♪ ♪
♪
- Isaac!
- Isaac...?
♪ ♪
- Hey, Isaac. Am I interrupting your work?
Yes.
- Okay, let me rephrase.
We want to run a ship-wide systems check for the refit.
Means a temporary shutdown.
- Do you have a durational estimate?
- Half hour? Sorry to kick you outta your lab.
- This facility is here for the use
of all science and engineering personnel.
- No, I know.
We just all feel like you sort of look at this as like your quarters.
Anyway, I'll try to make it quick.
Why don't you get a drink or something?
- I do not drink.
- It was a joke.
- Ha, ha.
Ha.
- What?
- Is that not the correct response to a joke?
- No. No, not really.
- I will leave you to your work.
May I join you?
- Sure.
- Hey.
Sorry, that was a little harsh.
- I have noticed the tendency of crew members in the mess hall
to relocate when I approach.
- Yeah. I think they're all just still getting used to the idea
that you're staying on board.
- A reasonable assessment.
- Pancakes?
- I do not consume food.
- Oh, right. Of course.
Me, I can't get enough of these things. Favorite food since I was a kid.
I'd eat 'em every meal if I could. Just butter, though.
No syrup, no fruit.
People think that's kinda weird.
Does it... feel bad at all
when people avoid you?
- The behavioral pattern is fascinating to observe,
but the emotional response is beyond my capability.
- That's a shame.
- Indeed. It would be most informative.
- You were deactivated during the battle, weren't you?
- Yes.
- I'm sure people have told you about it.
- I have processed all available information from the ship's database,
including a strategic timeline of the event.
- "The event"?
I'll tell you a story anyway.
I was on the USS Quimby.
- The Quimby was destroyed.
- Yeah.
I was with our junior astrometrics officer at the time.
She was helping me with an emergency reset of the navigational computer.
She was an amazing woman.
Really great at her job.
And she also happened to be my best friend.
Her name was Amanda.
When we got the order to abandon ship,
we made for the nearest escape pod.
♪ ♪
We strapped in, but when we initiated the launch, nothing happened.
- What's wrong? - I don't know.
The sequencing mechanism is jammed.
We knew one of us was gonna have to launch manually.
I'll go. - No, Charly, I will do it!
- No, I wanna go! - I will do it, Charly!
Listen to me! Goddamn it, Charly, listen to me!
It's okay!
It's okay.
The look in her eyes.
There was no argument.
One second she was there...
and the next, she was gone.
Along with 300 other people.
Because of you.
So you see,
it really is a shame that you can't feel anything.
Because you deserve to feel all the pain in the universe.
And if I were you, I'd stay the hell out of the mess hall.
It makes people sick to look at you.
♪ ♪
- Have they recalibrated the forward navigational scanners?
- No, but Commander Lamarr said that's next on the list.
- I hope he's taken at least one night off in the last three weeks.
Gordon, why don't you take him out tonight, get him wasted?
- Is that an order, sir? - It is.
- I enjoy this job, sir.
Keyali to Captain.
- Go ahead.
Can you and Commander Grayson come to the astrophysics lab?
There's... something you need to see.
- We're on our way.
- Who did this? - We don't know.
Whoever it was did a DNA scrub.
Usually the case in these kinds of incidents.
- Who's been in here in the past few hours?
To my knowledge, only Commander Lamarr.
- I think we can rule that one out. Anyone else?
- Everything was shut down while John was running his systems check.
So there's no way to tell.
- What about the paint?
- We checked the logs.
Whoever replicated it used a mid-level systems access code,
but there's no ID.
We think it was stolen.
- Talla, how the hell... - I have no idea how,
but I've reissued all-new access codes to everyone with clearance,
and I'm investigating the source of the leak.
I'm sorry, sir, this is on me.
- Just get it fixed, okay? - I will.
But, sir, there's something else I think I should tell you.
- What?
- I was in the mess hall earlier and...
there was an incident.
- What do you mean?
Isaac came in, sat down,
and every crewman at the table got up and left.
