Of Noble Heart:

Star Trek, The Next Generation

Chapter 27

Picard sat at the head of the table with his staff sitting on both sides. Spinner Martin sat to the Captain's right, prepared to answer any question he could in an effort to resolve the mystery. Picard spoke to the communication's officer, "we are ready to receive the transmission," he said, and she channeled it to the screen above the desk.

"Sir. It is good to see you," Picard said to the Pranek Administrator. "What news of our boys?"

"Jarok is awake and improving and Alexander is here beside me, anxious to report." He smiled broadly and Alexander entered the frame. Sitting next to him was the archivist, with a bandage on his arm, but also beaming from ear to ear.

Worf looked relieved to see his son, though not far below the surface bubbled a mixture of anger and shame. Counsellor Troi, aware of his emotional state, eyed him from across the table and smiled slightly. He read the unspoken message, took a deep breath and sought to put his displeasure aside for the moment.

Alexander, in a formal tone, spoke to the table. "Captain, we – Questor Movid and myself – have to report an incursion of Romulans."

Picard and the others were keen to hear more. "Go on."

For the next five minutes the boy relayed his report. He explained how he and Movid planned their own capture and how they sought to trick the Romulans into having to extract the story from them. "They had to think we didn't want them to know about the Pranek gods." Glancing at Movid, the boy continued. "Unfortunately, they were more aggressive than we planned, and the Curator was injured."

Movid lifted his arm toward the screen. "It's nothing really," he said with pride. "All in a good cause."

Alexander went on. "So, we led them to the room where the machinery is, you remember?" Riker, Deanna and Worf nodded. "We tricked them into touching the machine themselves, and as before, it sent out a signal. They left chasing after it within a couple of minutes. They must be headed in your direction, sir."

Picard nodded at Worf, who exited to warn his security team on the Bridge. "Well done, Alexander, and Curator Movid. We will get more details when we arrive. We will notify you as we approach, but it should be within 30 hours. We will have news to share with you too, about what we have found here, though much remains a mystery."

"About our gods? We look forward to that," Movid enthused. He and Alexander backed away and the Administrator transmitted a formal farewell and the screen went dim.

Worf re-entered the room and was disappointed to see his son was no longer on the screen. Only Counsellor Troi read his feelings as he sat again. "The Enterprise is prepared to defend itself against the Romulans if we meet up," he said.

"Best we skirt the direct route the beam takes," Riker suggested. "Let them head into the zone themselves…"

"…we shouldn't warn them?" Spinner asked.

"I think not," Picard answered. "Riker is right. They are in search of a weapon and will find whatever they discover, just as we did…" He let the words trail off, thinking about the loss of life their escapade had cost them. And still they were no closer to knowing who the Spaceman was, and how he came to be buried amongst advanced technology on Rabijan IX. "Besides, would they believe us if we told them we have no weapon?"

Changing the tenor of the meeting, the Captain turned to their guest. "Okay, Dr Spinner, we are ready to hear what happened to your team."

"We managed to visit another 2 planets," Spinner began. He was interrupted by Madam Rimina's arrival. She chose to sit at the end of the table, as far away from Spinner as possible. After she slid into a chair she nodded her greeting to all.

"Dr Rimina," Picard explained, "we are being briefed by Dr Martin about how he and the remaining scientists came to be aboard the Enterprise. Go on, sir."

"After you left," Spinner continued, "I led a team and we took the shuttle and we went further down the line of planets. We found number 7 populated by a primitive race, residing in huts and scratching a living from the soil. We did not approach them. It was the sixth planet in the system that proved to be most enlightening. We were looking forward to future interactions. The other team, led by Dr Nels, was exploring the ruins on Rabijan. We found another piece of equipment about this big," he shaped his hands to show the size of a padd. "And two more spacemen – well, one man and one woman. Probably human…"

"Probably?" Dr Crusher asked.

"Yes, we never completed our investigation. Before we could there was another accident – another rock fall – and Nels and half our scientists were buried as Pakat had been."

Dr Rimina was shocked. "Who died?" she demanded. Spinner listed the names and she shook her head in dismay. "How foolish of you, to kill more people, and in exactly the same way. That planet is cursed. You should not have stayed." She sat back, arms across her chest and brooded.

