“The Battle” is episode nine of season one of Star Trek: The Next Generation.
The Enterprise has arrived in a system in response to a message from Starfleet. They have rendezvoused with a Ferengi vessel that has requested a meeting. They arrived three days ago but, so far, the only message has been one to stand by.
Captain Picard is in his ready room when Dr Crusher arrives. He’d asked the doctor to come because he’s been feeling a bit odd; fatigue and a headache. Dr Crusher queries the headache and Picard starts to explain. Of course she knows what a headache is; she just doesn’t encounter them much. The captain says the reason is obvious; it’s the Ferengi and what are they up to? The doctor can’t see anything wrong. Neither can Picard. She was talking about his head, not the Ferengi.
There’s nothing she can find physically wrong so the doctor wants the captain to report to sickbay for more scans. That’s an order, from the only person on ship who can give him an order. At which point Commander Riker comms the captain; the Ferengi are finally sending a message.
Returning to the bridge, the captain orders the Ferengi ship be hailed and introduces himself. The Ferengi, DaiMon Bok, knows the captain – the latter is not true – and asked him here to discuss a mutual problem. He wants to speak in person and is willing to meet on the Enterprise. Afterwards, it’s thought the Ferengi agreed a bit easily.
In the interim, Dr Crusher scans the captain. She says that headaches used to be common, before they knew the nature of the brain. They know more now. Having said all that, the doctor has no idea what’s wrong. She gives the captain something for the pain.
Wesley arrives on the bridge and tells them they are going to get an intruder alert. Which they do. An old, Constellation-class starship on impulse power is arriving. Wesley was playing at boosting long0-range sensors and detected the vessel. Picard tells Wesley the correct procedure would have been to signal the bridge, not come in person in the hopes of seeing the Ferengi; that could have imperilled the ship if the intruder was hostile.
It’s time for the beam over and three Ferengi materialise on the bridge; Bok, Kazago and Rata. Bok states the starship is under their control, a gift from them to honour the hero of Maxia. Picard doesn’t remember the Battle of Maxia. Data searches and says that the captain encountered an unidentified starship nine years ago; the vessel was Ferengi and Picard destroyed it after it refused to ID itself and attacked. Bok says that they can download the logs of the starship approaching. For free. That causes consternation with the other two.
Picard is still feeling pain and, this time, Troi feels something as well. Bok suggests it’s the captain’s conscience, related to something from his past. The ship is a gift – again, the other Ferengi are not happy – and it’s the USS Stargazer. The captain’s old command, lost at Maxia.
Picard is back in sickbay with Troi and Dr Crusher. Troi says what she felt was almost mechanical in nature. Picard was remembering the Stargazer. Riker arrives to tell them the staff are waiting and Dr Crusher is going to come with.
Picard explains what happened at Maxia, accidentally calling one of them by the name of his weapons officer on the Stargazer. During the attack, he improvised, creating what is now known as the Picard Manoeuvre. The Stargazer appeared to be in two places at once and the attacker fired on the wrong one. They had to abandoned ship. Before the captain is allowed over, Riker will have his people ensure it’s safe.
Tasha, Data, Geordi and Worf beam across and check it out, before contacting the Enterprise and telling them it’s clear. Captain Picard and Dr Crusher beam over. The captain heads to his old cabin and, inside, something in a trunk glows. On the Ferengi ship, Bok is manipulating an identical device. The doctor comes in to find Picard has another headache.
Data has found something in the Stargazer’s files and tells Commander Riker. According to the captain’s personal log, the Stargazer attacked a ship that was under a flag of truce and destroyed it with no provocation. Riker doesn’t believe it to be true and, given that Bok is clearly up to something, it won’t be. Bok’s motives in the matter are purely personal, not financial, in nature. Which is rather un-Ferengi.
The Ferengi portrayal in this episode isn’t as daft as the one in “The Last Outpost” but they still don’t come across as a major threat.