Previously on Star Trek: Discovery...
GEORGIOU: Ambassador Sarek, it's good to see you again.
As discussed, this is my ward.
The only female Michael I ever heard of
was Michael Burnham, the mutineer.
You're not her, are you?
Captain Gabriel Lorca. Welcome to Discovery.
Captain, what am I doing on this ship?
Question is, what am I gonna do with you?
We are creating a new way to fly.
Discovery can be anywhere and gone in an instant.
That's how you beat the Klingons.
CORNWELL: We believe the enemy
may have identified Discovery
as our secret weapon.
(weapons firing)
(grunting)
I didn't realize there were more of us in here.
What's your name, soldier?
Getting out of here was always a two-man job.
I just waited till I found the right man.
Your eyes.
That happened when you destroyed the Buran, didn't it?
We choose our own pain.
Mine helps me remember.
LORCA: This is Captain Lorca.
Two to beam out now.
Live long and prosper, Ambassador Sarek.
And you, Adjunct V'Latak.
Our mission requires
that we leave at once.
Plot a course for the Cancri system.
May I inquire as to the nature
of our diplomatic mission?
Allow me to be diplomatic and ask that you do not.
In times of crisis,
ignorance can be beneficial.
We are set to launch.
BURNHAM: Two more laps before breakfast.
TILLY: We've done ten.
BURNHAM: You still need to shave 6.5 seconds
off of your time.
Does six seconds really matter?
6.5, and, yes, they matter
if you're ever gonna make captain.
It's been my experience that what I lack
in athletic ability, I more than make up for
in intelligence and personality.
We may want to focus on those attributes.
Everyone applying to the command-training program
will be smart.
Personality doesn't count.
That's just something people
with no personality say.
Wait, which in...
which in no way means you.
You absolutely have a personality.
6.5 seconds is not an arbitrary number.
Your new time will earn you a physical-endurance commendation.
Today, your goal is 6.5 seconds,
then getting a transfer on a Constitution class,
like the Enterprise.
After that, first officer track.
See your path, stay on it.
Reach your destination.
Cadet to captain, just like that.
What's it gonna be, Tilly?
(panting)
(weapons firing, pained shouting)
How you holding up?
I waited seven months to do this.
Don't worry about me, Captain.
Do a "right, stack right."
Go.
Where do you hail from, soldier?
Clear.
(door closes)
What about your family?
I never knew my father.
Mom said I didn't miss much there.
She died while I was at the Academy.
On her way to the moons of Grazer... a rogue comet.
First vacation in 12 years.
(weapons firing)
COMPUTER: Two survivors, one injury.
Mission success.
Hologram battle simulation complete.
Your mother was a teacher, right?
Yeah, third grade.
Issaquah Elementary.
24 kilometers outside Seattle,
which makes you not exactly
from Seattle.
I like to split hairs.
I do my homework.
You think I let just anyone walk on my ship?
No, sir. Assuming I checked out.
Think we'd be playing with these toys if you didn't?
24 kills. You?
Looks like I may be the one who needs to get his eyes fixed.
Captain, out of respect...
Don't apologize for excellence.
I want my chief of security to shoot better than I do.
(door whooshes open)
(male speaking indistinctly over P. A.)
You offering me a slot, Captain?
Well, I figure I've seen you fly, shoot,
fight like a Klingon.
Klingon guards beating on me for seven months,
I was bound to pick something up.
Yeah, most people would have given up.
You learned.
My last chief of security and I went through a lot together.
I need someone I can trust,
someone that understands war.
What it takes to survive, what it takes to win.
I think that's you. Is it?
I'd be honored to serve on the Discovery.
I won't let you down, sir.
Good.
According to our flight plan,
we should be arriving momentarily.
(device hisses)
Why have we not yet dropped out of warp?
Our course has changed.
You know the actual nature of my mission.
This mission does not reflect true Vulcan ideology.
You are one of them.
Your fascination with humans
can no longer be tolerated.
Your obsession has blinded you to the truth...
humans are inferior.
My sacrifice will be a rallying cry
to those who value logic above all.
Vulcans will soon recognize
and withdraw from the failed experiment
known as the Federation.
