Chief Medical Officer's log, star date 44161.2.
We are docking at Starbase 133 for scheduled crew rotation.
I look forward to welcoming my mentor and dear friend,
Dr Dalen Quaice, who will travel with us to his home planet, Kenda II.
- Dalen! - Good to see you again, Beverly.
- You look wonderful. - A lie I can live with.
It's kind of your captain to ferry me home.
It was on our way.
- Thanks, O'Brien. - My pleasure, Doctor.
- I'm sorry about Patricia. - She'd been ill for some time.
Is her death the reason you're giving up your post?
We had a lifetime together, doing all the things we'd dreamed.
And more. But when she was gone,
I couldn't continue to work in that office,
sleep in that bed without her.
The absence of her was too distracting.
I'm not sure that I'm making any sense.
Jack and I only had a few short years together, but I understand.
When you realize someone you love is lost forever...
You know the worst part of growing old?
So many of the people you've known all your life are gone.
You realize you didn't take the time to appreciate them while you could.
I'm sorry. There's no reason to load this emotional baggage on you.
I usually travel light.
Experiment time is over. I want my warp engines back.
- I'm almost done. - Almost isn't good enough.
What if the Captain says "Engage" and we just sit here?
A few more minutes. I'm ready to try the new warp field.
- Mom. - Don't let me interrupt.
- Wesley! - Right, OK.
Computer, run a level-two diagnostic on warp-drive systems.
Antimatter containment positive. Warp drive within normal parameters.
Wesley, talk to me.
That shouldn't have happened.
Why would there be visible phenomena outside the warp drive?
Prepare for disconnect.
- Are you done? - Yeah.
Mom?
Clear all moorings. Aft thrusters.
Aft thrusters, aye. Impulse power to the helm.
Dalen?
Dalen, it's Beverly.
Computer, current location of Dr Dalen Quaice.
There is no Dr Dalen Quaice aboard the Enterprise.
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.
Come.
Lt Worf, yesterday, before we left starbase,
an old friend of mine came on board, Dr Dalen Quaice.
I requested quarters for him. He was assigned here.
I was not aware of this passenger.
I thought it was standard procedure for you to be informed.
- It is. Please proceed. - We were to meet for breakfast.
But I can't seem to find him or his belongings.
Computer, where is Dr Dalen Quaice?
There is no Dr Dalen Quaice aboard the Enterprise.
Dr Quaice is very old and rather frail.
If he fell, if his communicator were damaged...
- I will order a search immediately. - Thank you.
Even if Dr Quaice had been injured, why would his belongings be missing?
I have teams conducting a deck-by-deck search.
- It is not yet complete. - I scanned the entire ship.
Other than the regular complement, I found no one else on board.
Your sensors wouldn't detect him if he were dead.
That is correct, Doctor.
Could he have returned to the starbase
without telling you? An emergency?
There were a lot of people going back and forth yesterday.
We could check the transporter ID traces.
By all means check the trace log,
but even if the results are negative, contact Starbase Command.
Aye, sir.
One moment, Doctor.
I'm sure you're aware of the procedure involving passengers.
Of course. I don't know why Lt Worf wasn't told about Dr Quaice.
- I was not informed either. - But I sent in a request weeks ago.
Then it was intercepted before it reached me.
And someone else sent approval? Why?
Dr Quaice had been stationed at the starbase for some time?
Six years.
It would be prudent to find out if he had any enemies there.
- Course laid in for Durenia IV. - Thank you. Mr. Data?
Starbase 133 has no record of a Dr Dalen Quaice.
You said he was there for six years.
Not according to their computer. I accessed Starfleet records.
There is no Dr Quaice currently serving.
I can find no service record or birth records with that name.
- I can find no... - Data!
I interned with him on Delos IV. I've known him for 15 years.
I do not doubt you.
But I have tried 173 phonetic variations of the name and...
His name is Dalen Quaice. Q-U-A-l-C-E.
Whatever your records say, they're wrong.
- Mr. Worf? - We have completed our search.
- We cannot locate Dr Quaice. - You're not alone.
He was on board.
I met him myself in transporter room three.