The only one who stayed was Ensign Burke.
And she said some pretty rough things to him.
- Like what? - Like he deserved to feel pain.
And he should stay out of the mess hall.
- Isaac, is this true?
Yes, Commander.
It is a frequent occurrence during my interactions
with other crew members.
- Frequent? For how long?
- Ever since I was reinstated.
- You've been getting harassed by the crew and you haven't said anything?
- I would remind you, Commander,
that I am incapable of being hurt by such hostile interactions.
In fact, it has provided me with an opportunity
to observe an intriguing facet of human comportment
I have not previously encountered.
- Hatred. Correct, sir.
The behavioral data has been quite plentiful.
- Ensign Burke. Please report to my office.
- Captain, I understand how this looks,
but I swear to you on my honor, I did not write that.
- Do you have any idea who did?
- No. I haven't been in the lab since the refit began.
You have to believe me.
- Well, you're a Union officer who's given us your word.
I believe you.
But I'm very concerned about what I heard from Talla.
Look, the subject of Isaac is obviously complex.
But what she described needs to be addressed.
- Permission to speak freely, sir?
- Granted.
- You have a big problem.
- Go on.
- A whole lot of people aboard this ship are still angry that you reinstated Isaac.
And I mean angry.
- I'm aware of that.
- And just about every member of this crew
knows at least one person who died in the battle with the Kaylon.
And the number's usually higher.
Friends, colleagues, family...
And the fact that he just sits on that bridge every single day
as if nothing happened is a kick in the teeth to every single one of them.
- You don't think he should've been reactivated?
- No. I don't.
- Even though he was also the one who saved us.
- Too little, too late.
And on top of that, how do you know he isn't carrying some sleeper program
just waiting to fire up and take over the ship?
People are scared, Captain.
Your crew is scared.
- It's heresy for a captain to admit something like this,
but I don't know that you're wrong.
I made this decision, and I'm still not sure it was the right one.
But regardless of the ethical question,
there's a more pragmatic reason that Isaac is still onboard.
We barely fought off the Kaylon without losing our entire fleet.
Next time, we might not be so lucky.
Isaac is the only person who might be able to help us devise
a potent enough defense that we can all feel secure again.
- And we'll have him to thank for that security?
Will it be worth it?
- Dismissed.
- I think I better start working up a plan to improve morale.
- How? - No clue.
I'll organize a talent show if I have to, but we gotta nip this in the bud.
♪ ♪
- All right, let's get started. Don't leave nothin' but the bones.
- What about the deflector synch manifold?
- Yup, all of it.
- Sir, it's brand-new.
- It was brand-new a year ago.
The upgrade makes it look like a lawnmower.
- Whatever you say.
All right, guys, let's rip it out.
- Oh, that's great, you're ahead of schedule.
- Hey, you know, everybody's asking when we get to see the new Pterodon?
- Gordon's gonna be bringing it in any minute.
- Malloy to Orville, request permission to dock.
Permission granted.
- Much obliged.
- Man, would you look at that?
- Definitely worth the wait.
♪
- Wow! Look at this gorgeous girl.
I'm in love. - Wait'll you see how she handles.
It's like she's psychic.
Knows your next move even before you make it.
- Yeah, I bet.
- Soon as Isaac does his calibration, we'll be ready for shakedown.
- You're gonna let him get his dirty hands on this beauty?
- It's just... standard procedure.
Charly, I heard about your little talk with the Captain.
- Yeah, it's... it's all good. Movin' on.
- You know, I haven't been too public about this,
but if it makes you feel better... I'm with you.
- What do you mean?
- I don't think Isaac should've been reinstated.
Whether he was reactivated or not, he doesn't belong on that bridge.
Whenever I'm on duty, I feel like I have to force myself
to actively ignore it.
- I don't think you should ignore it.
- There's not much else to do.
- Yeah, there is.
You acknowledge that he's there and you... stay angry.
- I guess I'm not that masochistic.
- I mean, maybe one day we'll wake up and he'll be gone.