Spinner did not dispute her assertion, but neither was it as simple as she made out. "Anyway," he continued, "we had decided to survey the mountainside to determine if more dangers awaited our group. That's when we found the room, the two bodies, and our box. We put them in stasis, and then after that Nels' team died. We'd forgotten about the box, which we'd put in the lab. Later, at night, we found it had turned itself on, and, well, I had to do something."

Rimina rolled her eyes and muttered under her breath. Picard glanced at the woman and then urged Martin to continue. "Well, we were investigating the box when everything went blank. I remember nothing, until I ended up here on your ship. I thought you'd transported us off the planet."

"No sir, we were engaged elsewhere, I assure you," the Captain said.

Worf spoke. "Doctor, was the machine with you when you arrived on board?"

"No," the scientist answered. "The last I saw it, it was on the planet. In Madam Rimina's stone house," he said glancing down the table.

Thinking of his own experience, Picard asked. "And did you go anywhere else between Rabijan and here?"

"I was in a white space, I think, but have no idea where or for how long."

"The reason I ask," Picard began, "is because of my own experience." He then related to them his brief conversation with an dis-incarnated voice. "I am not certain where I was or who I was talking to, but I am convinced that this whole episode, from your first experience on Rabijan," he nodded to Rimina and Spinner, "until now, that it has taken place under the eye of some sort of powerful sentient being. What its motive is, we don't know." He looked at Counsellor Troi, and they all understood the Betazoid would have been able to feel such a presence.

"They are powerful," she said, "but I know little more than that."

"They have technology with weapons potential," Worf reminded them. "It could be dangerous to us… now more so, if the Romulans get it."

"Right, Lieutenant, which is why I have ordered the helm to keep us here on the edge of this system until we figure out what has happened. We can't allow the Romulans to retrieve the machines. And I have ordered that we remain here until we find the answer to our questions."

#

As he said the last words Picard caught a shimmer in the corner of his left eye. "It's as we feared," a disembodied voice said to the room. "Your race is so stubborn."

Worf was the first to jump up and take a defensive stance, and with his sidearm drawn he faced the flickering light in the corner.

"Wait!" the Captain ordered. Moderating his voice, he continued. "Are you the same being I spoke with earlier, who repaired our ship and took us out of danger?"

"We are."

"Can you make yourself corporeal again? It is difficult for us to talk to an intangible voice."

The shimmering light took form and standing against the wall was a single human male, middle-aged, tall and thin. He wore a grey suit this time, not unlike that of the Captain but without insignia. His face expressed wisdom, humour and long-suffering patience.

"Is this better, Captain?"

"It is, thank you. Is there just one of you? You said, 'we'."

"We are all here, but in one body, for your convenience. But we can take the form of several, if you prefer?"

"Your single form is acceptable to us," the Captain said.

Worf moved slowly forward to stand next to Picard. "You are making our security officer nervous," the Captain said. "Are we in danger?"

"We will not harm you."

"Lieutenant," Picard turned toward Worf. "Stand at ease. I believe we are safe."

Worf relaxed as much as he was able, which meant he stood at the ready next to the Captain. "Yes, sir. I am at ease."

The Captain realised that there would be no contest if they went up against these beings, but he also knew his ever-vigilant Klingon was constitutionally unable to stand down.

"Is it possible for you to join us here?" he said to the man in grey, and indicated a seat at the table. "We are not used to being moved about like pawns and it would please us if you were part of our discussion. We are attempting to determine what course of action we should take next."

#

The man walked slowly to the table and pulled out a chair. Sitting next to Dr Rimina, she shifted away as though frightened of his touching her. A smile flitted across his face. Perhaps being corporeal is unusual for him, Picard thought. Riker glanced at the Captain and raised an eyebrow in acknowledgement of their common curiosity about the man's demeanour.

"You are right," the man said, "being in a body is an odd sensation for us, one that we rarely experience."

"So, you can read our thoughts," Picard said, glancing at Deanna.

"We can, but we also know much more about you. More than you know about yourself." He looked from one to the other. "And about Betazoids, Klingons, Vulcans… and others in your part of the galaxy… but not about you," he said, frowning at Data.

"I am an android, sir."

"Yes, we can see that. An artificial life form. It is significant," he said to Picard, "that you chose to construct a sentient being so like yourselves. Either hubris or a lack of imagination, perhaps?"