♪ ♪
(original Star Trek theme plays)
Computer, green juice, extra green.
Computer, cancel that order.
That's hardly the correct ratio
of protein, carbohydrates and fat.
Computer, three-egg-white breakfast burrito
with black beans.
Computer...
Make it two.
Computer, add salsa.
Computer, add roasted tomato salsa.
Cooked tomatoes are a great source of lycopene.
Remember that.
Oh, my God, you are so scary.
COMPUTER: Two appetizing and nutrient-filled burritos.
New guy, three o'clock.
Lieutenant Ash Tyler.
Scuttlebutt is he took out six Klingon warriors
in hand-to-hand combat when he and the captain
escaped that Bird-of-Prey.
I've fought Klingons. I doubt it.
Now the captain practically wants to adopt him as a result.
I can't imagine Captain Lorca feeling that way about anyone.
Why? He practically adopted you.
I believe every word of it.
I kind of feel like it makes him hotter.
MALE VOICE (over P. A.): Ensign Molina, please report to Engineering.
Scuttlebutt is you took out
six Klingon warriors in hand-to-hand combat.
You can't believe everything you hear.
Please sit down.
I'm cadet Sylvia Tilly.
Uh, this is my mentor, Michael.
FEMALE VOICE (over P. A.): Commander Wilson, please report to the transporter room.
You're Michael Burnham?
The same.
You probably can believe everything you hear.
I tend to assess people in the here and now.
You're a functioning crew member
of a Federation starship.
Right here, right now.
Crazy kids.
Michael.
Michael, what's wrong?
I should go.
You okay?
Yes.
No.
(screaming)
Sarek...
SAREK: My mind to your mind.
My thoughts to your thoughts.
(indistinct chatter)
AMANDA: We can't let them do this to her.
She has worked her whole life for this.
She's excelled. You have to do something.
This is not fair.
There's no logic in your request, wife.
Fairness is quantifiable.
The Vulcan Expeditionary Group
has rated her abilities as insufficient
and rendered their decision.
Their decision is wrong.
She graduated at the top of her class.
Her test scores are better than any Vulcan.
There are other metrics.
Spiritual discipline,
martial arts, logic.
Please, I want to go home.
Humiliation is a human emotion.
I'm sorry, Sarek.
You were wrong to believe in me.
No, no, no, no, no.
I can't compete here.
I do not have the required abilities,
I am not good enough.
AMANDA: Nonsense.
Sarek, make her see the truth.
SAREK: She cannot thrive in the Vulcan service.
Perhaps I can find a place for her in Starfleet,
where requirements are less extreme.
What are you doing here?
This is my mind.
You brought me here.
Leave now!
Sarek!
Ever since the bombing,
part of me,
my katra, has been with you.
My thoughts to your thoughts.
(gasping): Sarek!
It's okay, Burnham.
You're in sickbay.
What's the matter with her?
I have no idea.
Nothing shows up on any of her scans.
It's not me. It's Sarek. He's in trouble.
How do you know that?
I share part of his katra.
His eternal life force.
It's like a Vulcan soul.
I've heard stories, I just...
assumed it was an ancient myth.
How can you share
a soul with Sarek?
You're not Vulcan.
I was raised as one. After my parents were killed
Sarek and his human wife Amanda took you in.
Your story's well-documented.
He believed I could serve as humanity's potential.
How could he put that kind of pressure on a child?
Well, not everyone agreed with him;
a group of logic extremists.
They didn't want humans in their culture.
They tried to stop him by killing me.
They bombed the Learning Center where I was educated.
Vulcans tried to murder you?
Renegade Vulcans, a small faction.
And they didn't try, Doctor, they succeeded.
I was dead for three minutes.
The katra has healing powers.
Sarek used it to save me.
A kind of soul graft.
It's a procedure that's frowned upon, and rare.
So you're linked with him?
He gets wounded, you feel pain?
This has happened to you before?
Once.
The start of the war.
He sensed my distress.
And came to me.
But this is different.
I can feel him slipping away.
I don't think this is a conscious effort on his part.
Sarek is delirious.
He might be dying.
Captain.
Please.