In the meantime, I say embrace the masochism...
and... listen to the ghosts.
Dysonium flow rates have been improved by a factor of .28
over preexisting performance standards.
- Damn, that's a lotta kick.
- Indeed. Maximum velocity has been increased by 56%.
Might be time for helmets and seat belts.
Isaac?
Hello, Doctor.
Hello, Ty.
- Hi, Isaac.
- May I assist you in some way?
- We were just checking in.
Seeing how you are.
- How... I am?
- After what happened in the lab?
- Lieutenant Keyali has not yet determined the origin of the message.
- I know, I just...
Some of us were pretty rattled by it, and I just thought maybe...
in your own way...
I mean...
How are you doing?
- I am functioning within normal parameters.
- Isaac?
I don't think you're a murderer.
- I thank you for your compliment.
♪ ♪
- Malloy to Orville. Pterodon is ready for shakedown.
- Okay, Lamarr, launch the birds.
- Aye, sir.
Transferring navigational control.
- Acknowledged.
Here we go.
♪
- Ha, ha!
- One target eliminated.
- C'mon, Charly, I could do this drunk.
- Yeah, well. I was trying to go easy on you.
Screw that.
I hear you can visualize four-dimensional geometries.
Let's see you prove it.
- Yessir, steppin' it up.
- Ho, ho! That's more like it.
- Two targets eliminated.
- Hoo!
- Okay, now you're gonna get it.
- Yes! - Three targets eliminated.
- Okay, buddy, this is it. Make it count.
- Dance class is now in session.
- Okay!
- Ensign. Don't scratch the paint.
- Wouldn't dream of it, sir.
- Come on.
Whoo! Nice touch.
- Yeah, well, I try to mix it up.
- Lamarr, what do you think?
- Specs are pristine. Obviously handles like a charm.
I say welcome to the family.
- Mercer to Malloy.
I think the Pterodon is officially a member of the crew.
Bring her in.
- Aye, sir.
Keyali to Grayson.
- Go ahead. We have something.
- Report.
- Lieutenant Peters was able to unscramble a line of code
from the synthesizer interface.
It was tricky, but we've managed to use it to reconstruct a chunk of the logs,
and we know who replicated the paint.
- Who? - Marcus Finn.
♪ ♪
- Go ahead, tell me it's not true.
Look me in my eye and tell me he's not a murderer.
- That's not the point, Marcus!
- Mom, are you listening to yourself? He lied, and wanted us dead!
It's that simple!
We let him into our family, and he pays us back by trying to kill us?
And let me ask you this:
Since you're so ready to forgive him, how come you guys aren't back together?
- I haven't just blindly forgiven him. Okay?
I'm struggling with this just like you are.
- If he's gonna stay onboard the Orville, I don't wanna be here.
- And where will you go?
- I'll go back to Earth, or wherever, I don't know.
But I don't wanna be here with him.
- Marcus, your family is here...
- Yeah, well, I have nightmares.
Did you know that?
I don't sleep anymore. And I have friends who don't either.
- Well, I want you and I to talk about that.
Alone.
But we also need to talk about the fact
that you used my access code to cover up an act of vandalism.
- Oh, vandalism! What a crime!
He kills thousands of people, and I'm the one in trouble?
This is bullshit.
- I think we can let it slide this time.
Long as it doesn't happen again.
- Marcus?
- Fine.
Claire to Isaac.
Yes, Doctor?
I, uh, need to talk to you for a minute.
Can you come to my office?
Affirmative. I will be there shortly.
- Ty. I'm trying to study. Can you give that thing a rest?
- I'm almost on level 40!
- That's great, can you do it in the other room?
♪ alert chimes ♪
Come in.
- Marcus. Can we talk with you?
- I just remembered, I'm supposed to study at Kyle's.
- Wait, Marcus.
Just give us a minute. Okay?
Ty, sweetie, could you leave us alone for a little bit?
- Why? - Ty, please.
- Okay.
- Isaac...