Rather than wait for an answer the being turned his attention to Rimina, who sat staring hard at the man. "You madam, we must especially apologize to you."

The woman had aged years during her short stay on Rabijan. Her clothes hung on her frame and their bright colour made her look all the more pallid. "We apologize because we know that you are afraid of us. We tried to avoid taking any action that would cause you to fear us."

"You have killed so many of our people," she snapped. "You have murdered my closest friend… and many others. Young people…" She sobbed into her hands.

"These accidents were not of our doing," he replied, but she ignored his words. He looked around the table at each face and ended with Picard, "Captain, we have tried to protect you… mostly from yourselves."

"Why? We were prepared to stay on Rabijan and make it our home," Spinner interjected. "We had begun to open relations with our neighbours."

"We have decided to close Rabijan permanently. It was our mistake. It should have been done eons ago, but we thought it would be safe. We had not counted on your curiosity, your tenacity."

"But," Picard interceded, "our Federation scientists began excavations in good faith, not expecting to be kidnapped. Too much about events on Rabijan and in this system remain secret, or at least unknown to us. We are explorers. We expect to be able to do our work. We want to learn about new cultures, systems…"

"… and that is why we have agreed to sit here in this body: to explain what has happened and why. And to convince you that you must leave and never return."

"I think, Captain," Deanna said, "that our visitor's intentions are good. This whole string of events seems to have been a case of good intentions resulting in unexpected harm."

"Exactly," the man said. Picard noted how sad he looked, as though collective guilt weighed heavily on his shoulders.

"It's as you say Counsellor Troi," the man in grey began. "So much of what we have done, not just on Rabijan, but elsewhere, has been no different than what a parent does for a child, trying to uplift…"

Picard intervened. "Sir, the best thing to do is to tell us from the beginning."

The old man adjusted his coat, as though unaccustomed to its restraint. He had the full attention of them all, including Worf who remained standing at the Captain's side.

"As you say, it makes sense to start at the beginning. We will start with Rabijan, for that is where this particular problem began." He looked at Dr. Crusher. "You are the doctor, yes?"

"Yes, Beverly Crusher."

"You have already discovered that the beings on Rabijan were human."

She nodded her agreement. "Yes, our lab tests proved that."

He looked at Spinner and continued. "All of them are human. And sadly, there are many thousands more buried under the rocks."

"Thousands?" Rimina said. "But we found only one. Well, three. Where are the rest?"

"Under the mountain where you dug and other mountains like it. And where they are meant to remain. Mass graves, if you will. But not of our doing…"

Deanna leaned forward in an effort to sense what the beings felt and to determine if they were telling the truth. The man glanced at her and smiled. "Yes Counsellor. We are."

Chastened, she sat back in her chair, aware that her extra-sensory abilities were no match for theirs. "We have to hear your story sir," she said, "and judge its truth on its own merits."

#

The assembly stared at the man, waiting for him to continue. Outside the window the stars stood still, for the Captain had not given the order for the Enterprise to get underway. Worf shifted his weight but continued to stand behind his Captain, ready to protect him if need be. Riker leaned forward slightly, but the rest settled back in their chairs ready to hear the man's story. Only Rimina sat with her arms folded, unwilling to hear any excuses from a man that she considered a murderer.

"Ages ago," the visitor started, "we were powerful. Powerful in the sense that you understand: political and economic actors throughout a large section of the galaxy… and beyond, but we won't go into that now. We were born lucky, with gifts that many beings don't have. In our most primitive state we were corporeal telepaths and had the power of telekinesis. We built splendid cities linked by sky trains, and created a global government that promoted peace and development. That was our foundation." He looked around to ensure all understood his words.

"Go ahead, sir," Deanna said.

"As time passed we used our natural advantages to reach out – first to leave our own planet, and then our own system. Eventually we were able to move through the stars, like you do now."

They hung on every word. Even Rimina began to show an interest.

"Our goal once we left our own system was to help others achieve what we had. We wanted to do good. One of the ways we did that was to help beings we found on other planets, who had less capacity or were stuck at lower levels of development. We taught them skills, we gave them our technology, we even helped them set up systems of government and institutions that improved their lives. In the process we upgraded their medicine, transport, infrastructure, institutions, just about everything that would make their lives more productive and comfortable."

"We visited one such planet," Riker offered. "Pranek Prime."

"Yes, exactly. I am coming to them," the man grimaced.