For reasons unknown, someone has taken great pains
- to erase all traces of him. - Who was on transporter duty?
- Was he part of the regular crew? - No, he's a friend of Dr Crusher's.
- When did he arrive? - Yesterday at 1600 hours.
That was my watch. I beamed this man on board?
Yes, I met him. An elderly man, not in the best of health.
I'm sorry. I remember you being here for a while. But you were alone.
Was he invisible? Did I have a conversation with thin air?
No, Doctor. As I recall, you came in and looked around for a few moments.
I asked you if I could help you. All you said was, "Thank you."
I said, "My pleasure," and that was the end of it.
There was no one else here.
I can't believe that Chief O'Brien might be lying.
He believes what he says. And there is no trace imprint for Dr Quaice.
I didn't just conjure up one of my best friends from a test tube.
If the ship's records were tampered with,
the transporter's could have been.
With everybody coming and going, maybe O'Brien doesn't remember. Or...
- Or? - We could run a diagnostic on him.
- Make sure he wasn't tampered with? - What do you think?
It's worth a try. I'll check the replicator-activity logs.
18 hours is a long time to go without food.
Or without someone seeing him.
This examination will only take a few minutes.
- But I feel fine. - Sit down.
It's no use checking my eyesight. I didn't see your friend.
I'll be a little more comprehensive than that, Chief.
Dr Crusher to Dr Hill.
Respond, please.
Dr Selar, your present location?
Computer, current whereabouts of Doctors Hill and Selar?
There is no Dr Hill or Dr Selar aboard the Enterprise.
Doctors Hill and Selar and four other members of my staff have vanished.
All record of their being on board has been excised from the computer.
Did they come with Dr Quaice?
No. They've been on board for months.
But my two duty nurses don't remember them.
Nor do their families.
As O'Brien didn't remember Dr Quaice.
I checked O'Brien. I found no physiological abnormalities.
Crusher to Capt Picard.
- Go ahead. - I'm in Engineering, sir.
There's something that may be connected to Quaice's disappearance.
On my way.
- Progress? - No one's seen him.
His replicator has not been used.
Check hull and shield integrity for intruders.
Yes, sir. But I've been monitoring all on-board sensors.
- There has been no indication... - Do a level-one diagnostic.
Run a manual sweep of anomalous airborne or electromagnetic readings.
I want some answers.
I've used Kosinski's warp equations to try to improve engine efficiency.
- I've read your reports. - We did a test run at the starbase.
Here's what the computer recorded.
This is the static warp field we created.
The experiment aimed to keep a bubble intact.
As you'll see, we couldn't.
There was a momentary flash of light.
- It was all over the spectrum. - I remember that.
A bubble could have made Dr Quaice disappear?
If he were caught in it, yes. It'd seem to us like he disappeared.
Where would he go?
He could be outside our space-time continuum.
- Was he here during your experiment? - No, sir.
The bubble didn't expand beyond Engineering?
No, sir.
Then how could it trap Dr Quaice or the others?
- There are others missing? - Yes.
And they were nowhere near Engineering.
It doesn't make sense.
I doubt that a warp bubble
could alter computer records or erase memories.
Keep at it. It's our only working theory for now.
- Something else happened? - Sickbay is empty. I have no staff.
- And that surprises you? - I'll say it surprises me!
There should be at least four members on duty.
Ship's records do not concur.
- What are you talking about? - You do not have a staff.
I'm the sole medical officer on a ship with over 1,000 people on board?
Excuse me, Doctor, but the entire ship's complement is 230.
What?!
Doctor, may I see you in my ready room?
Would you care for something?
So, Beverly...
Tea, Earl Grey, hot.
You're saying that this ship has lost nearly 800 of its personnel?
I know how it sounds.
None of the scans show any anomalies. No signs of an intruder.
Wesley's experiment did not have the scope to affect an entire ship.
Captain, the Enterprise is in serious danger. You must believe me.
I have no choice but to believe you.
The safety of my entire crew is at stake, but... I must be sure...
That I haven't lost my mind?
I just examined myself. Being the only doctor on board,
I had to do it myself. There was no dysfunction.
