STAR TREK: DISCOVERY
SEASON 4, EPISODE 3

Choose to Live

Series: Star Trek: Discovery - (2017 - 2024)
Season: 4
Episode #: 3
Original Airdate: December 2nd, 2021

Writer(s): Terri Hughes Burton
Director(s): Christopher J. Byrne

Guest Stars
Oded Fehr as Fleet Admiral Charles Vance
Ian Alexander as Gray Tal
Chelah Horsdal as Federation President Laira Rillak
Ayesha Mansur Gonsalves as J'Vini
Tara Rosling as T'Rina
Sonja Sohn as Gabrielle Burnham

Co-Stars
Emily Coutts as Lt. Cmdr. Keyla Detmer
Ronnie Rowe Jr. as Lt. Cmdr. R.A. Bryce
David Benjamin Tomlinson as Ltjg. Linus
Khalil Abdul-Malik as the Commander Patrick Fickett
Andreas Apergis as Guardian Xi
Mimi Cote as Qowat Milat Nun
Luca Doulgeris as Leto
Ache Hernandez as Kyheem
Giovanni Spina as Provost Sta'Kiar

Uncredited Guest Stars
Victoria Goodman as a U.S.S. Credence Officer
Phi Huynh as a U.S.S. Credence Officer
Mike Joseph as a U.S.S. Credence Officer

Stardate: Unknown

Synopsis

As the U.S.S. Credence prepares to deliver a shipment of dilithium, masked assailants beam aboard in an effort to steal the precious cargo. The Starfleet officers resist, and one of the intruders utters the immortal words of the Qowat Milat: “Please, my friend, choose to live.” The deadly phrase does not deter the Credence’s first officer, who is killed by the Qowat Milat’s blade.

In a briefing at Federation HQ, Admiral Vance reveals that this was the fourth theft perpetrated by J’Vini, one of Ni’Var’s warrior nuns, and that a tracker hidden in the latest shipment has supplied her location. At the request of Federation President Rillak and her counterpart T’Rina, who each express a hope that Ni’Var will soon be reunited with the Federation, Vance agrees to a joint Starfleet-Qowat Milat mission, led by Captain Burnham and her mother Gabrielle, to capture J'Vini.

On Discovery, Sylvia Tilly confers with Saru about her counseling sessions with Dr. Culber, who recommended that she try to get out of her comfort zone. Down in engineering, Stamets researches his new theory that the gravitational anomaly, which the astromycologist nicknames a Dark Matter Anomaly (DMA), is a primordial wormhole. Accompanied by Book, Stamets plans to consult with the Ni’Var Science Institute in an attempt to confirm his theory.

As Gray’s synth body is completed in sickbay, Guardian Xi arrives virtually, warning that Gray’s consciousness could be lost during the incorporation. The unjoining turns out to be a success, but neither Xi nor Adira can sense Gray’s presence in his synthetic form. Leaning on his counseling skills, Dr. Culber distracts Adira by taking them to a lounge to play darts. There, Saru and Culber chat about the doctor’s role as both chief surgeon and counselor.

[ Screencap Index ]

At Saru’s recommendation, Captain Burnham elects to bring Tilly along on the mission to capture J'Vini, who is identified as the Qowat Milat who nursed Gabrielle Burnham back to health when she originally arrived in the future. Just before the team beams down to a small moon, J'Vini’s mercenaries infiltrate the ship, initiating a fierce sword fight. The invaders are killed, as is a Qowat Milat sister, and J'Vini appears briefly to warn Gabrielle not to pursue her. Of course, Captain Burnham opts not to heed the threat and beams to the rogue Qowat Milat’s underground hideaway with her mother and Tilly. Gabrielle argues that J'Vini has bound herself to a lost cause. A dead alien is found in the crypt-like cavern, but the team soon realizes that the moon is actually a massive ship when the stolen dilithium is activated.

Back on Ni’Var, Stamets shows frustration when his colleagues from the planet’s science institute retreat into meditative states to contemplate the DMA data. President T’Rina approaches Book, recognizing the Kwejian’s guilt over the loss of his family. Ni’Var’s scientists eventually stir, concluding that the absence of tachyons near the DMA disprove Stamets’ theory that it is a primordial wormhole.

As Tilly powers down the moon’s propulsion system, Michael notices glyphs that indicate the planetoid was used to escape a supernova. As she and her mother look out over the cavern, they realize that the fleeing aliens remain alive in cryostasis. Gabrielle believes protecting the cocoons from grave robbers is the cause to which J'Vini has bound herself.

On the planetoid ship, J'Vini finds Tilly sabotaging the dilithium storage pods and engages in a duel with Gabrielle. J'Vini bests her Qowat Milat sister, but Michael offers a solution: she will fix the cryo chambers, permitting the sleeping aliens, known as Abronians, to inherit their new home world. Captain Burnham fulfills her promise, granting J'Vini the ability to surrender herself into custody. Before leaving the moon, the four women watch as the Abronians awaken and begin traveling down to the planet.

At the Ni’Var Science Institute, President T’Rina mind melds with Book to see if the Kwejian witnessed any tachyon-related effects during his planet’s destruction. While no indications of tachyons were found, Book experiences an important moment in his recovery when he remembers that, in his last visit with Leto, his nephew looked back at him and knew that his uncle loved him.

Aboard Book’s ship, Gabrielle advises Tilly about the different paths people follow throughout their lives, further underlining the uncertainty the Starfleet lieutenant has been feeling. In a political maneuver, Admiral Vance remands J'Vini into Ni’Var’s custody. In sickbay, Gray awakes in his synth body and enjoys a loving reunion with Adira, whose guidance proved vital in their partner’s capacity to find his way home. Elsewhere on the ship, Michael finds Book in her quarters, watching a holo of Kwejian’s forest. The recovered memory of Leto has brought Book some closure, even prompting him to begin wearing his family amulet once again.

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