Captain, help me find him.
(grunts)
TERRAL: Michael Burnham is correct.
The Vulcan High Council has confirmed
that Ambassador Sarek's ship was sabotaged by logic extremists.
I'm told that the Vulcans were secretly invited to a meeting
with two independent Klingon houses,
in an attempt to forge an alliance to win the war.
Klingons don't normally extend party invitations.
Indeed.
But both of these houses
were ousted by General Kol's new ruling council.
It is their wish to undermine his authority...
And the Vulcans believe that?
Not without reservation.
The meeting was organized
on neutral ground by the elders of Cancri IV.
Sarek was chosen to vet the legitimacy of their claims.
He has demonstrated a unique ability to forge relationships
with races that do not follow logic-based ideology.
Vulcans went behind Starfleet's back
'cause they thought they could clear up
our "illogical mess."
So where is the ambassador right now?
Lost in a nebula near Yridia.
Starfleet Command is assessing the situation
to organize a recovery operation.
Yeah, well, the longer you assess,
the greater the chance Sarek dies.
And so does the best chance for peace.
I'll go get him.
Absolutely not.
There are protocols to be followed, Captain.
You can tell the Vulcans they're welcome.
I'm happy to clean up their mess.
Discovery out.
(alarm ringing)
We have arrived at the Yridia nebula.
Start scanning for the ambassador's emergency beacon.
(door whooshes opens)
How are you feeling?
I still sense Sarek, but it's growing erratic.
Think he's getting worse.
Don't worry, we'll get him back.
Captain. Scanners detect
no signs of the ambassador's ship.
The nebula's radioactive gasses
are rendering our sensors inoperative.
All right, we'll send out probes.
Scan sector by sector.
Considering the size of the nebula,
uh, that method could take months.
Well, any other options, Number One?
Me.
STAMETS: Now, that's my kind of crazy.
You're talking about building a synthetic mind-meld augment.
Groovy.
Clearly, your trip down the mycelium path
has lightened your mood, Lieutenant.
Once you're past getting stabbed by needles,
it's pretty great.
I'm guessing, from your reaction, that modifying
this neural enhancer is a viable method to achieve what I need.
Sure. Hey, why not?
Now, we boost your neural impulses to reconnect
with his katra, then pump those same signals into your noggin,
and... voilà.
Sarek vision.
I got to say, this katra stuff is way cool.
An uncharted superhighway
connecting all of consciousness and life?
We have exactly no time
to discuss the metaphysical implications.
I can sense that Sarek is unconscious.
I want to use this mind-meld to wake him up,
so he can activate his ship's transponder.
Right, like a psychic hit of speed.
I was thinking an adrenaline shot, but okay.
There is one wrinkle, though. Um...
Radioactive interference from the nebula
is gonna diffuse your signal.
You will never be able to maintain
a strong enough connection with Sarek from out here.
So we take the Discovery inside the nebula
and get closer to them.
Ooh. Bad idea.
Guess what happens if we mix those cosmic gasses
with our concentration of mycelium spores
we have on board.
Uh...
(imitates explosion)
Huh.
Okay. So we go in with a shuttle.
Oh. You'd have to fly into that soup
with nothing but hope and a prayer.
Are you really that crazy?
Good to know.
I know, I know. "Get to work."
As long as I don't overstay my welcome,
the shuttle shields can handle it.
But I need someone to work the neural enhancer.
I'd like Cadet Tilly.
She's smart.
And I could use the moral support.
All right, then, you'll get it.
And you need a pilot who can fly you through that storm
and, more importantly, get you out alive.
Luckily, I know a guy.
MALE VOICE (over P. A.): Attention, all personnel.
Clear Dock 3 for shield test.
Cadet.
Sir.
Bring her back in one piece.
Not a scratch.
(quietly): I'm talking about her.
MALE VOICE (over P. A.): Cadet Wells, please report to Engineering.
Or don't come back at all.
SARU (over comm): Captain.
Incoming transmission from Admiral Cornwell.
Transfer it to my quarters.
I'm afraid that won't do, sir.
What do you mean "that won't do"?
Her cruiser just dropped out of warp,
and she's requesting permission to land.