Increased adrenaline elevation, but that is understandable.
Did you find anything that suggests why you're the only one among us
unaffected by this... this phenomenon?
No.
I'll talk to Troi.
Wouldn't do any harm.
Captain, please! Return this ship to Starbase 133 for a full diagnostic.
I realize you have my word only to convince you.
- Mr. Riker? - Captain?
Set a course to return to Starbase 133 immediately.
Aye, sir.
Your word has always been good enough for me.
I've had a team in sickbay for two hours.
We've scanned the EM spectrum
in case there was a wave guide leaking radiation.
We've crawled around the ductwork.
I don't know what this vortex was that Dr Crusher saw.
I didn't just see it. I felt it. I barely escaped from it!
There's nothing there now. And no sign there ever was.
Is there any possible connection with Mr. Crusher's experiment?
Could this warp bubble be floating about the ship?
No, sir. It was contained in Engineering.
It couldn't affect anything on deck 12.
I completed computer diagnostics. There are no malfunctions.
Any ships respond to our queries?
The Wellington is the only vessel nearby.
It reports normal operations.
A Ferengi ship also reports nothing unusual.
Are all the members of the crew accounted for?
- Yes, Doctor. - How many are there?
There are 114 people on the Enterprise.
What?!
That is the number there should be.
There are now over 900 missing.
Deck after deck of this ship is deserted!
Why are there empty rooms?
If there are only meant to be 114 people, why all the extra space?
Transportation of colonists, diplomatic missions, evacuations.
Thank you. Confine nonessential personnel to quarters.
Computer, go to red alert.
I'd like Lt Worf to program sensors to monitor all personnel.
I'm sorry. Whom did you say?
Worf. Chief of Security.
The big guy who never smiles?
The Klingon!
Deanna.
I need you to tell me if I've gone completely mad.
If you can ask the question, I'd say no.
- Don't evade the question. - Then ask me one I can answer.
I've delivered babies that no longer exist.
No one else remembers them.
Yet I can close my eyes and see their faces clearly as I see yours.
What if it's not some conspiracy? What if it is just me?
What if it is just you?
I've delayed a mission and frightened people, including myself.
So what?
You have acted in the best interest of your ship and crew.
What more could you ask?
And if this turns out to be a mistake,
then we'll be late arriving at Durenia IV. That's all.
It's not a mistake. I wish it were.
When we reach starbase, I'll order a complete work-up.
If we reach starbase.
Wesley.
Where's Wesley?
Wesley?
Mom?
Are you alright?
No. We may have very little time left.
- You don't believe me. - Mom, I don't know...
I don't have time to convince you. Hundreds are missing.
Your experiment is the only explanation we have.
There it is. I don't know what else to do with it.
Find someone who does, who knows about warp bubbles.
Kosinski can't explain it either, and this is based on his equations.
There is someone who may be able to help, but I can't reach him.
- Who? - Kosinski's assistant.
An alien from Tau Alpha C. Some kind of Traveller.
He combined warp technology and the energy from his thoughts.
Yes, I remember. Wesley, do you think it's possible
that you've accidentally recreated something that he did
that could alter reality?
I don't see how. He's the only one who could explain it.
I sent a message to Tau Alpha C, but it could take days to get there.
Maybe the Captain can help. We've got to find him.
If he's still alive. He was very sick.
We can't stand here doing nothing.
It's a chance. We have to try to... Wesley!
Wesley?
They're all gone?
Riker? Troi? Data?
Wait a minute. Let me guess. You never heard of any of them.
I have been more than fair.
I've done everything I can to substantiate your...
- Your perceptions of a... - Will Riker! Your First Officer.
He's very good at playing poker, he loves to cook,
he listens to jazz music, plays the trombone.
I cannot find any evidence of a Riker!
Cmdr Data, the android who sits at Ops, dreams of being human,
never gets the punch-line of a joke.
Doctor, we'll be arriving at Starbase 133 in a few hours.
Deanna Troi, Counsellor, half-Betazoid, loves chocolate.
Her mother makes you shudder.
O'Brien, Geordi, Worf, Wesley, my son.
