Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home Page #2

Live long and prosper, Lieutenant.

Permission to come aboard.

Permission granted.

Thank you, Admiral.

Jim. Spock, Jim.

Don't you remember?

It wouldn't be proper to call you Jim

while you're in command.

Also, I must apologize for my attire.

I seem to have misplaced my uniform.

Station.

You sure this is such a bright idea?

What do you mean?

I mean him back at his post

like nothing happened.

He's not exactly

working on all thrusters.

It'll come back to him.

Are you sure?

That's what I thought.

Mr. Sulu... take us home.

Thrusters functional.

One quarter impulse power.

Space dock, this is Starfleet.

Launch all vessels.

Launch all vessels.

Space dock doors are inoperative.

All emergency systems are nonfunctional.

Engage reserve power.

Starfleet, this is space dock

on emergency channel.

We have lost all internal power.

Estimating planet Earth,

1.6 hours, present speed.

Continue on course.

Mr. Chekov, any sign

of federation escort?

There are no federation vessels

on assigned patrol stations.

That's odd.

Uhura, what's on the comm channels?

Very active, sir.

Multiphasic transmissions,

overlapping.

It's almost a gibberish.

Let me see if I can sort it out.

Hi.

Busy?

Uhura is busy.

I am monitoring.

Hmm.

I just wanted to say

It's nice to have your Katra

back in your head and not in mine.

I may have carried your soul,

but I sure couldn't fill your shoes.

My shoes?

Forget it.

Perhaps we could cover

a little philosophical ground.

Life, death, life.

Things of that nature.

I did not have time

on Vulcan to review

the philosophical disciplines.

Come on, Spock.

It's me, McCoy.

You really have gone where

no man's gone before.

What did it feel like?

It's impossible to discuss

without a common frame of reference.

You're joking.

A joke...is a story

with a humorous climax.

I have to die to discuss

your insights on death?

I'm receiving a number

of distress calls.

I don't doubt it.

Juneau, Alaska, clouds increasing 95%.

Tokyo. Total cloud coverage.

All power from reserve banks.

Leningrad has lost

all electrical power.

Cloud coverage 100%.

Temperatures decreasing rapidly.

What is the estimate

cloud cover of the planet?

78.6%.

Notify all stations.

Starfleet emergency. Red alert.

Switch power immediately

to planetary reserves.

Switching now.

Red alert.

We are now on red alert.

Attention, attention. Red alert.

Mr. President,

even with planetary reserves,

we cannot survive without the sun.

I'm well aware of that, Admiral.

Ambassador Sarek,

I'm afraid you're trapped here with us.

There seems to be no way

we can answer this probe.

It's difficult to answer

when one does not

understand the question.

Mr. President...

perhaps you should transmit

a planetary distress signal...

while we still have time.

Admiral.

What is it?

Overlapping distress calls

and now a message from the federation.

On screen.

This is the president

of the United Federation of Planets.

Do not approach Earth.

The transmissions

of an orbiting probe

are causing critical

damage to this planet.

It's almost totally

ionized our atmosphere.

All power sources have failed.

All earth-orbiting

starships are powerless.

The probe is vaporizing our oceans.

We cannot survive

unless a way can be found

to respond to the probe.

Further communications

may not be possible.

Save your energy.

Save yourselves.

Avoid the planet earth at all costs.

Farewell.

Can you let us hear

the probe's transmission?

Yes, sir.

On speakers.

Spock, what do you make of that?

Most unusual.

An unknown form of energy

of great power and intelligence,

evidently unaware

that its transmissions

are destructive.

I find it illogical

that its intentions are hostile.

Is this its way of saying " Hi there"

to the people of the Earth?

There are other forms

of intelligence

on Earth, Doctor.

Only human arrogance would assume

the message must be meant for man.

You're suggesting the transmission

is meant for a life form

other than man.

At least a possibility, Admiral.

The president did say

it was directed at Earth's oceans.

Uhura, can you modify

the probe signals

accounting for density

and temperature

and solidity factors?

I can try, sir.

I think I have it, sir.

This is what it would

sound like underwater?

Yes, sir.

Fascinating.

If my suspicion is correct,

there can be no response

to this message.

Excuse me.

Where are you going?

To test my theory.

Bones, you stay here.

No way.

Somebody's got to

keep an eye on him.

Spock?

As suspected.

The probe's transmissions

are the songs sung by whales.

Whales.

Specifically, humpback whales.

That's crazy.

Who would send a probe

hundreds of light-years

to talk to whales?

Whales have been on earth

far earlier than man.

10 million years earlier.

Humpbacks were

heavily hunted by man.

They've been extinct

since the 21st century.

It's possible that

an alien intelligence

sent the probe to determine

why they lost contact.

My God.

Spock...

could the humpback's

answer to this call

be simulated?

The sounds, but not the language.

We'd be responding in gibberish.

Does the species exist

on any other planet?

Negative.

Humpbacks were indigenous to Earth,

Earth of the past.

Well...

We have no choice.

We must destroy the probe

before it destroys earth.

That would be futile.

The probe could render us

neutral easily.

We can't just turn away.

There must be an alternative.

There is one possibility,

but I cannot guarantee success.

We could attempt to find

some humpback whales.

You said there aren't any,

except on Earth of the past.

That is exactly what I said.

Well, in that case...

Now wait just a damn minute.

Spock...

start your computations

for time warp.

Bones, you come with me.

Red alert.

Red alert.

Red alert.

We need that power

to keep medical

facilities functioning.

All underground

storage systems

have been shut down

due to contamination.

Red alert.

Red alert.

Hey, Tom, get those

steel plates in here!

Red alert.

Red alert.

Scotty, how long is this bay?

About 60 feet, Admiral.

Can you enclose it to hold water?

I suppose I could.

Planning to take a swim?

Off the deep end.

We've got to find some humpbacks.

Humpbacked people?

Whales, Mr. Scott. Whales.

About 45 to 50 feet long.

About 40 tons each.

You're trying time travel

in this rust bucket?

We've done it before.

Slingshot around the sun.

Don't pick up enough speed

and you're fried.

Prefer to do nothing?

I prefer common sense.

You're proposing that

we go backwards in time

to find humpback whales,

bring them forward in time,

and hope they tell this probe

what to do with itself.

That's the general idea.

That's crazy!

You have a better idea?

Now's the time.

Computations, Mr. Spock?

In progress, Admiral.

Uhura, get through

to Starfleet command.

I'm picking up a faint transmission.

I think it's Admiral Kirk calling.

Rate this script:0.0 / 0 votes