Here.
All right.
I'll see her in my ready room.
What the hell do you think you're doing?
I thought Terral was gonna throw a fit,
And he's a damn Vulcan.
Well, I did what I thought was best.
You launched an unauthorized rescue mission
using a convicted mutineer.
Not to mention a P. O. W.
who has barely had time to recover.
Can you even trust this guy?
Yes, Admiral. I checked him out.
Lieutenant Tyler graduated with honors
from the Academy before he saved my life.
You are captain of the most advanced ship in the fleet.
The cornerstone of our entire defense against the Klingons.
You cannot treat Discovery like it's your own fiefdom.
Is it true, what I heard about Lieutenant Stamets?
He engaged in eugenic manipulation?
He got the spore drive working again.
Yeah, he saved the ship and the crew.
I appreciate that, Gabriel, but there are rules...
Rules are for admirals in back offices.
I'm out there trying to win a war.
Then don't make enemies on your own side.
What are you doing here?
What's really going on?
I came to see my friend.
Okay.
Why don't we stop talking like Starfleet officers,
Kat, and, uh...
start talking like friends?
Hey, where's that old Burnham bluster, huh?
Badass lady who's always pushing me to be the best I can be?
Do you know what helps me when I'm feeling freaked out?
Talking.
You know where Sarek's mind is?
Where his dying thoughts have taken him?
To me.
I mean, that's kind of beautiful.
No.
(sighs) No, you don't understand.
I was supposed to be his proof that humans
and Vulcans could coexist.
As equals.
But I ended up being his greatest disappointment.
That's what he's reflecting on.
I was rejected from the Expeditionary Group
for being too human.
My failure is his last thought.
He doesn't believe in me,
but I'm supposed to be the one who saves him.
TYLER: All right, we're at Sarek's last known location.
Can we do this before we get torn to pieces?
Or you can keep chatting away. It's up to you.
Okay.
Good to go.
Provided this thing doesn't fry your brain.
Now, if the bio-readings show something weird...
They will. Sarek is delirious.
Can't allow him to push me out like that again.
But fighting him is gonna put a massive strain on me.
Then... how do I know if I should pull you out?
Don't.
No matter what the sensors say,
you leave me in there.
Okay?
Go.
She cannot thrive in the Vulcan service.
BURNHAM: I'm sorry, Sarek.
You were wrong to believe in me.
AMANDA: Do you remember, on your tenth birthday,
we took a shuttle and we went to the seventh moon of Eridani D.
BURNHAM: I recall, to experience a book exchange,
an ancient human ritual.
This gift...
comes with a mother's advice.
You've proven that you're as accomplished as any Vulcan,
which is gonna serve you well,
as long as you never forget
that you're human, too.
You need to nurture that side.
There's Sarek.
He's talking to the Expeditionary Group director.
She got in.
Didn't she?
Michael's application was rejected.
If this is your attempt at humor,
you're gonna need a lot more practice, husband.
It is not.
No human has ever been accepted
into the Vulcan Expeditionary Group.
Success was always an unlikely outcome.
What is the reason they have that they could
possibly reject her?
SAREK: Obviously, I had hoped for better.
I don't want to be here.
Please, Amanda, I want to leave.
Why are you doing this?
(bell tolling)
I told you before.
You're not welcome here.
You called me here.
Your katra pulled me.
This is my mind.
You're near death.
I can help you like you helped me.
Give me a chance.
You will fail.
(grunting)
(device beeping rapidly)
What's happening back there?
I don't, I don't know.
She said not to. It'll sever the link.
I outrank you.
Damn it. Fine.
(gasps)
(chuckles)
Nothing like a single malt straight from the motherland.
I still think about the bottle we killed that night.
We went to see the Perseids meteor shower.
(chuckles)
You don't remember?
No, I was just...
thinking how long ago it seems.
Yeah.
We were so young...
with grand plans for the future.
Well, some of us still have.
I know.
I worry about you, Gabriel.
Some of the decisions you've been making recently
have been troubling.
Well, war doesn't provide too many opportunities for niceties.
You're pushing this crew.
You're putting the ship in harm's way.
