Wesley Takes the Conn — Engaging the Future
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
Wesley steps out of the turbolift and takes over Conn from Ensign Gibson while Riker occupies the command post and Data and Worf hold Ops and Tactical; a wedge of Daled Four fills the Main Viewer.
Riker reports the course for Aldebaran Zeta; Picard orders speed set to warp six point five and Wesley implements the command, committing the ship to departure.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Conflicted — a mixture of private sadness and professional resolve; grief present but controlled beneath a surface of competence.
Exits the turbolift, moves to the Conn, takes over from Ensign Gibson, inputs and confirms the ordered speed, then physically engages the warp drive while watching the Main Viewer as Daled Four recedes.
- • Obey Captain Picard's orders precisely and without hesitation.
- • Convert personal emotion into competent professional action.
- • Demonstrate reliability and maturity at the helm in front of senior officers.
- • Duty and procedure are the appropriate responses in moments of personal difficulty.
- • Following orders is how one honors the ship and its mission; competence equals respect and growth.
Calm, authoritative with an undercurrent of understanding — purposeful in using procedure to move a young officer through an emotional moment.
Issues the order to set warp speed, watches Wesley for a beat after the confirmation, then gives the command 'Engage' — using concise command to shift the scene forward and reassert operational tempo.
- • Move the ship promptly to its destination (Aldebaran Zeta).
- • Maintain bridge discipline and operational focus.
- • Subtly catalyze Wesley's move from private feeling to professional action.
- • Starship command requires clear, decisive orders to prevent sentiment from compromising mission.
- • Experienced officers must use protocol to both protect the ship and shepherd junior crewmembers through growth moments.
Neutral, observational—engaged in duty without affect.
Positioned at Ops, monitoring systems and sensors neutrally; provides a clinical operational presence though he utters no lines in this beat.
- • Monitor ship systems as the ship transitions to warp.
- • Be prepared to report technical anomalies or confirmations if needed.
- • Systems data are the primary source of truth during maneuvers.
- • Steady monitoring prevents mission risk.
Stoic and alert — professionally detached, ready to respond to tactical contingencies.
On duty at Tactical, maintaining watchful posture; present as the bridge's security/stability anchor during the procedural sequence.
- • Maintain ship security during the maneuver.
- • Provide a visible enforcement of Starfleet protocol on the bridge.
- • Security must be constant regardless of personal circumstances aboard the ship.
- • Visible readiness helps deter and respond to threats.
Matter-of-fact and professional; focused on conveying necessary information rather than emotion.
At his command post, reports that the course is set for Aldebaran Zeta — providing the navigational confirmation that enables Picard’s speed order and Wesley’s action.
- • Ensure command has up-to-date navigational status.
- • Support the captain by providing clear operational data.
- • Clear, timely reporting is essential to good command decisions.
- • Operational clarity helps contain emotional distractions on the bridge.
Neutral and businesslike — focused on a clean transfer of control.
Relinquishes the helm at the Conn to Wesley when Wesley arrives at the station; performs a professional handoff without fanfare.
- • Hand off Conn responsibilities properly and maintain bridge continuity.
- • Ensure the incoming helmsman (Wesley) has situational awareness.
- • Proper procedure requires orderly relief of station duty.
- • A clear handoff reduces the chance of error during maneuvers.
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
The Main Viewer displays a wedge of Daled Four and functions as the visual focal point for Wesley’s private moment; it shows the planet receding as he engages warp, turning an emotional image into evidence of forward motion.
The Main Bridge Turbolift is the transit device through which Wesley arrives on the bridge; its opening cues the shift from private movement to public duty and stages the handoff at the Conn.
Daled Four (as the visible glowing planet) functions as both literal destination origin and symbolic motif: it is what Wesley watches vanish — the emotional object of his sadness — as he composes himself and executes the warp jump.
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
The Forward Stations / Conn is the precise workspace where Wesley takes control and executes the command inputs — the tactile center of the event where fingers on controls convert intention into ship motion.
Aldebaran Zeta is the plotted navigational destination announced by Riker; it functions as the immediate, practical objective that justifies the warp order and propels the ship away from Daled Four.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
No narrative connections mapped yet
This event is currently isolated in the narrative graph
Key Dialogue
"RIKER: "We have the course set for Aldebaran Zeta, Sir.""
"PICARD: "Mister Crusher, set speed -- warp six point five.""
"PICARD: "Engage.""