from the consoles.

I cannot do that,
not when I'm this close.

This is my ship.

SHIP COMPUTER:
Warning.

[grunts]

[Book groaning]

SARU:
The Ten-C are back.

It seems the message was
a success.

ZORA:
We're receiving new molecules.

Sending the hydrocarbon analysis
to your holoPADD, Dr. Hirai.

HARAI:
Applying the light pattern
to decode.

It's more
mathematical equations.

-All of them equaling nine.
-RILLAK: Oh.

We have started to communicate.

Well done, all.

ZORA:
Captain,
an object is approaching.

Mr. Saru?

I register no radiation
or toxins.

Uh, the exterior is coated
in the hydrocarbon

for peacefulness.

The interior contains
a breathable atmosphere.

That's how
they want to keep talking.

They want us to go inside.

[grunts]

[gasping]

More defense improvements.
Well done.

TARAK:
Book, come on.

-Please, stop.
-You first.

[Book grunts]

[groaning]

I'm sorry. I have to take
this badge.

I never wanted this, Book.
Ever.

[Book sighs]

[groaning]

I've had two real friends
in my life.

[scoffs]

And you were one of them.

You have a funny way
of showing it.

What you're doing is wrong.

30 minutes left.

Then we're out of this orb
and on our way.

We can't be sure it's even safe
to go inside.

If they wanted to hurt us,
they could've done it already.

And if diplomacy fails,

the consequences will be
far greater

than any immediate risk to us.

I'll go.

Captain Burnham, Mr. Saru,
I'd like you to join me.

Your skill set
as a xenoanthropologist

and a linguist
will be invaluable.

Dr. Hirai,

I'd ask that you stay.

If... something happens,

you should resume diplomacy
without us.

President T'Rina,
General Ndoye,

your presence would be welcome,

as the delegates
whose planets are

under the most direct threat.

I will advocate for my planet,
whatever is required.

I have faith you'll convey
the necessary message.

I'm of greater use here
on the outside.

Very well.

Zora shouldn't come,
given all the unknowns.

Agreed.

SARU: I will assemble a portable
transporter unit

and some samples
of the hydrocarbons.

Uh, perhaps Commander Stamets
can suggest

something to project
a light map.

Actually, have him handle
all of that.

I need to borrow you
for a moment.

You're the only one
I can say this to.

But I think it needs to be said.

The Ten-C...

they hold all the cards here.

I feel like everything is
just...

slipping through my fingers.

I have also struggled
when I feel a lack of control.

Mm.

Yet it is something
with which we must make peace.

Strangely enough,
Mr. Tarka showed me a technique

that has proven helpful,
though unorthodox.

What is it?

Well, simply put... yelling.

I could demonstrate.

Okay.

[clears throat]

[inhales deeply]

[yells]

-I'm sorry.
-No.

Don't be.

It's not even close
to the weirdest thing

that's happened today.

[screams]

[both screaming]

-[whimpers]
-[laughing]

Hmm.

I think I needed that.

-Mm-hmm.
-[Grudge meows]

Apparently,
Grudge did not need that.

[laughter]

There is no one I would
rather go into this with.

It is an honor to be
at your side, today and always.

Aw...

[Grudge yowls softly]

Zora, are you positive
Reno's in here?

ZORA:
My sensors say she's present.

We've been in here all day,
and I haven't seen her once.

I... Maybe Paul found her.

-He should be back soon.
-He is on his way back now,
Ensign.

This is so strange.

-Is that her badge?
-Yeah, look.

ZORA:
I'm receiving
full biometric data,

even though
she's not wearing it.

Very odd.

I'll run an analysis subroutine
to locate the malfunction.

And we should page her, too.

She's got to be
on the ship somewhere.

ZORA:
Commander Jett Reno,
please report to Engineering.

-Commander Reno.
-Madam President.

If it helps to hear this, I...

I do not believe
we have cause to fear.

I wish I could say the same.

I must admit, I am not certain
how to step into danger

with one for whom I have
such personal fondness.

Perhaps this is
one of the reasons

I avoid closeness with others.

Uh...

-Mr. Saru.
-Oh.

-From Commander Stamets.
-Ah, thank you.

BURNHAM:
All right.

♪

Let's go.

♪

♪

T'RINA:
Were we beamed onto the bridge?

Where is everyone?

I believe it is... a replica.

The Ten-C created an environment

where they thought
we'd be comfortable.

We've lost contact
with Discovery.

We're on our own.

-[electrical trilling]
-Not entirely.

An isolytic weapon.

It's not armed.

They must've built it
from data they collected

on the one Tarka detonated
in the DMA.

Is it intended as a threat?

Or a gift,
in return for boronite?

[sensor beeps]

Sensors show they have sent

a mist of molecules
onto the viewscreen.

And there are the lights.

I will translate the message.

178 plus

this mathematical equation
equals

a curiosity hydrocarbon.

Is the message about the weapon?