"Often we intervened from afar, without being seen or being recognised as interfering. For instance, we might cure a plague before it spread. Other times we interacted with planetary populations. Such as on Pranek IV."

"They thought you were gods," Deanna said.

"Yes, their belief emerged as a natural consequence of our superior technology and the vast difference in our levels of development."

"Surely you encouraged it," Riker interjected.

"Perhaps, but not intentionally. When we arrived there they were barely out of caves. We came not only with advanced engineering, but with social organisation, legal systems, medical techniques, all sorts of learning. Over the centuries they adopted many of our values and ways of doing things."

"You kick-started their own empire," Riker added.

"Indeed, our help initiated a period of rapid development and soon they had their own dependent states, and a wide network of influence, trade, and the other trappings of empire."

"So, what happened?" Riker continued. "Why are they so, well, uninspiring, now?"

"Ah, that's the point. One essential element of their civilization – the technology we provided – they never mastered."

'But they still use the generating capacity you left," Worf said from behind the table.

"Yes, when we withdrew we had no choice but to leave it, and an automaton to fix it. It was your tinkering with what remains of the machinery, underground in the capital, that alerted us to your presence. That machinery is set to register a foreigner's presence, anyone who is not biologically the same as the citizens of Pranek. When you touched it, it warned us of your interest in our technology."

"But you haven't explained why you left Pranek," Deanna said. "The citizens there still don't understand that. And they still worship you as gods, gods that abandoned them."

The man ducked his head in what the group read as shame. "That's too bad, we hoped they'd move on. But surely you understand that we had to leave? In fact, we have had to abandon all the peoples and planets we've tried to help."

"But why exactly?" Data asked.

"Because they became too dependent on us. We did too much for them. In our enthusiasm to help, we crushed their spirit of self-achievement, their independence, ambition, and self-expression. Their growth depended ultimately on our leaving them alone to sort out their own problems using their own solutions."

"But from what we've seen on Pranek," Deanna said, "they have grown little since you left. Their empire collapsed. And they would gladly take you back today, to make decisions and do things for them. Your expectations upon departure have not been realised."

"Yes, unfortunately, it's been that way in many places. But to be honest, Counsellor, Pranek Prime is one of our least problematic outcomes."

"Please explain," Picard interjected. "And why are you telling us this? Few of the advanced beings we've met freely admit to failure," he said thinking of Q.

"But our failures, which have been many, have grown from our good intentions, as Counsellor Troi said. And there is a lesson here for the Federation too. You might say we are trying to help you by sharing our examples of how doing good can backfire."

"So, you're still trying to help!" Picard said. The irony was not lost on any of them. "But, please, go on with your story."

The man smiled wanly at Picard's observation, stood and pointed out of the window. "Every planet you see in our exclusion zone – the line of planets in which Rabijan now rests – is a failure. Not just a little failure like Pranek, but a mistake that we had to isolate to keep it from infecting wide regions of space. That is why those planets are there: they have all been removed from their original space to protect others from our mistakes. So you see, Pranek Prime was not so badly affected: it was allowed to develop where it was, the best it could."

"You mean each of those planets and all their inhabitants have been isolated on purpose?" Spinner said incredulously.

"Yes, those are our real failures…" he said, staring out the window. "But we have had some successes," he quickly added in his defense. "Planets that we helped that did take off, that did develop and grow to manage their own affairs, to create their own technologies, to mature into fully independent and mature societies."

"So, what do you consider a failure?" Spinner continued to pursue his line of thought. "And is it you who does the judging of what is a success or a failure?"

The man in grey paused and looked squarely at the scientist as though thoroughly absorbing his concerns. After some moments, he finally spoke, "I think it would be best to concentrate on Rabijan, not simply because it serves as an example, but because it has a link to Earth."

"So, you won't explain why the other planets are considered failures and placed there in that string," Rimina said accusingly.

"No, it is enough to say that each one is there to protect other societies and worlds in their original systems from contamination. It's a result of our mistakes, we admit, though their inhabitants share part of the blame."

Picard, keen to focus on Federation business, interrupted as Spinner was about to probe further. "We can argue blame later. Tell us what has Earth got to do with Rabijan?"

Before the man could answer, Dr Crusher added to Picard's line of questioning. "We already know the Spaceman found on Rabijan is Terran, of a branch that diverged from Earthlings some 75,000 years ago."