You've been ignoring orders.
I'm in the front line, Kat.
You got to make decisions in a second, sometimes less.
Which is why Starfleet needs you at your best.
I'm not sure we're getting it.
I'm not sure the Klingons would agree.
I'm not talking about your record.
I'm talking about you.
I don't think you've been the same since the Buran.
(chuckles lightly)
I passed every test.
Cleared for duty every time.
But you know that, don't you, Doc?
Yes, I've read your psych evals.
You passed with flying colors.
So, what's really the problem?
Less than a week ago, you were being tortured.
Now you're back in the chair.
How do you feel about that?
(laughs)
Are we in session?
'Cause I didn't know you're practicing again.
'Cause if I have your undivided attention...
for 50 minutes...
I can think of a whole bunch of other things we could be doing.
Laying in a course back to Discovery.
TILLY: He actually is, though.
I said I'm not leaving here without Sarek.
Those are not my orders, Burnham.
(panting)
Okay. Oh.
Sarek keeps blocking me.
I can't fight you, too.
TYLER: All right.
What can we do?
I don't know.
His thoughts are fixed on my graduation day,
but the emotions from that memory
are too difficult for me to handle.
Well, maybe it's hard for him, too.
Or not. He's a Vulcan.
Why is he thinking of your failure?
Where's the logic in that?
I've been close to death, all right?
Right up next to it.
You don't think about who's failed you.
None of that matters.
You think about who you love,
what you wish you'd done differently.
What does he wish he had done differently?
I'm going back in.
SAREK: She cannot thrive in the Vulcan service.
Sarek.
You continue to demonstrate an inability to learn.
You cannot defeat me.
What are you hiding?
What don't you want me to see?
Is it really worth dying over?
I can save you, Sarek,
but you have to let me into your mind.
Let me in. You had faith in me once.
I'm asking you to have faith in me again.
I never lost faith in you.
The failure on this day was mine and mine alone.
I will show you.
DIRECTOR: The Expeditionary Group
has examined graduate Burnham's application
with great interest.
Acceptance with honors is her due.
By conventional decision parameters,
yes.
Your hesitation is to do
with her nature?
Certainly her nurture is unquestionable.
I have created in her
a being of exquisite logic to rival the best of our species.
An accomplishment you have achieved not once but twice.
Your ward, Michael, and your son, Spock.
What has my son to do with this situation?
He has not yet begun his studies at the Science Academy.
Upon completion, he will apply
to the Vulcan Expeditionary Group,
and then there will be not one
but two non-Vulcans in its ranks.
Spock is...
Half Vulcan.
Another of your experiments.
The integration of humans into our culture
is an admirable goal, but it must be titrated.
In honor of your position and reputation,
I will accept one of your not-quite Vulcans.
You... ask me to make an impossible choice.
Your reaction to this is quite illogical
and suggests a conclusion based on emotion.
You chose Spock over me.
Didn't you?
You were forced into that decision.
Why not just tell me the truth?
Spock went against my wishes and joined Starfleet
over the Vulcan Expeditionary Group.
The choice I made merited nothing.
What would be gained by telling you that?
Instead, you made me believe I failed you.
You manipulated me. Do you have any idea
what living with that lie did to me?
I did not.
But I do now.
I have failed you, Michael Burnham.
(groaning)
And for that, I have...
so much...
Shame?
Yes.
Show me how to save you
like you saved me.
BOTH: My mind to your mind.
My thoughts to your thoughts.
Wake up, Sarek.
Tell us where you are.
(gasps)
I got his transponder.
You did it.
(both gasp)
(panting)
I'm sorry.
I'm not used to having anyone in my bed.
You sleep with a phaser in your bed,
and you say nothing's wrong?
All these months
I have ignored the signs,
but I can't anymore.
The truth is you are not
the man I used to know.
And I'm not like the rest of them at Starfleet,
blinded by your victories.
You lied on those psych evaluations.
And you did it so brilliantly, you fooled everyone.
Is that what you're doing here?
You came to evaluate me yourself?
I have watched you change
these last months.
It's upsetting.
Kat, look...
Now I see it's worse than I even thought.
Your behavior is pathological.
