" Look at those pine trees." " And that lake." " l swear I smell honeysuckle." " With orange blossom thrown in." "It's unbelievable." "Growth exactly like that of Earth half a galaxy away." " What are the odds of that?" " Astronomical." "The size and age of this planet makes it highly improbable that it would evolve similarly to Earth." "What in blazes is that?" " Analysis?" " An alien metal of some kind." "An alloy resistant to probe." "Readings can't even measure its age accurately." "These symbols are evidently some form of writing." " Any theories about what it is?" " Negative, Captain." "Such complex structures require sophisticated building apparatus, the kind usually found in cultures surpassing or equalling ours." "The whole place is an enigma, biologically and culturally." "What's the nearest concentration of life-forms?" "Bearing 117, mark 4." "How much time do we have?" "If we are to divert the asteroid on its way to this planet, we must leave within 30 minutes." "Every second we delay compounds the problem, perhaps past solution." "You did say 30 minutes." "Yes, sir." "Then let's find out what life-forms are blessed by this environment." "I'd swear they're American Indians." "They are." "A mixture of Navajo, Mohican and Delaware, I believe." "All among the more advanced and peaceful tribes." "It's like discovering Atlantis." "Or Shangri-La." "is it possible there's a more evolved civilisation somewhere on this planet?" "One capable of building that obelisk or developing a deflector system?" "Highly improbable." "Sensors indicate only one type of life-form here." "Shouldn't we contact them?" "Tell them?" "Tell them what?" "That an asteroid's coming to smash their world?" "Too primitive to grasp the concept of space flight." "Our appearance here would only confuse and frighten them." "We've got a job to do." "Let's get back to the Enterprise." " What's the matter, Jim?" " Nothing." "It's just so peaceful." "Uncomplicated." "No problems or command decisions." "Just..." "living." "Typical human reaction to an idyllic natural setting." "In the 20th Century, we referred to it as the Tahiti Syndrome." "It's common to over-pressured leader types, like starship captains." "The Tahiti Syndrome." "Let's go take care of that asteroid." "But first I want another look at that obelisk." " Doctor?" " Yes?" "I suggest that research be delayed until after we have diverted the asteroid." " Kirk to Enterprise." " Yes, sir." "Space - the final frontier." "These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise." "Its five-year mission, to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilisations, to boldly go where no man has gone before." "Captain's log, stardate 4842.6." "First Officer Spock commanding." "Numerous search parties and repeated sensor probes have failed to locate Captain Kirk." " Spock to Enterprise." " Come in." " Beam us up." "We're leaving." " Leaving?" "You can't be serious, Spock." "That asteroid is almost as large as your Earth's moon." "Far enough away, the angle necessary to divert it is minute." "But as the asteroid approaches, the angle becomes so great that even..." "That asteroid won't get here for two months!" "If we arrive at the deflection point in time, it may not get here at all." " What about Jim?" " We'll divert the asteroid, then search." "That may be hours from now." "He may be dying." "Doctor." "Assume this is the planet we're on." "This is the approaching asteroid." "It we don't get there in time, it will become impossible to divert this." "In that case, everyone on this planet will die, including the captain." "Can a few more minutes matter?" "In the time it has taken me to explain, the asteroid has moved from here to here." "The longer we delay, the less the likelihood of being able to divert it." "Beam us up, Mr Scott." "Where am I?" "What place is this?" "What are these?" "I feel I should know." "They're familiar, and yet unfamiliar." "How did I get here?" "Who am I?" "Try to remember." "Wait." "Who are you?" "We are your people." "We've been waiting for you to come to us." "Captain's log, stardate 4843.6." "First Officer Spock commanding." "We've been en route to the asteroid for hours." "Our delay has made it imperative that we proceed at maximum warp for a period which exceeds the recommended safety margin." "I can't give you warp 9 much longer." "The engines are stressed." "We cannot reduce speed." "I will not miss that deflection point." "OK." "But we're moving further into the danger range." "Objection noted, Mr Scott." "Carry on." "Miramanee said you appeared to her and her handmaiden from the temple, just as our legend foretells." "We do not doubt her words, but these are troubled times and we must be sure." "I'll answer anything I can, but as I said, many