178 is the atomic number
for isolynium.

I believe this equation is
an expression of volume

for a convex lens-like shape.

The DMA.

Isolytic weapon plus DMA
equals curiosity.

It's a question.

They put the weapon here
to help us understand.

They want to know why
the weapon was put in the DMA.

This implies they may be unaware

of the damage
the DMA has caused.

Well, our response needs
to make them understand.

They need to make it stop.

BURNHAM:
Okay.

Let's figure out
how to say that with math.

[sighs]

[comm chirps]

Booker, it's Ndoye.

Your captain and a team went
to talk with the Ten-C

and now they're gone.

Scans can't find the orb
they entered into.

Can you see it at all?

Tell her to stand down.

-Give the talks a chance.
-NDOYE: Booker, do you copy?

They could be dead
for all we know.

If the Ten-C wanted to kill
any of us, we'd already be dead.

Assuming they do come back,
we have no idea when that'll be.

It could be hours. Weeks? Years?

Tarka, don't!

[sighs]

It's done.

Just make sure you stop
the damn thing in time.

So, we agree on our response.

DMA plus us
equals the "terror" hydrocarbon.

As they felt when
their world was being destroyed.

The only question is how do
we convey the concept of "us"?

The number four, maybe.
There are four of us.

Or six, the atomic number
of carbon. We are carbon-based.

I-I fear that such numbers
could hold

other significance
for the Ten-C.

It is easy for
misunderstanding to occur

between different cultures
when one lacks context.

But what President T'Rina said,

using our own biology...

The air. The air.

They've created
an artificial atmosphere

based on the exact ratio
of gases we need to breathe.

78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen,

.93% argon and
.04% carbon dioxide.

-They will recognize that as us.
-SARU: DMA plus us

equals terror.

I will code and send it.

Ah. We are receiving
a new message already.

They have sent us
a greater-than symbol

and a sadness hydrocarbon.

"Great sadness."

[Burnham exhales]

BURNHAM:
That means they understand,

and it means they have empathy.

And if they have empathy
for us, diplomacy can work.

[sighs]

Now we just need to figure out
how to ask them

to turn off the DMA.

STAMETS:
Reno's gone?

CULBER:
Zora's analysis proves

that someone tampered
with her badge.

Yeah, but why would
anyone do that?

If it didn't sound
completely insane,

I would guess that somebody
took her off the ship

and covered it up.

STAMETS:
I should've known
something was wrong.

I've been trying
to find her all day

to help us get out of this orb.

It's not your fault.

ZORA:
I think I found something.

I've been analyzing every
discrete event in this sector

of the ship during
the time range in question.

Access Panel 4351 was
opened briefly at one point,

but the maintenance check
isn't scheduled until tomorrow.

Okay, well,
this should not be here.

ZORA:
That's it. That's the source
of what I've been feeling.

And now... Oh, no.

-What? What's wrong?
-There's a cloaked vessel
attached to me.

-It's Book's ship.
-[rumbling]

-[alarm blaring]
-What's happening?

Plasma's venting
from one of the nacelles.

Here we go.

It's burning a hole in the orb.

-What about
the emergency shutoff?
-Someone entered override codes.

STAMETS [over comm]:
Commander, Book's ship is
attached to our underbelly.

We know, we see them on scans.

♪

No response to hails, Commander.

-What else can we do here?
-Nothing. They're gone.

I will be ready with
the DMA message in one moment.

[beeping]

Oh, that's... new.

They sent us back. Why?

Booker's ship was
attached to ours.

They just escaped the orb.

What? They're here?

The Ten-C's defenses
were breached.

That's why we're back.
How much time do we have?

Four hours left until the Earth
starts getting hit.

The impulse engines are
back on line.

Weapons and warp drive
are still down,

but it doesn't matter, we're
almost at the power source.

I just need to figure out
how to fly this damn thing.

You were right.

I should've listened to you.

I know it might feel
like all is lost--

and, okay, maybe it is--

but I do have something
that can help.

It's a communicator chip.

I stashed it
when I ran into psycho-pants

and I realized
he was gonna stun me.

What's the licorice do?

The glycyrrhizic acid
in licorice, when it dissolves,

it conducts electricity.

I can use it to call Discovery,

but I haven't been able
to make it past

your ship's security protocols.

You need my access codes.

[loud thud]

We won't have long.

I'll talk fast.

Can we get out
the same way they did?

We've got nothing
to repel against,

and the hole they made has
already sealed itself up.

CHRISTOPHER:
Captain, we just received

an urgent message
from Booker's ship.

Play it.

RENO [distorted]:
Captain, it's Reno.

Tarka's got me and Book
locked up,

and if he takes out the DMA

the way he wants to,

it'll destroy the hyperfield,
the Ten-C,

probablyDiscovery, too.

It'll also leave
a toxic waste dump

heading straight for Earth.

You have to stop us,
whatever it takes.

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