I am sorry to have caused you distress.
- What?
- I am sorry to have caused you distr...
- No, I heard you.
Is that what you think you did? Caused me distress?
- Your mother suggested that I apologize.
I am sorry.
Now that I have apologized,
may we resume standard social interaction?
- This entire ship wants you gone, you know that?
- Marcus, that is not true.
- Mom, just stop it. It's true and you know it.
I don't want you here, and neither does anyone else.
I wish you were dead.
Science station dispatch, designation 839 Isaac.
Quantum drive intermix chamber requires magnetic depolarization.
The rear scanner array will function with greater precision
if a transverse stabilization armature
is installed within the primary servo pallet.
A micro-shear damper at Commander Bortus' station
will result in improved tactical response time during combat.
There is a .003% efficiency variance in the dysonium injectors,
which can be improved with the addition of a neutron coherence filter
or by reducing the impedance ratio during the next systems diagnostic.
Optical resolution in simulator two can be increased by 63%
with orthogonal multiplexing.
I offer my best wishes to the Finn family.
- The containment field strength has been increased by 27%,
and the quantum core stabilizers have a new inversion threshold of .986.
- That's huge.
Have you tested the integrity of the core isolation assembly?
- We have, yeah. It's rock solid.
- Well, I appreciate you giving your lunch in service of the Fleet.
- In theory, if we were to tap into the auxiliary power boost
we got last year from the Moclan upgrade,
the Orville's quantum drive is almost on par with a heavy cruiser.
Keyali to Captain.
- Go ahead.
We have an emergency.
Optical resolution in simulator two
can be increased by 63% with orthogonal multiplexing.
I offer my best wishes to the Finn family.
- How did this happen?
- This is an EM amplification module.
What it looks like is that Isaac used it
to force a narrow-band frequency spike in his central processor.
- Why?
- He was trying to shut it down.
- Shut down his own brain?
- And from what my scans are showing, he succeeded.
- Why the hell would he do that?
- Captain...
Isaac committed suicide.
- What?
- There's no other reason to do something like this.
- Can you revive him?
- The scans are showing complete systems failure,
so I'm gonna have to take him down to engineering.
If there's even a chance, Yaphit's gonna have to get in there.
- He's helped him before.
- What?
- When Isaac shut down before the battle, it was a generalized EM pulse.
Packed a heavy punch, but it was still just brute force.
This is...
Isaac was deliberate here.
He targeted his primary systems with precision.
It's like puncturing a seal with a nail instead of a hammer.
It's not as heavy, but the pressure's more focused.
- I had no idea things were this bad.
- How could he get to this place?
With no emotions.
- I never believed that.
We're seeing just how much he really felt.
What happened?
Can you help him?
- Claire, I'm... I'm sorry.
I mean, he knew what he was doing.
The pathways are all fried.
Even if we could power him up, his internal memory is shot.
He'd be an empty shell.
He's gone.
♪ ♪
♪ alert chimes ♪
- Marcus...?
Honey?
Look...
I know that you're awake.
I just...
want to know if you want to talk.
- I'm really tired, Mom.
- Are you okay?
- Yeah.
- I just hope you understand that Isaac made a choice.
It was the wrong choice, but it was his alone.
And it's important for... - Mom.
I'm really okay.
- Oh...
All right.
Hey.
- Did I ever tell you about the time I was on Dazheen Four?
- That was the big storm, wasn't it?
- Ionized dust.
We'd lost all communication with the shuttle for ten days,
and we only had enough water for a week.
When we finally ran out...
we'd put a pebble in our mouths to stimulate saliva.
Just like travelers crossing the desert during the frontier days.
A little pebble.
To wake up the glands and make them do their job.
That's what I need now.
- A pebble?
- Not for a dry mouth.
A dry mind.
I've been banishing all thoughts of Isaac for so long...
to ignore the impossible reconciliation
of who I knew him to be and this terrible thing that he did,
that now, when I need to feel something...
I can't.
I don't know how to wake up.