"Exactly. That was when we removed a group of people from Earth," the man said. He return to his seat at the table to face the doctor.

"Why take them?" Riker asked in surprise, reflecting the unease of others at the table.

"Kidnapped, no doubt," Rimina added in a more aggressive tone.

"No." The man lifted his hands and signaled for silence. "I will explain."

"Please do explain," Crusher echoed his words. "I want to hear this. We already knew the man, and presumably the thousands of bodies buried on the planet, was human."

"Yes, they were all Earthlings. Little different from yourselves. But we did not kidnap them. We rescued them. But in the end, it was another good deed that turned out badly."

Rimina and Spinner looked the most skeptical, but it was Picard who spoke. "Go on. You have our full attention."

"Approximately a hundred thousand Earth years ago humans walked from the southern continent of Earth. There were pockets of other humanoids in the north, but they did not prosper as did those from the south. We were not there when they began their trek but not long afterward we found they had managed to retain a toehold in the northern hemisphere of your planet, mixing with the other populations they found there."

"So, you visited earth that long ago?" Data asked.

"No. Longer ago than that. But then what we found there was of little interest to us. We were looking for planets with populations ready and able to use our help. On Earth there were only primitives, pre-human forms, until very late in its evolution."

Data, the Doctor and the Captain nodded in agreement. None was willing to get side-tracked by the accuracy of the word 'primitive'.

"Please, go on," Crusher said. "What did you save them from?"

"A natural disaster, one that nearly killed off all of the people on the planet."

"Yes!' Dr Crusher said and slapped her hands together. "It makes sense now. Please, tell the others what happened." She sat back with a smile on her face, arms crossed, keen for them to share the rest of their story.

"There was a volcano, on an island near the equator of your planet. It spewed material in the air for days, and when it was stopped the island had nearly disappeared. The sky was dark and the atmosphere full of contaminants. Not only for hours, and not just in that region. No, your Earth was overcast for many, many years. Temperatures fell and most of the plant life died."

"Like a so-called nuclear winter scenario," Picard stated.

"Ah, I see," Data interrupted. He was accessing his memory banks and could relate the history. "The Toba volcano in Sumatra, which, when it blew, initiated another ice age. Humankind were unable to plant crops or scavenge and most died. It is estimated that only ten thousand humans survived the millennium-long cold spell."

"Exactly," Dr Crusher continued, "and our Mitochondrial DNA shows it. And that explains why the Spaceman's Mitochondrial DNA is different than ours. He was removed before the genetic die-back."

"Exactly," the visitor continued his story. "We took shiploads of people off the planet in the hope of saving the species. It had taken humans such a long time to progress as far as they had, and we were not willing to watch the species die off completely."

"You took them to Rabijan?" Riker asked.

"Yes, it was an uninhabited Class M planet, and fit for colonization. We settled the people there, about twenty thousand of them, and in the following generations they bred and prospered. We helped them with technology of all sorts, with their social and political systems, like setting up ruling councils and schools. We interacted as equals."

"How long ago was that?" Dr Crusher asked.

"Seventy thousand Terran years, Doctor," the man replied.

"That makes sense, because you can see in the Spaceman's Mtc DNA just how many generations have passed since that branch of humans diverged from our own." Turning to the Captain, she continued, "I think his account is accurate, sir."

"Go on," Picard insisted.

"But things began to go wrong on Rabijan. After several centuries we found that our technology was being back-engineered by several groups for purposes that we had not foreseen. Soon factions began to vie with one another for resources and eventually they began using the weapons they'd devised to fight wars for strategic positions."

"It sounds very much like Earth in the past," Picard added.

"Exactly! It is as though humans are genetically programmed to behave this way, regardless of the advancement and benefits they have."

"That's not quite fair, sir," Riker said. "Earthlings have not been at war with one another for generations".

"Ah, but you do fight your neighbours, do you not?" the man replied. "Even those Romulans, who are heading in our direction as we speak."

"So you know about the Romulans," Picard said.

"Yes, they are coming here, like you, seeking weapons…" He shook his head and was silent.

"But how did Rabijan become so inhospitable, and the people extinct?" Spinner interrupted the silence.

"Eventually they developed weapons that could destroy the whole planet and others beyond, and within a generation they had used them."

"So, the destruction we saw," Spinner inserted, "was the result of a war?"