They all have been the living, breathing heart of this crew
for over three years. They deserve more than to be shrugged off,
brushed aside, just pinched out of existence like that.
They all do.
They deserve so much more.
Beverly, perhaps it would be best
if you confined yourself to sickbay until we arrive.
It's all perfectly logical to you, isn't it?
The two of us roaming the galaxy in the Federation flagship.
- No crew at all. - We've never needed a crew before.
I don't suppose you remember an alien from Tau Alpha C
who was on board once? He called himself a Traveller.
I don't know how, but we have got to find this Traveller,
or another from his race. If anyone can help us...
I give you my word. When we arrive at the starbase,
I will make every effort to find him.
It's not a delusion. It is not a dream.
There is a physical, measurable phenomenon at work here.
Perhaps you could help me to identify it.
How?
I'd like to use the computer to monitor your life functions.
- Until I disappear? - It will happen.
Alright.
Computer, continuous scan, Capt Picard, vital signs.
Audible readout. Begin now.
Temperature, 37.2 degrees...
I'll do what I can to find out what's happening and bring you all back.
Blood pressure, 122/70...
I'm sorry I lost my temper. You do remember that?
Vividly. But if I have forgotten my closest friends and comrades,
as you say, then I deserved every word.
For some time, I've been meaning to say something to you.
I might not have another chance. Jean-Luc, you and l...
I won't forget.
I won't forget any of you.
Wesley, have you got it? What's happening?
I'm losing it!
The link isn't holding, Commander!
- I'll go to the secondary equations. - No. Look.
I've lost it.
Damn, I'm sorry, Wesley.
It's over. There's no way we'll get her back now.
It's not over, Wesley.
There's still a way.
Captain's log, star date 44162.5.
Two attempts to retrieve Dr Crusher have failed.
And now, the Traveller,
a mysterious visitor from our past, has reappeared.
Is she alive?
As long as she thinks she is alive, she is alive.
What the hell does that mean?
Your species have very narrow perceptions
of time and space and thought. When Beverly Crusher was caught
in the static warp bubble, she created her own reality.
Her thoughts at the precise moment she was trapped
determined its shape and form.
- Can you go in and get her back? - No. It is her reality.
I cannot enter it any more than I can enter her thoughts.
But you said there's still a way.
I can help. But I can't do it myself.
Wesley, there is a power within each of us
that most people haven't begun to realize.
But you have begun. Or else I would not have known to come here.
Together, we may be able to open a gateway for her.
But she must choose to walk through it.
Computer, we are going to apply precise diagnostic methodology.
Once we've catalogued the symptoms,
we will proceed to determine the illness and then find the cure.
We will start with the assumption that I am not crazy.
If I am, it won't matter one way or another.
Read the entire crew roster for the Enterprise.
Dr Beverly Crusher.
Have I always been the only member of the crew on the Enterprise?
Affirmative.
If this were a bad dream, would you tell me?
- That is not a valid question. - Like hell it's not!
What date did I report on board?
Star date 41154, 1400 hours, three minutes.
Sounds about right. Is there more than one USS Enterprise?
This vessel is the fifth starship to bear the name USS Enterprise.
It is currently the only one in service.
What is the primary mission of the Starship Enterprise?
To explore the galaxy.
Do I have the skills to complete that mission alone?
Negative.
Then why am I the only crew member?
A-ha. Got you there.
That information is not available.
Are you familiar with the inhabitants of Tau Alpha C?
Affirmative.
Are any located on any starbase or vessel within communication distance?
Negative.
Estimated time to Tau Alpha C at warp 9.5?
123 days.
Lay in a new course for Tau Alpha C,
and send a subspace message advising them of our arrival.
- Acknowledged. - Engage.
Computer, did you change course?
State new destination or coordinates.
I stated it, damn it! Tau Alpha C.
There is no Tau Alpha C listed on current star maps.
Captain's log, star date 44162. 8. At the direction of the Traveller,
the Enterprise is returning to Starbase 133
and the precise position where the subspace bubble was formed.
Our goal will be to create a stable gateway
between our reality and your mother's reality.