things are strange to me." "He knows nothing." "How can he save us?" "It is against custom to interrupt a tribal elder, even for the medicine chief." "Words will not save us when the skies darken." "We must be certain." "I say he must prove he is a god." "Our skies have darkened three times since the harvest, the last time worst of all." "Our legend predicts such danger and promises that the Wise Ones who planted us here will send a god to save us, one who can rouse the temple spirit, and make the sky grow quiet." "Can you do this?" "I came from the temple, as Miramanee said." "And it was a beginning for me." "Here." "But I came from the sky, too." "Only I...can't remember." "I...can't remember." "Salish, a terrible thing has happened." "The boy was attending the fishnets and he sank to the bottom of the river." "Lumo brought him up quickly, but he doesn't move." "There is no sound in the body." "There is no light in the eyes." " He will move no more." " Wait a moment." "Wait." " He'll be all right now." " My people are grateful." "It's a simple technique." "Goes way back..." "Way back..." "Only a god can breathe life into the dead." "Do you still question?" "Give him the medicine badge." "Deflection point minus seven." " Full power." " The relays will reject the overload." "Then go to manual control." " We'll burn out the engines!" " l want full power, Mr Scott." "All right, you lovelies." "Hold together." "Full power." "Magnification factor 12, Mr Sulu." "Deflection point minus 4." "All engines stop." "Hold position." "All engines stop, sir." " Prepare to activate deflectors." " Aye, sir." "Power dropping, sir." "Engineering, maintain full power." "Full power." "We must replace the dilithium crystal." " Not now." " Zero." "Deflection point...now, sir." "Activate deflectors." "Power dropping, sir." "Degree of deflection, Mr Sulu." "Not enough, sir." "It's only 0.0013 degrees." "Recircuit power to engines." "Maximum speed, heading 37, mark 010." " That will put us in the asteroid's path." " We'll retreat in front of that asteroid until we can employ all power on phasers." " What for?" " To destroy it." "A narrow beam on a single spot will split that mass." "It might also cripple the ship, and we'd be crushed." "We'll get out of its path by use of impulse power." " Jim won't be able to get out of its path." " That is another risk we must take." "Miramanee." " What are you doing?" " l must see to the needs of the god." "You should be working on our ritual cloak." "There will be no ritual between us now." "What?" "We cannot go against tradition." "It is because of tradition that I cannot marry you." "But you are promised to me." "That was before he came." "Tribal priestess and medicine chief are always joined." "He is medicine chief now." "Salish, choose another." "Any maiden would be honoured to join with you." "I wish no other." "You have no choice." "Miramanee, if you could choose... would you choose me?" "Perhaps you would like to bathe now." "Miramanee... tell me about the Wise Ones." "Tell?" "But a god knows everything." "Not this one." "Tell me." "The Wise Ones brought us here from far away." "Those chose a medicine chief to keep the secret of the temple and to use it when the sky darkens." "Secrets of the temple." "There are no lacings." "How is this removed?" "The secrets were passed on from father to son?" "Yes." "How does this open?" "Why doesn't Salish use it?" "Why are the people in danger?" "His father did not wish to share his power too soon." "He died before he told Salish the secret." "Our people rejoice, and wish to honour your name." "But I did not know what you wished to be called." "What may I tell them?" "Ki..." "Kir..." "Kirok?" " Have we displeased you?" " No." "Everything is fine." "Then it must be ourselves, the way we live." "Perhaps we have not improved as quickly as the Wise Ones wish." "Your land is rich, your people happy." "Who could be displeased with that?" "But there is something." "Tell us." "We will change it." "I can't tell you anything." "All I can tell you is that I'm happy and peaceful here." "I'm not sure, but I think I've never felt that way before." "Why are they so sure I can help them?" "You came from the stone metal." " And did you not bring life to the child?" " Yes, but... I need time to remember." "Here there is much time." "For everything." " Coordinates, Mr Chekov." " Tau 8.7, Beta 0.041." "That is our target." "The asteroid's weakest point." "Almost dead centre, sir." "Lock all phasers on that mark." "Maximum intensity." " l want to split that fissure." " lt's like you're cutting a diamond." " Very astute, Doctor." " All phasers locked." "We'll fire in sequence as long as Mr Scott can maintain power." " Standing by, sir." " Fire phasers." "Phaser 1 firing." "He won't