"Yes, some of it. After they'd wiped out most of their population, we buried the rest, and their weapons. Those could not be left exposed, available to any chancer-by who, like yourself, might come upon them. So we turned under the remains, so to speak."

"You mean," Spinner continued, "you melted the rock and folded it over what was left of the civilization? The people?"

"Yes, we covered them all, assuming no one would find the weapons again. But rest assured, Earthlings, after several years of what you call 'nuclear winter' there were no survivors. No one was left alive when we intervened. We were merely the gravediggers. Under the mountains of Rabijan there are the remains of many, many people and of vast cities. And most importantly, of armouries and technologies. We could not let anyone, including you, gain access to the weapons. They were very advanced."

Deanna actually felt the sadness emanate from the man that the rest of them could only hear in his voice and see in his eyes. "So, it was a rescue that went wrong," she concluded.

"Exactly. We had tried to help by giving Earthlings a chance to survive the volcano. We gave them our advanced institutions and technologies, but that only meant they could make war more proficiently."

"And how many of these mistakes have you made?" Spinner interrupted. "A handful, dozens, hundreds?"

Before he could answer, Riker added. "There are a dozen in the string of planets out there," pointing toward the window. "You said you brought them here to protect others. To isolate them. How many Rabijans are there out there in the galaxy? Completely obliterated civilizations? And how many Praneks? Stunted societies without the nerve to solve their own problems?"

Everyone sat still and waited for an answer that was a long time in coming. "Now you understand," the man hung his head. "We are ashamed. But," he quickly added, "our motives were good. We never meant to harm anyone. We were only acting as a parent does with their children."

"But did you never learn not to interfere?" the Captain interrupted. "Very early on in our exploration of space the Federation developed what we call the Prime Directive. It is meant to keep us from making the same mistakes you have."

Data, who had listened quietly for a long time, considering the motivations of these super-beings, clarified the problem further. "Of course, the difference is also that the Federation is nowhere as powerful as you are, so its interference has had relatively little impact compared to yours. But at the same time, the Federation is less able to clean up – to haul off and bury – its mistakes."

"But Captain," the man turned to look Picard in the eye, "are you telling me that you", looking down the table, "that this ship, your Federation has never affected other beings' development? Even with the best of motives?"

Of course he was right. Each at the table could remember an instance when members of Starfleet, even officers on the Enterprise, had broken the Prime Directive.

"Yes, we have, and generally with disastrous results," the Captain admitted. "We've made some spectacular messes. Sometimes our interference has worked out well but more often, not. We too have tried to play god," he admitted. "And like you, it's a record of which we are not proud."

Both Deanna and the being who sat across from them could feel the Captain's shame.

"It is difficult for humans not to interfere," Data said with a measure of objectivity. "In fact, for centuries before going into space major powers colonised parts of the Earth, arguing they did it for the benefit of the indigenous underclass. While colonisation did promote better medicine and education, and helped economic growth it did great harm to some smaller societies and it interrupted their own direction of development. Later, when Earthlings began to explore space, they repeated these behaviours, for a host of reasons, including sometimes a desire to help."

"It is not just human history," Worf interjected. "We Klingons also have an empire. And think of the Vulcans."

"But all of the Federation's peoples come by this trait naturally," Troi commented. Her years of counselling staff gave her insight into the behaviour of the individual members of Starfleet. "Even now we need to leave this zone and return to Pranek to help our own children, who have acted immaturely and are hurt. We spend a large portion of our lives parenting, trying to guide our young people. We have no way to pass our lessons genetically, so intervening in their lives is the way we do it."

As she spoke she and Worf exchanged glances. She continued, "so it's understandable that Federation members reach out to help weaker peoples. It's also quite natural that we make the same mistakes when doing it that we make as parents."

"Then we are little different," the man concluded. "It's just that our powers are greater."

"And therefore, your mistakes are of more consequence," Rimina added.

Yes," Picard agreed, "by nature we want to help, but our interference, no matter how well meant, can lead to unexpected results. Some very negative…"

"It is a lesson we are still trying to learn," the man conceded.

"The noble heart, that harbours virtuous thought, and is with child of glorious great intent, can never rest… and so forth," the Captain quoted.

"Indeed, we seem repeatedly to forget…"

"…and that is what this group of planets is?" Riker said, bringing the discussion back to the problem at hand. "You are not just hiding your mistakes?"