That's what tonight was, right?
Trying to get me to back off.
'Cause it sure wasn't what it was like before.
This is bigger than us.
You said it yourself... we're at war.
I can't leave Starfleet's most powerful weapon
in the hands of a broken man.
Don't take my ship away from me.
She's all I got. Please, I'm begging you.
Now, you-you're right.
It's been harder on me than I let on,
and I lied about everything, and I need help.
I hate that I can't tell if this is really you.
SARU (over comm): Captain, Lieutenant Tyler has just returned.
They have Ambassador Sarek,
but he is severely wounded.
On my way to sickbay.
He'll live.
Dr. Culber says he can't meet the Klingons
in his condition.
The window for the talks closes in a few hours.
Even if the Federation wanted to step in,
they couldn't get there in time.
Admiral Cornwell could.
I mean, we're already halfway there.
She could take an envoy,
small enough so as not to rattle the Klingons.
I know her. She'd do anything
to keep the chance of peace alive.
You did well, Burnham. You should be proud.
As much as it would displease my Vulcan mentor,
I'm feeling a lot of emotions right now.
I'm not sure pride is one of them.
But I do want to thank you.
Sir, you didn't have to mount this rescue mission for Sarek.
I didn't do it for him.
I need a team around me
that's gonna help me carry the day.
And that includes you.
So I'd like to make it official.
There's a post waiting for you on the bridge...
science specialist.
Don't even think about saying no.
I accept.
Good.
I'm grateful to serve under a captain like you.
(male speaking indistinctly over P. A.)
It's good to see your strength returning.
It is... unfortunate
that I will not be able to continue my mission of peace.
What do you recall of your rescue...
of what transpired between us?
I was unconscious, was I not?
You know what happened.
You could talk to me about it.
Help me understand what you did.
It could make us grow closer,
not further apart.
That's what families do.
Technically, we are not related.
You can do better.
But I won't push you.
We'll have this conversation one day...
Father.
I don't want to ruin your career,
but when I return, we'll talk about
how you step down.
And after you get some help,
maybe we'll get you back in that chair.
May fortune favor the bold, Admiral.
Good luck with your negotiation.
(male speaking indistinctly over P. A.)
Shaving off my time.
I gave you bad advice.
There are a million ways to get to the captain's chair.
Find your own.
I have.
COMPUTER: Green tea.
Exceptional source of antioxidants,
alkaloids, and amino acids.
(door whooshes shut)
How's your Vulcan dad?
(sighs)
Stubborn and impenetrable.
As always.
He claims he doesn't remember any of the mind-meld.
Well, good thing I was there, then.
Mind-witness.
(chuckles)
I always knew I could never be who he wanted me to be.
But I realized today...
that it goes both ways.
I'll never get from him what I want, either.
It's tough.
It's okay.
Part of me feels unburdened.
Still, I'm sorry...
for that other part of you.
Thank you.
All my life, the conflict inside me
has been between logic and emotion.
But now it's my emotions that are fighting.
I think about him, and I want to cry.
But I have to smile.
And I feel angry, but I want to love.
And I'm hurt, but there's hope.
What is this?
Uh...
it's just being human.
Michael Burnham.
Pleased to meet you.
Ash Tyler. We've met.
Have we?
Let's try it again.
♪ ♪
Greetings from the United Federation of Planets.
Unfortunately, Ambassador Sarek is unable to attend.
I am Admiral Cornwell and will speak in his place.
Thank you to the elders of Cancri IV
for hosting this meeting.
We hope it is the first step
toward creating new alliances.
We are certain it will be.
I look forward to meeting you, Admiral.
SARU: It was a trap, sir.
The Klingons have taken the admiral.
Their ships are en route to enemy space now.
Notify Starfleet Command.
Ask for orders.
Is there a problem?
No, sir.
Uh, just, in the past,
we have engaged in alternative thinking
on these matters.
What if we go after her and it's another trap, Mr. Saru?
Did you consider that?
Starfleet can't afford
to lose the Discovery.
She's bigger than all of us.
If so ordered, we will try and rescue the admiral,
but not without authorization.
I will hail Starfleet now, sir.
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