- Just because someone you love does a bad thing
doesn't mean you automatically stop loving them.
It's not that simple.
- This crew.
My kids. He nearly killed us all.
- But he didn't.
He turned against his own people to save us.
- After how many others had died?
How could you love someone like that?
- Do you?
Ed has a philosophy that the only way to recover from lost love
is to stay away from places where you've been happy.
Maybe you need to do the opposite.
Visit those places.
Find out what it is you're burying.
- And what if I find out that I still love him?
What do I greet that with?
Shame or acceptance?
And whichever it is, what am I supposed to do with it?
Either way...
I'm too late.
- I know that Isaac was not loved by all.
As a result of the choices he made in life,
he leaves behind a troublesome legacy.
From the very start,
like a tree whose branches are equaled in scope by its roots...
half visible, half hidden...
Isaac was part mystery.
He worked with us,
he explored with us,
he celebrated alongside us in victory,
and he grieved alongside us in failure.
And while Isaac never felt any of this on his own...
we felt it for him.
He was as passionate or as stoic
as we willed him to be in our minds.
And for that reason, I suppose each of us knew
a different Isaac.
And each of us will acknowledge this loss
as we see fit.
There's no wrong way to say goodbye.
- Hi, Mom.
Hello, Doctor.
- End simulation.
Ty.
Honey, what...
what are you doing?
- I wanted to talk to Isaac.
- I know, baby, we all do.
- The simulator can bring him back.
- No, Ty. It can't.
I know it's comforting, but it's not real.
The simulator is fun for games,
but you can't use it to bring back people you've lost.
- Why not?
- It can impede the healing process.
I've treated patients who've developed real problems using this room
to hold onto someone who's died.
I know you miss him.
And it's gonna be hard for a while.
But I promise...
it will get easier.
- When?
- Soon.
You'll see.
Ty!
Simulation Isaac-8443.
- Boom. That's it. Nice job, everyone.
- And in two-thirds of the time. We should all get big bonuses.
- Check's in the mail.
- Lamarr to bridge. Mercer here. Go ahead.
- We're all done out there.
Unless you want the windows tinted, that's it for the refit.
We can ship out on your order.
- I think we can do without the windows.
- Tell your team great work. Will do.
- Lieutenant Keyali, transmit systems report to dockyard
and request clearance for departure.
- Aye, sir.
- Ensign Burke. Set course bearing 74 mark 136.
- Course laid in, sir.
- Receiving confirmation from dockyard: all access ports are sealed.
Mooring clamps are primed for release.
We are cleared.
- Gordon, take us out.
- Aye, sir.
♪ ♪
- Engage quantum drive.
- You okay?
- Yeah, I think my hips are bleeding a little bit, but...
...other than that, I'm all good.
- Did you study Dakeeli biology or something?
- Nope.
- Well, you certainly seem to know your way around.
- Educated guess.
- Hmm.
So, it is true what they say about you.
- What do they say about me?
- That you like the ladies.
- I like this lady.
- Good answer.
And you know Dakeelians like a limahll stick after sex.
- Got one in the drawer.
You are really racking up the points.
Oh. Got a fork in here.
Are you hoarding from the mess hall?
- Nah, that, uh...
was a birthday gift, from Isaac.
- He got you a fork for your birthday?
- Yeah, Gordon was trying to explain birthdays to him.
The whole idea of presents and whatnot.
He just forgot to tell him the present should be
specifically picked out for the person.
Can't just be anything.
Isaac didn't know, so he, uh...
he gave me a fork.
We all thought it was hilarious, and...
I kept it.
- What are they gonna do with him?
- We're supposed to deliver him to Epsilon 2.
I guess the science team there wants to do some...
Kaylon research.
- Do you...
think he was wrong to do what he did?
To take his own life?
- Of course, I do.
- I've just noticed that a lot of the crew seem somber about it.
Even some of the people who hated him.
- Well, it's suicide.
It's a tough thing to process no matter who it is.
- On my homeworld, it's different.
- Different how?
