Fabula
Object
Object

Light Swirl and Glowing Form Around Data

A sudden, unearthly white luminescence with no visible fixture or hardware — an all-consuming, coherent spherical wash that fills Troi's quarters, flares with searing intensity, and then collapses into absence. Characters shield their eyes and stagger as the light envelops individuals (notably Kevin and Rishon) and at times appears as a swirling, glowing form around nearby crew (Data) during the same sequence. This phenomenon marks Kevin Douwd's final physical exit in the episode "The Survivors."
9 appearances

Purpose

To visually represent the alien entity’s ongoing interaction and influence over Data, signaling the interdimensional exchange and highlighting the severity of his compromised state, thereby intensifying the crew’s urgency to intervene.

Significance

Serves as a tangible clue to the invisible alien interference affecting Data, embodying the collision between scientific understanding and unknowable cosmic forces. Its sudden dissolution marks a narrative turning point, escalating tension and compelling rescue efforts that test Starfleet’s principles against alien justice.

Appearances in the Narrative

When this object appears and how it's used

9 moments
S1E9 · Justice
Data’s Enigmatic Connection Breaks as Communications Restore

The swirling light and glowing form enveloping Data represents the alien presence’s cryptic information exchange with the android. This visual phenomenon abruptly ends during the event, signaling a severed or interrupted connection that coincides with Data’s medical decline.

Before: Active and pulsating around unconscious Data on the Enterprise bridge, indicating ongoing alien interaction.
After: Disappears abruptly, leaving Data’s vital signs to falter and signaling loss of alien data connection.
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S1E9 · Justice
Enterprise Bridge: Data’s Silence and Away Team’s Dire Distress

The glowing light swirl surrounding Data serves as a visible manifestation of a mysterious interdimensional information exchange. Its abrupt disappearance signals a sudden loss of contact and foreshadows Data’s critical unconsciousness, heightening the crew’s alarm.

Before: Surrounding Data, pulsating with eerie light on the bridge.
After: Abruptly vanished; Data’s eyes remain closed, indicating loss of consciousness.
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S1E9 · Justice
Picard Seizes Command Amid Data’s Collapse and Away Team Crisis

The light swirl and glowing form around Data visually represent the alien information exchange that abruptly ends during the event, symbolizing the fragile, otherworldly connection affecting Data’s condition and the mystery of the external threat confronting the Enterprise crew.

Before: Active, swirling luminance enveloping Data, indicating ongoing alien interaction.
After: Disappears abruptly, leaving Data unconscious and vulnerable.
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S3E3 · The Survivors
Bridge Confrontation — The Uxbridges Unmade

The Brilliant Burning Light erupts suddenly on the bridge, overwhelms sensors and sight, and coincides with Kevin's disappearance — functioning as the physical mechanism of his vanishing and as a dramatic punctuation to the moral revelation.

Before: Not present; ambient bridge lighting only.
After: Has flared and vanished, leaving an afterimage of heat and absence where Kevin had stood.
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S3E3 · The Survivors
When the Illusion Breaks

The Brilliant Burning Light is the visceral effect that signals Kevin's vanishing and the release of his power; it interrupts the bridge, conceals action, and marks the moment where a human confession turns into cosmic withdrawal.

Before: Not present; bridge bathed in normal lighting with emergency alarms potential.
After: Has flashed and vanished, leaving afterimages and stunned crew in its wake; its transient existence testifies to non‑local power.
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S3E3 · The Survivors
Douwd Revealed — Rishon Dissolves

The brilliant burning light manifests suddenly on the bridge at Kevin's disappearance, functioning as the physical catalyst for his vanishing and the final, dramatic punctuation of the revelation — it forces eyes closed, elicits confusion, and enables escape without physical combat.

Before: Not present; the bridge is lit by normal operational lighting.
After: Has flashed and vanished; the light's aftereffects remain as stunned silence and the absence of Kevin.
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S3E3 · The Survivors
The Douwd's Confession and Vanishing

The blinding light fills Troi's quarters at the climactic moment of consent between Picard and Kevin; it signals Kevin's use of his Douwd ability to depart and to effect the restoration of Rishon, functioning as the tangible sign of godlike power and vanishing.

Before: Absent from the room; present earlier in other scenes but not active in Troi's quarters before Kevin consents.
After: The light dissipates and Kevin is gone; no persistent phenomenon remains beyond the implied restoration of Rishon off-screen.
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S3E3 · The Survivors
Kevin's Confession — The Weight of a God

The blinding light fills Troi's quarters at Kevin's final nod and functions as the supernatural mechanism of Kevin's disappearance, echoing an earlier bridge event. It signals a nonphysical exit and underscores Kevin's Douwd nature, visually punctuating the confession with cosmic finality.

Before: Not present in the room; absent until Kevin's final gesture.
After: Flares into being briefly to envelop Kevin, then collapses and disappears along with him.
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S3E3 · The Survivors
The Douwd's Confession — Mercy's Price

The blinding light — identified in canonical material as the Douwd's luminous exit — fills Troi's quarters at Kevin's vanishing, functioning as a physical manifestation of his power and the final punctuation of his confession. It both conceals the mechanics of his departure and serves as a liminal, almost sacramental signifier of godlike agency.

Before: Dormant/not present in the room; similar light has occurred earlier on the bridge but is not active as the scene begins.
After: Erupts, envelops Kevin, and collapses into absence; the light disappears along with Kevin, leaving the room intact but emptied.
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