senators , consider the opportunities for the empire .
at last , the destinies of the planets
romulus and remus will be united . shinzon of remus is offering us a chance to make ourselves stronger than ever be fore . it would be madness to reject it . i beg you not to let prejudice or politics interfere with this alliance . by joining shinzon' s forces with ours , not even the federation will be able to stand in our way . that' s enough ! the decision has been made . the military does not dictate policy on romulus . the senate has considered shinzon' s proposal and rejected it . he and his followers will be met with all deliberate force and sent back to that black rock they came from . do i make myself clear ? yes , sir . if you will excuse me , praetor , i have an appointment with the tholian ambassador . of course . senators , are there any others who wish to speak ? then i call for a vote on the motion to open trade negotiations with celes ll . as you know , the reman mines have not been filling their quotas for months now . i hope you will all bear in mind the trade committee' s findings . as much as we don' t want ... would someone alert security ? bring back senator tal' aura . duty . a starship captain' s life is filled with solemn duty . i have commanded men in battle . i have negotiated peace treaties between implacable enemies . i have represented the federation in first contact with 27 alien species . but none of this compares with my solemn duty today ... as best man . now , i know on an occasion such as this , it is expected that i be gracious and fulsome in my praise on the wonders of this blessed union . but have the two of you considered what you are doing to me ? ! of course , you' re happy , but what about my needs ? this is all a damned inconvenience . i mean , while you are happily settling in on the titan , i will be training my new first officer . you all know him . he' s a tyrannical martinet who will never , ever allow me to go on away mission s . that is the regulation , sir . starfleet code section 12 , paragraph four ... mr. data ? sir ? shut up . yes , sir . 15 years i' ve been waiting to say that . no , seriously . will , deanna , there' s still time to reconsider . yes ? no . no . no ? oh , very well , then . will riker , you have been my trusted right arm for 15 years . you have kept my course true and steady . deanna troi , you' ve been my guide and my conscience . you have helped me recognize the better parts of myself . you are my family . and in best maritime tradition , i wish you both clear horizons . my good friends ... make it so . the bride and groom ! to the bride and groom . you ever think about getting married again ? no . 23 was my limit . worf ? are you all right ? romulan ale should be illegal . it is . that was a lovely toast . it was from the heart . and you needn' t worry . i' m going to brief your new counselor on everything she needs to know . oh , like hell you are . you already know too much about me . but i take it that there will be no speeches during the ceremony on betazed . no , no speeches and no clothes . ladies and gentlemen , and invited tran gendered species ... in my study of terr an and betazoid conjugal rites , i have discovered it is traditional to present the happy couple with a gift . given commander riker' s affection for archaic musical forms , i have elected to present the following as my gift in honor of their conjugation . conjugation ! never saw the sun shining so bright never saw things going so right noticing the days hurrying by when you' re in love my , how they fly oh , blue skies smiling at me irving berlin ... nothing but blue skies do i see ... it' s tradition , worf . you , of all people , should appreciate that . i will not do it ! won' t do what , mr. worf ? captain , i do not think it is appropriate for a starfleet officer to appear ... naked . oh , come now . a big , handsome , strapping fellow like you ? what can you be afraid of ? captain , i am picking up an unusual electromagnetic signature from the kolarun system . what sort of signature ? positronic . it' s very faint , but i' ve isolated it to the third planet in the kolarun syst em . what do we know about it ? uncharted . we' il have to get closer for a more detailed scan . theories ? since positronic signatures have only been known to emanate from androids such a s myself , it is logical to theorize there is an android on kolarus ill . just what i was afraid of . captain ? diverting to the kolarus system takes us awfully close to the romulan neutral zo ne . it' s still well on our side . i think , uh ... i think it' s worth taking a look . don' t worry , number one . we' il still have you to betazed with plenty of time to spare . thank you , sir . where we will all honor the betazoid tradition . now , if you' il excuse me , i' il be in the gym . mr. branson , lay in a course for the kolarun system . warp five . what do you think , data ? a long lost relative ? i' m reading six distinct positronic signatures spread out over a few kilometers on the planet' s surface . what do we know about the population on kolarus ill ? isolated pockets of humanoids . it appears to be a prewarp civilization at an early stage of industrial developm ent . captain , i wouldn' t recommend using the transporter . that ion storm doesn' t look very neighborly . it could head in our direction without much warning . understood . data , mr. worf . you' re with me . captain , i don' t have to remind you ... i appreciate your concern , number one . but , uh , i' ve been itching to try the argo . i' il bet . captain' s prerogative . there' s no foreseeable danger . and your wife would never forgive me if anything were to happen to you . you have the bridge ... mr. troi . i will always be puzzled by the human predilection for piloting vehicles at unsa fe