"No, it's not that simple, though yes, we are ashamed of what we have done.'

"But why kick us out?" Spinner asked.

"Because you are human and your race seems genetically wired to explore. You are unable to leave things alone. You might have lived on Rabijan and learned from your neighbours how to grow things. You might have traded with them. We could have helped you with transport and other advancements in due course. But it became very clear to us that you could not leave those mountains undisturbed. We explicitly told you not to dig for technology but still you excavated. This ship," the man turned toward Picard, "was removing a piece of the same equipment that the Earthlings long ago used to destroy Rabijan. You," he looked at Spinner, "were about to set off another explosion by interfering with that little box. It is just too dangerous to leave any of you on the planet, and too perilous to let the Enterprise carry away our technology."

"But we are at war," Worf interjected. "You do not know the Borg."

The man did not deny it, though his silence led the officers to conclude he probably did know the Borg and what damage they were doing.

"Captain, tell me. If you took the machine you call the Medusa to Earth your scientists would see its potential and start clambering for other samples, right? We have no doubt that your Starfleet would be back here to collect more of our technologies, no matter how inhospitable and dangerous we make the exclusion zone. Am I wrong Captain?"

Picard shook his head, "you are correct, sir. We have enemies that are powerful and we are in need of defensive weapons. Yours could help us."

"Exactly. And what of the Romulans, who as we speak are also following the Pranek transmission toward the planets? Would the Romulans having the same technology lead to less conflict? Fewer deaths?"

Silence swept the room. They all knew that new and more effective weapons would lead to bigger wars and more fatalities. They did not need to look beyond the history of Earth to know that.

"Captain, it has taken us millennia to realise what you have learned in two centuries. Our own Prime Directive now forbids the dispensing of technologies that have weapons potential, for whatever purpose."

"And the other planets…" Spinner said, but as he spoke the man stood and dissipated into an indistinct flicker of light. His voice remained strong.

"I cannot share more. Only to say that neither the Enterprise nor any other ship will be allowed to enter this zone. This time we saved you from your foolhardy attempt to leave with our technology, Captain, but not the next. Be warned. Tell the Federation, the Romulans and any others to stay away."

Before the Captain had a chance to explain to him that his warning the Romulans would do no good, the being shimmered out of existence and the room fell silent.

#

The room was quiet for some moments as each was lost in their own thoughts. Worf took his seat at the end of the table once the man had gone. Unhappy to have lost the weapon, he was a pragmatist and knew it was a waste of energy to wish things were different. He would wait though, to see whether the Federation took the Movers' warning to heart before giving up all hope of returning.

Coming to terms with the fact that it was her over-zealous colleagues that had caused their own deaths, Rimina relaxed somewhat. At the other end of the table Spinner sat silently. He weighed against the death of his friends what he now recognised as good reasons for their exclusion from Rabijan. And, the deaths of thousands of humans centuries before: the idea of returning to his lab and leaving fieldwork to others seemed more attractive than it had just a few days before.

Counsellor Troi contemplated the beings' psychology, and how much it was like that of Federation members. "I wonder how they treat their children," she asked aloud.

"Good question, Counsellor," Riker said. "But it seems they are finished treating us like children. We are to be neither coddled nor coached. I guess that's a good sign though, that they consider the Federation a mature member of their galactic club and not simply a recipient of their aid."

Data responded next. "Interesting, isn't it. That they are so much more advanced than the Federation but are still making mistakes and continuing to learn."

"Yes," Troi answered. "It's hard when you are grown up to recognise that those less advanced than you are must grow and develop at their own rate and in their own way. Another's growth, their reaching their potential, can't be orchestrated by someone else," she concluded.

Silently, Worf sat focused on her. When she glanced up he nodded almost imperceptibly as he recognised the wisdom of her words.

Picard pushed back from the table and addressed Riker. "Set our course for Pranek Prime, Commander. You have the Bridge. We have children to pick up on the way home." Riker and the others rose and headed for the door.

Picard stopped Troi as she passed. "Maybe once the people of Pranek hear what we have learned about their gods, they will be able to take responsibility for their own lives and begin to move on."

She laughed. "I'd guess Captain, from the look on the face of Questor Movid when he told us what he'd done to the Romulans, that they have already taken their first steps."