be satisfied till these are a puddle of lead." "Phaser 2 firing." "Main relay's out again." "Phaser 4 firing." " All phasers fired." " Rig for simultaneous firing." "Commence simultaneous bombardment." "My bairns!" "My poor bairns!" "The ritual cloak is finished." " l would like to name the Joining day." " The Joining day?" "I'm the daughter of the chief." "Tribal law betroths me to our leader." "If there is another, I will step aside." "No, there is no one else in my mind or my heart." "God's wish is above tribal law." "Name the Joining day." "The sooner our happiness together begins, the longer it will last." " Tomorrow." " Tomorrow." "And don't ask for any more warp 9 speeds." "Our star drive is burnt out." "All we have left is impulse power." " Estimated repair time." " Hanging here in space?" "For ever." "The only thing that will fix these darlings is a repair base." "I've already surmised that." "Thank you, Mr Scott." "You took your calculated risk in your calculated Vulcan way and you lost." "You lost for us, you lost for that planet, and you lost for Jim." " l accept the responsibility." " My responsibility is the crew's health." "I want you to get some rest." "Mr Chekov, resume heading 883, mark 41." "Back to that planet?" "It'll take months." "Exactly 59.223 days, Doctor." "And that asteroid will be four hours behind us all the way." "Then what's the use?" "We might not be able to save the captain even if he still is alive." "We might not be able to save anything, including this ship." "You haven't heard a word I've said." "You've just been staring at that blasted obelisk." "Another calculated Vulcan risk, Doctor." "This Joining means the end of darkness." "It's a time for joy for all my people." "You will wait until I walk the holy path to the earth lodge first, to give me time to tell the priestess that you follow, and that the Joining will take place." "I have found paradise." "Surely no man has ever attained such happiness." " Get out of my way, Salish." " Kirok, I cannot permit this Joining." " We don't need your permission." " Then strike me dead." "I have no intention of striking you dead." "You bleed!" "You bleed, Kirok!" "Behold a god who bleeds!" "Behold a god who bleeds." "Kill me." "Kill me, Kirok." "For I will not rest until I prove to my people that you are no god." " Not reporting to sickbay?" " l must decipher the obelisk symbols." "They're advanced cipher writing." "You've been trying to do that since we started back." "I'm aware of that." "And when we arrive at the planet we'll have barely four hours to effect rescue." " Those symbols are the key." " You won't read them by dying." "You've hardly eaten or slept for weeks." "You'll collapse." "I am not hungry, Doctor." "And under stress, we Vulcans can do without sleep for weeks." "Your metabolism is so low it can hardly be measured and that green water you call blood..." "My physical condition is not important." "That obelisk is." "My diagnosis is exhaustion, brought on from overwork and guilt." "You're blaming yourself for crippling this ship." "You're wrong." "You made a command decision." "Jim would have done it, too." "My prescription is rest." "Do I have to call security to reinforce it?" "Miramanee?" "Come here!" "Miramanee?" "Each time you hold me is as joyous as the first." "I'm happy. I'm so happy." "If it weren't for the dreams, my mind would be completely at peace." "I thought you no longer had the dreams, that you no longer saw the lodge which moves through the sky." "They've come back." "They...were gone for a while, but they've come back." "And I...see faces, too." "Very dim." "I feel..." "l-l should know...know them." "I feel my place is with them." "Not here." "I don't deserve this happiness." "I have a gift for you." "A gift?" " What?" " lt may make you happy." "Wait." "These last few weeks, my love for Miramanee grows stronger each day." "However, the dreams return every night." "Fragments of memories..." "I can almost get hold of them, and then... I bear your child." "You!" "A canal." "And with it we'll bring the water from the lake... right to the lodge." "And we can expand the system and irrigate the fields, and double the food supply." "And...with the power of the lamp, which turns night into day, we can cook twice as much food and, as you taught us, pre..." " Preserve." " Preserve." " Preserve." " For times of famine." "That is why you made the lamp." " So that I would be forever cooking." " Oh, no." "That's not why I made the lamp at all, to keep you forever cooking." "It's only the wind and the thunder." "I act like a stupid child." "I have nothing to fear." "You are here." " lt is time." " Time?" "To go to the temple to save the people." "But the wind can't harm them." "The wind is only the beginning." "Soon