velocities . over that rise , sir . half a kilometer . the radiant electromagnetic field is interfering with my tricorder but we are wi thin a few meters of the signal . fan out . let' s search around . it appears to be a robotic arm . very astute . mr. worf , bring it to the vehicle . this doesn' t feel right . the final signature is approximately 100 meters to the north , sir . it' s you . the resemblance is striking . fascinating . fascinating . to the vehicle . i think it' s time to try some unsafe velocities . why do you have a shiny head ? this is not the appropriate time for a conversation . why ? because the captain has to concentrate on piloting the vehicle . why ? because ... data ! sorry , sir . have i said something wrong ? data . valve transfer initiated . you know , all things considered , data i think you have nicer eyes . our eyes are identical , doctor . so what have we got , geordi ? well , i' d say he has the same internal mechanics as data but not as much posit ronic development . the neural pathways aren' t nearly as sophisticated . i' d say he' s a prototype . something dr. soong created prior to data . do you have a name , sir ? i am ... b 4 . b 4 . dr. soong' s penchant for whimsical names seems to have no end . can you tell us how you came to be on the planet where we found you ? i do not know . do you remember anything of your life before you were on the planet ? no . why does the tall man have a furry face ? number one , keep me informed and , uh , geordi , reassemble him . aye , sir . b 4 , do you know who i am ? you are me . no . my name is data . i am your brother . tea , earl grey , hot . captain , you have an alpha priority communication from starfleet command . acknowledged . admiral janeway , how good to see you again . jean luc , how' d you like a trip to romulus ? with or without the rest of the fleet ? a diplomatic mission . we' ve been invited , believe it or not . seems there' s been some kind of internal political shakeup . the new praetor , someone called shinzon has requested a federation envoy . new praetor ? there' s more . he' s reman . believe me , we don' t understand it either . you' re the closest ship , so i want you to go and hear what he has to say . get the lay of the land . if the empire becomes unstable , it could mean trouble for the entire quadrant . understood . we' re sending you all the intelligence we have , but it' s not much . i don' t need to tell you to watch your back , jean luc . hardly . the son' a , the borg , the romulans you seem to get all the easy assignments . just lucky , admiral . let' s hope that luck holds . let' s hope that luck holds . janeway out . helmsman , lay in a new course . take us to romulus , warp eight . aye , aye , sir . course plotted and laid in . romulus ? i' m afraid the opal sea will have to wait , number one . engage . as you can see , one side of remus always faces the sun . due to the extreme temperatures on that half of their world , the remans live on the dark side of the planet . almost nothing is known of the reman homeworld although lntelligence scans have proven the existence of dilithium mining and heavy weapons construction . the remans themselves are considered an undesirable caste in the hierarchy of th e empire . but they also have a reputation for being formidable warriors . in the dominion war , reman troops were used as assault forces in the most violent encounters . cannon fodder . yeah , but how did a reman get to be praetor ? i don' t get it . we have to assume he had romulan collaborators . coup d' tat ? praetor' s power has always been the romulan fleet . they must have been behind shinzon for him to have overthrown the senate . what have we learned about shinzon ? starfleet lntelligence was only able to provide a partial account of his militar y record . we can infer he is relatively young and a capable commander . he fought 12 major engagements in the war , all successful . beyond that , we know nothing . well , it seems as though we are truly sailing into the unknown . keep at it . anything you can give me will be appreciated . dismissed . i still can' t believe the captain went along with the memory download . captain picard agrees that the b 4 was probably designed with the same self actu alization parameters as myself . if my memory engrams are successfully integrated into his positronic matrix , he should have all my abilities . yeah , but he would also have all of your memories as well . you feel comfortable with that ? i feel nothing , geordi . it is my belief that with my memory engrams , he will be able to function as a m ore complete individual . an individual more like you , you mean . yes . maybe he' s not supposed to be like you , data . maybe he' s supposed to be exactly the way he is . that might be so , but i believe he should have the opportunity to explore his p otential . hmm . okay , we' re done . b 4 , do you know where you are ? i am in a room with lights . can you remember our father ? our father ? yes , dr. soong . no . do you know the name of the captain of this vessel ? captain ... no . data , he' s assimilating a lot of programming . remember , he' s a prototype , a lot less sophisticated than you are . we just don' t know if his matrix will be able to adapt . we really need to give him some time . geordi , what purpose does this serve ? what ? this . that' s a redundant memory port . maybe the provisional memory storage is in case his neural pathways overload . do you mind if i keep him here for a while run a few diagnostics ? no , i do not mind . data . no . you must remain with commander la forge . he is going to try to help you . captain' s log , stardate 56844 . 