- Well, it's accepted that no one makes the choice to exist.
And some feel that they were grabbed out of the void
and thrust into existence against their will.
Life isn't appealing to everyone.
Tastes vary.
So, when someone decides to end theirs, we see it as a personal decision.
- What happens if you change your mind after the fact?
- That's never happened. - That's my point.
- Okay, well, don't get mad, I'm just trying to tell you how it is on Dakeel.
- No, I'm not mad, it's just... It seems insane.
A personal decision is whether to shave your beard or not.
And even if you do, it'll grow back.
- Why don't you let me shave your beard,
and then I can work my way down from there? Hmm?
Okay, it was a joke.
- It's just... It's just, what you're telling me is messed up.
At least where I'm from.
- On my planet, the memory of others commands the highest respect.
Not even death can touch it.
So someday, if I die first,
you just make sure to keep me nestled in that pretty little head of yours,
and I will always be with you.
What's wrong?
I'm sorry, I didn't mean to rattle you.
- Stay as long as you want.
- John!
- Commander? Everything okay? - I don't know yet!
♪
Anybody got a weapon?
A weapon!
Unk!
Hey, Unk!
Unk!
Step on that for me.
Step on it hard. Smash it.
It's too small to be seen with the naked eye, but it's there.
- How did you find it?
- Well, way back in the days of the early computers,
the programmers would sometimes bury a code deep inside the system,
something that only they knew about,
in case they wanted to get back in later on.
I thought maybe the Kaylon might've done something similar.
Essentially a "backup consciousness."
- So he could still be in there somewhere.
- It's possible. Think about the human brain.
It's packed with redundancies that have evolved over billions of years.
It's like a Rube Goldberg contraption.
- And the Kaylon brain was designed by intelligent beings.
It would have to be more efficient.
Maybe with deliberate redundancies.
- Wouldn't Isaac have accounted for that when he killed himself?
- Maybe, maybe not.
Could be he thought we'd never be able to activate it.
Or... he didn't know about it himself.
- With Isaac, it seems more likely he'd bet on our tiny brains
missing it altogether.
- Here's the thing: The storage cell has been exposed.
It was the only way I could get at it.
I have it in a stasis field right now, but if there's any kind of a power surge
or gravitational anomaly, it could destabilize it.
We've been lucky so far, but if we want to do something, it's gotta be soon.
- You mean revive him?
This is subatomic technology.
The ship's computer would have to do that, right?
- That's exactly why it can't.
This is way smaller than the smallest nanotech we have.
I wouldn't trust the computer to stay ahead of any surprises.
What we need is the intuitive power of a biological brain,
along with the visualization capacity to work in multiple dimensions.
- Charly...
- If it was anyone other than you,
I'd suspect this was some kind of sick joke.
- Look, I know this isn't easy,
but you have a gift that comes along maybe once in a generation.
No one else has your capacity for dimensional visualization.
So I am asking for your help.
- We have a dead Kaylon.
And you want me to help bring him back to life?
- Yes.
- Okay, how 'bout this:
I'll do it if he can bring back Amanda. Deal?
- Look, Ensign, try to see...
- No. No way.
I'm sorry, Captain, but I'm not gonna do it.
He's dead and he deserves to be dead.
- He was a member of this crew.
Some would say that makes you duty-bound.
- Yeah, some would say.
- So your willingness to assist a fellow crewman
depends on your personal feelings at the time?
- It depends on whether they've murdered people I know, yeah.
Other than that, I'm happy to help.
- Look, Isaac is our only link to the Kaylon...
- With all due respect, Captain,
I don't know what you think you're gonna get out of him...
some secret Kaylon code that changes the entire game?
It hasn't happened!
What has happened is that they've killed thousands of people!
- All right, so be better than they are!
Show the galaxy that humans are different,
that we value life, even when our enemies don't!
- Do you think Amanda would agree?
- You know, Charly,
you're not the only one who lost friends in that battle.
And I'm really sorry that you did, and I'm sorry that I did,
but this thing you do,
where you act like you have some kind of a monopoly on grief,
is starting to wear a little thin.