We tried. We can't stabilize the link.
Of course not. The equations are only the first step.
We will be going beyond mathematics.
Tell me what I have to do.
Begin by letting go of your guilt.
- But I shouldn't have tried... - Focus on the present.
You'll have to be here completely to help her back.
You must open yourself to time and space,
and the intricate threads that bind them.
Begin entering your warp-field equations.
Now close your eyes.
See past the numbers.
Trust yourself.
I can't. I can't do it.
When the time comes, you will, Wesley. You will.
Starbase 133, this is the Enterprise.
Starbase 133, this is the Enterprise. Please acknowledge.
Viewscreen on.
It's not just people. Everything is disappearing!
Computer, what is that mist I'm seeing?
Sensors indicate it is a mass-energy field 705 metres in diameter.
- It surrounds the ship? - Affirmative.
If there's nothing wrong with me,...
..maybe there's something wrong with the universe.
Computer, what is beyond the mass energy field?
Sensors cannot penetrate the field.
Here's a question you shouldn't be able to answer.
Computer, what is the nature of the universe?
The universe is a spheroid region 705 metres in diameter.
Captain, approaching Starbase 133.
Slow to ten metres per second.
Prepare for precision station keeping.
Acknowledged. Readying thrusters.
There. There it is.
We're moving into phase now.
There's your warp bubble, Wesley.
What? What's wrong?
It is... collapsing.
Computer, give me a graphic representation of the universe.
I've seen this before.
Wesley's experiment!
The bubble. Of course!
But that would mean that I'm the one trapped in the bubble.
What's happening?
Explosive decompression, decks five through fourteen.
- Sealing off forward sections. - Cause?
- A flaw in the ship's design. - Show me.
Analysis.
No ship's structures exist forward of bulkhead 342.
Superimpose previous image over this one,
same scale and continue to monitor.
It's collapsing!
Hull integrity now compromised on decks three through fifteen.
Computer, how long can life support be maintained?
Four minutes, 17 seconds.
We have re-established exact coordinates and attitude.
- Geordi, we're in position. Status? - Warp bubble is contracting
at a rate of 15 metres per second. We'll lose it in four minutes.
It is time, Wesley.
- We're ready. - Proceed.
I'll be in Engineering.
Let it go, Wesley. Let go of the anticipation,
the expectations, the demands upon yourself.
Let it all go. Leave it behind.
Yes. The ability is there, inside of you.
You do not need to look for it.
Three minutes, 30 seconds to life-support failure.
The Traveller used his thoughts to alter warp fields.
Thoughts became reality. Now I'm in a warp field.
Could my thoughts have changed this reality?
Come on, Beverly! What's the next step?
What was I thinking at the moment Wesley's bubble formed?
Dalen Quaice. He said all the people he'd known were gone.
I thought of Jack, I went to see Wesley,
the flash in Engineering... That's when it started!
That's when I started losing everybody.
My thoughts created this universe. Can they get me out of it again?
- That information is not available. - I'm not talking to you.
Click my heels together three times, and I'm back in Kansas.
Can it be that simple?
Two minutes, 30 seconds to life-support failure.
Hypothetical situation. A person is trapped inside a static warp bubble.
Determine a means of escape.
Establish a stable threshold between the warp field
- and the outer environment. - Describe this threshold.
There are no known practical applications of this theory.
Extrapolate. How would it manifest itself?
A dynamic atmospheric disturbance of great intensity.
Disturbance?
The vortex. They must have been trying to reach me!
But how do I find it?
Wesley, where do I go? Help me.
Stable threshold. They've been trying to create a stable threshold.
Where are they trying to do it?
Where did they do it the first time? Engineering!
One minute, 30 seconds to life-support failure.
- Engineering. - Failure in turbo shaft four.
- Unable to proceed to Engineering. - Take me anywhere on deck 36.
We're losing the bubble!
Beverly.
Jean-Luc.
You. Do I have you to thank for getting me back?
No.
Jean-Luc, if I might ask, how many people are there on board?
1,014, including your guest, Dr Quaice.
Something wrong with that?
No. That's the exact number there should be.