the sky will darken." "The lake will go wild and the earth will tremble." "Only you can save us." "But I can't do anything about the wind or the sky." "If we do not go now, it will be too late." "You must make the blue flame come out of the temple." "I...don't know how to get inside the temple." "But you are a god." "Kirok!" "Kirok!" "Why are you not at the temple?" "Soon the ground will tremble." "The people need your help." "We'll go to the caves." "It will be safe there." "The caves?" "Surely a legend can do more than that for his people." "When the ground trembles, the caves are not safe." "If you do not rouse the temple spirit, we will all die!" "There is nothing you cannot do, my husband." "What do you wait for, god?" "Your robes?" "Take care of Miramanee." "I am Kirok!" "I have come!" "I am Kirok!" " l prescribed sleep." " You prescribed rest." "The symbols on the obelisk are musical notes." "You mean it's nothing but a song?" "In a way." "Other cultures, among them certain Vulcan offshoots, use musical notes as words." "The tones correspond to an alphabet." " Did you make any sense of it?" " The obelisk is a marker as I thought." "It was left by a super race known as the Preservers." "They rescued primitive cultures which were in danger of extinction and seeded them where they could live and grow." "I wondered why there were so many humanoids." "Apparently the Preservers account for a number of them." "That's probably how the planet has survived." " They put an asteroid deflector there." " Which is now failing to operate." "And we have to find the deflector and fix it." " Otherwise..." " Precisely, Doctor." "There's the false one!" "Die!" "Die!" "No!" "No!" "Don't hurt him!" " Miramanee!" " Don't hurt him!" " Go back!" " He's false!" " l belong to him." " Then go." "Die with your false god!" "You'll be killed!" "Kill him!" "Die, impostor!" " You lied to us!" " Kill him!" "I need Nurse Chapel." " Spock to Enterprise." " Come in." "Beam down Nurse Chapel with an emergency surgical kit." "My wife. ls she all right?" "Wife?" "Hallucinations?" "Miramanee." "The nurse has given you something to ease the pain." "Why were you being stoned?" "Kirok could not get back into the...temple." "Naturally, since he did not come from there." "Does he recognise us?" "Everything is functioning normally except his memory." "It would take time to help him." "Time is the one thing we do not have in abundance." " Spock here." " Tracking report." "65 minutes to end of safety margin." "Report noted." "is he strong enough for Vulcan mind-fusion?" "We have no choice." "I am Spock." "You are James Kirk." "Our minds are moving closer." "Closer, closer, closer, James Kirk." "Closer." "No!" " James Kirk." " Miramanee!" "No!" "Miramanee!" "Our minds...are one." " l...am..." "Kirok." " Kirok!" "I...am..." "Kirok!" "I am Ki... I..." "I'm Kirok!" " l am..." " Spock!" " What is it?" " His mind." "He's...an extremely dynamic individual." "It worked." "Captain, were you inside this structure?" "Yes." "What's inside is loaded with scientific equipment." "The obelisk is a deflector mechanism." "We must get inside immediately." "Captain, we do not have much time." "McCoy." " l don't know how to get inside." " lf we do not activate the mechanism, this entire planet will be destroyed." "The key must be in the symbols." "We must decipher them." "I have, to some extent." "They are musical notes." "Entry can be gained by playing an instrument?" "That would be one method." "Another would be a series of tonal qualities." "Give me your communicator." "I must have hit it accidentally when I contacted the ship." "If you can remember your exact words, Captain..." " Kirk to Enterprise." " Aye, Captain." "If the deflector isn't activated within 20 minutes, get the Enterprise out of the danger zone." "The landing party is expendable." "The Enterprise isn't." "Kirk out." "Miramanee." "Bones, stay with her." "Do what you can." "It is similar to panels I've seen, but far more complicated." "Careful. I must have hit something accidentally." "A beam caught me and that's when I stopped remembering." "Probably a memory beam." "You must have activated it out of sequence." " More symbols." "Can you read them?" " l do have an excellent eye for music." "They indicate that this series of relays, activated in..." "Spock, just press the right button." " How is she?" " She had bad internal injuries, Jim." "Will she live?" "No." "Kirok. lt is true." "You are safe." "And so are your people." "I knew you would save them, my chief." "When I am better, it will be as it was, will it not?" "If that's what you want." "We will live long and happy lives." "I will bear you many strong sons." "I'll love you always." "And I'll love you, Miramanee." "Always." "Each kiss is as the first."