9 . the enterprise has arrived at romulus and is waiting at the designated coordinat es . all our hails have gone unanswered . we' ve been waiting for 17 hours . counselor ? they' re out there , sir . captain , i recommend we raise shields . not yet , mr. worf . captain , with all due respect to diplomatic protocol , the federation council i sn' t sitting out here ; we are . patience . diplomacy is a very exacting occupation . we will wait . captain ... raising shields . no ! captain ... tactical analysis , mr. worf . 52 disruptor banks , 27 photon torpedo bays primary and secondary shields . she' s a predator . we are being hailed . on screen . enterprise , we are the reman warbird scimitar . praetor shinzon , i' m pleased ... i am not shinzon . i am his viceroy . we are sending transport coordinates . not very chatty . away team to transporter room 4 . i hope you' il forgive the darkness . we are not comfortable in the light . praetor shinzon ? captain picard . jean luc picard . i' d always imagined you a little taller . isn' t that odd ? you may scan me without subterfuge , commander data . you are not as we imagined you . no ? you are human . why have you asked us to come here ? praetor ? i' ve never met a human woman before . i' m only half human . deanna troi ... of betazed . empathic and telepathic abilities , ship' s counselor all this i knew , but i ne ver knew you were so ... beautiful . you seem quite familiar with our personnel . oh , i am , commander riker . may i touch your hair ? we came to romulus on a matter we were assured was of great importance . if you have anything to say to us as representatives of the federation , i sugge st you do it now . yes . i' m sorry , captain . there is so much we need to talk about . i would be interested to know what we are talking about . unity , captain . tearing down the walls between us , to recognize that we are one . i' m talking of the thing that makes us the same peace . we want peace . right now , you' re thinking , this all sounds too good to be true . but you' re also thinking that the chance for peace is too promising to ignore . am i right ? yes . then perhaps it' s time to add some illumination to our discussion . computer , raise the lighting four levels . when i was very young , i was stricken with an odd disease . i developed a hypersensitivity to sound . even the slightest whisper caused me agony . no one could do anything about it . finally , i was taken to a doctor who had some experience of terran illnesses an d he diagnosed me with shalaft' s syndrome . do you know of it , captain ? yes . then you know it' s a very rare syndrome . genetic . apparently , all the male members of a family have it . eventually , i was treated , and now i can hear as well as you can , captain . i can see as well as you can . i can feel ... everything you feel . in fact , i feel exactly what you feel ... don' t i , jean luc ? come to dinner tomorrow on romulus , just the two of us . or should i say ... just the one of us ? i think you' il be wanting this . till tomorrow then , captain . we have much to discuss . computer , return lighting to previous level . there' s no doubt , captain right down to your aggressive strain of shalaft' s s yndrome . he' s a clone . they probably used a hair follicle or a skin cell . why ? i intend to find out , number one . inform starfleet of the situation . i need to know where the hell he came from . counselor . we supported you , shinzon , when you assassinated the senate . you told us the timing was perfect for an attack on the federation . i don' t understand why now , you delay . you don' t have to understand . and bringing the enterprise here what possible purpose could that serve ? i have a purpose . then perhaps you' il enlighten us . silence from you ! you really must learn patience , commander . spend 18 hours every day under the lash of a romulan guard , and you' il soon un derstand patience . now go . commander donatra . please , remain . there' s a word i want you to consider : allegiance . it' s something i demand from those who serve me . do i serve you ? yes . and i think , faithfully . commander suran , on the other hand ... gives me pause . here' s another word , praetor : trust . do you trust me ? how far does that trust extend ? how ... deep does it go ? what must a commander do to prove herself faithful to you ? what must a woman do ? you ... are not a woman . you are a romulan . serve me faithfully , and you will be rewarded . keep those lovely eyes on commander suran . and at the first sign of treachery ... dispose of him . then you will have proven yourself . now go . and , commander ... if you ever touch me again ... i' il kill you . the romulans had somehow gained possession of your dna and i had been created . and when i was ready , they were going to replace you with me ... put a romulan agent at the heart of starfleet . it was a bold plan . what happened ? as happens frequently here on romulus ... a new government came to power . they decided to abandon the plan . they were afraid that i might be discovered , that it would lead to war . not quite the face you remember . not quite . a lifetime of violence will do that . they broke my nose my jaw ... but so much is the same . the eyes ... surely you recognize the eyes . yes . our eyes reflect our lives , don' t they ? and yours are so confident . so i' m not as tall as you expected . well , i had always hoped i might hit two meters . as had l . how did you end up on remus ? they sent me there to die . how could a mere human survive the dilithium mines ? not that it mattered , as i was no longer part of their plans against the federa tion . in those terrible depths lived only the damned . together with the reman slaves , i was condemned to an existence of unceasing la bor and starvation under the brutal heel of the romulan guards . only the very strongest had any hope of survival . i was only a child when they took me . then i didn' t see the sun or the stars again for nearly ten years . the only thing the romulan guards hated more than the remans was me . but one man took pity on me . the man that became my viceroy . he protected me from the cruelty of the guards and taught me how to survive . and in that dark place where there was nothing of myself i found my reman brothers . they showed me the only true kindness i have ever known . you' re doing this to liberate the remans ? that is the single thought behind everything i have done from building the scimi tar at a secret base to assembling my army finally coming to romulus in force . i knew they would never give us our freedom . i would have to take it . and how many romulans died for your freedom ? too many . but the point is , that finally the empire is realizing that there is a better w ay . and that way is peace . you don' t trust me . i have no reason to . you have every reason . if you had lived my life and experienced the suffering of my people you would be standing where i am . and if you had lived my life , you would understand my responsibility to the fed eration . i cannot allow my personal feelings to unduly influence my decisions . all i have are my personal feelings . i want to know what it means to be human . the remans have given me a future , but you can tell me about my past . i can tell you about my past . were we picards always warriors ? i think of myself as an explorer . i think of myself as an explorer . well , were we always explorers ? i was the first picard to leave our solar system . it caused quite a stir in the family . but ... i' d spent my youth ... looking up at the stars dreaming about what was up there . about ... new worlds . i' m trying to believe you , shinzon . if there is one ideal that the federation holds most dear it is that all men ... all races can be united . what better example than a starfleet captain standing in the romulan senate . nothing would make me more proud than to take your hand in friendship ... in tim e ... when that trust has been earned . captain , we have had an unauthorized access into the main computer . source ? it' s going to take some time to figure that out , captain . the data stream was rerouted through substations all over the ship . what programs were accessed ? well ... that' s what i can' t figure out . it' s mostly just basic stellar cartography . star charts , communications protocols , some uplinks from colony tracking stati ons . it' s not even restricted material . nevertheless , we must learn the source . keep me informed . captain , there' s something else . i was reviewing the sensor logs . look at this . when the scimitar de cloaked there was a momentary spike in the tertiary em band . there . you' re not going to believe this . it' s thalaron . i thought thalaron radiation was theoretical . which is why our initial scans didn' t pick it up , but he' s got it , captain . thalaron research was banned in the federation because of its biogenic propertie s . it has the ability to consume organic material at the subatomic level . i can' t overestimate the danger of thalaron radiation , jean luc . a microscopic amount could kill every living thing on this ship in a matter of s econds . i understand . keep on it . i want to know what he has and how we can neutralize any threat . i need options . this was a mistake . we' re wasting time . my time . and i shall spend it how i choose . do not forget our mission , shinzon . we must act now . we' il return to the scimitar . i was merely curious about him . come . beverly , come in . remember him ? he was a bit cocky as i recall . he was a damned fool . selfish , ambitious very much in need of seasoning . he turned out all right . i really wanted to believe shinzon . but this thalaron radiation just can' t be explained away . whatever he' s after , it isn' t peace . is he very much the way you were ? oh , yes . data to captain picard . go ahead , data . captain , geordi and i have identified the source of the unauthorized computer a ccess and i believe we have found a way to gain a tactical advantage . on my way . will ... as ship' s counselor , i recommend you get some sleep . some honeymoon . come to bed . imzadi . imzadi . no . he can never know you as i can . he can never touch you as i can . this isn' t real . feel my lips . i' m with you , imzadi . i' il always be with you now . no ! this isn' t real . deanna ... what' s the matter ? no . deanna . deanna . deanna ! no ! the bond has been broken . find her again . praetor , we' ve received the transponder signal . it' s accelerating . you have no more time for games . have the doctors prepare . transport . begin the download . tea . hot . aside from slightly elevated levels of adrenaline and serotonin , you' re perfec tly normal . deanna ... can you describe it ? it was a ... it was a violation . shinzon' s viceroy seems to have the ability to reach into my thoughts . i' ve become a liability . i request to be relieved of my duties . permission denied . if you can endure more of these assaults , i need you at my side , now more than ever . the enterprise is far from federation space and ... worf ! shields up ! hello , jean luc . why am i here ? why have you done this ? i was lonely . what are you going to do ? i need a sample of your blood . what is it your borg friends say ? resistance is futile . oh , yes the android . the bait you couldn' t refuse . all of this so you could capture me . don' t be so vain . after we found it , we had to make a few modifications . an extra memory port , a hidden transponder . i' ve now gained access to starfleet' s communications protocol . i now know the exact location of your entire fleet . you may go . where ? out of my sight . what is all this about ? it' s about destiny , picard . it' s about a reman outcast . you' re not reman . and i' m not quite human . so what am l ?