Now, I am imploring you to do this.
Will you help?
Report!
- It just dropped out of quantum, sir!
They caught us by surprise.
- Evasive maneuvers! Get us outta here!
- Kaylon ship is pursuing.
- 800,000 kilometers and closing.
- Burke, how far are we from the Phycor system?
- Approximately 5.9 light-years.
- Gordon, hang a right. - On it.
- Can you take us into the atmosphere?
- Detecting cyclonic storms in the thermosphere, 900 KPH.
- Captain, that's a lotta weather down there.
- Kaylon ship is dropping out of quantum.
- Mercer to Lamarr.
Divert all available power to the deflectors.
- Aye, sir.
- Gordon, take us in.
- Deflectors are being drained at 17% per minute, Captain.
- The Kaylon are not pursuing.
- They don't have to, these storms are gonna do their job for them.
- Lamarr, report!
I can reroute auxiliary power to the deflectors,
but I can't protect the stasis field.
If we lose it...
- Are the Kaylon still out there? - Affirmative.
- How many torpedoes do we have?
- Twenty-six.
- Gather them all up, load 'em onto a shuttle.
- Sir? - Just do it.
- Aye, sir.
- Submarine warfare? - Exactly.
♪
Torpedoes are aboard, sir.
- Launch shuttle, remote guidance. Position two kilometers off port.
- Aye, sir.
Shuttle in position. - Target the shuttle and fire.
- Sir, the Kaylon have gone to quantum.
- Gordon! - On it.
- Stand down red alert.
- Bridge to Bortus. Decoy successful. Well done.
Captain, we got a problem.
The stasis field was knocked out by the storm,
and the storage cell's degrading.
If we don't do this in the next couple hours,
we're gonna lose Isaac for good.
- Ensign Burke.
- Sir.
- Please report to engineering and assist Lamarr.
That's an order.
- I'm afraid I can't do that, sir.
- You're relieved of duty.
Hey...
- Hey.
- I'm Marcus. I'm Dr. Finn's son.
- Yeah, I've seen you around.
Charly Burke.
Sorry I haven't introduced myself. I haven't been on board that long.
- No, it's okay.
- I did hear about what happened in the lab.
- Oh... Yeah.
- Sounds like we have something in common.
So...
What can I do for you?
Or did you just want to meet the girl who got fired?
- Well...
I wanted to ask
if you could please help Isaac.
- Help him? - Yeah.
- Why do you want to help Isaac?
- Because...
I'm the reason he killed himself.
- What... makes you think that?
- I told him...
I told him I wished he was dead.
- Oh, man...
Marcus...
When somebody takes their own life...
it's nobody's fault.
- I said it to his face.
And I meant it.
I mean,
at the time I did.
- It's human instinct to look for someone or something to blame
when this happens.
Suicide is pointless.
So we...
try to fill in the blanks.
Even if it means betraying ourselves.
- Are you glad he's dead?
- I think...
when anyone dies...
it's a tragedy.
- But are you glad?
- Yes.
I am.
But you don't want to be like me.
You don't wanna carry that around inside you.
Not at your age.
It's not your fault.
- I hated him.
I just...
I didn't really want him to die.
Picking up activity at the quantum level.
His system matrix is registering environmental stimuli.
Alpha theta transients are stabilizing.
Internal power cells are reconforming.
I think we got him.
- Hang on. Phase-matching the autonomic and cognitive neural interfaces.
- Can I lock it in? - Stand by.
This is like catching a swarm of bees with a net.
If one gets loose...
Wait.
There. Okay. Lock it.
Isaac.
Are you okay?
I am in engineering.
- Here's that genius brain. We missed you, buddy.
- I do not understand.
Was the narrowband pulse ineffective?
- It was effective. We just brought you back.
- Actually... Charly did.
- Please explain.
- Captain. Permission to return to duty.
- Granted.
- I didn't do it for you.
- How are you feeling?
- Commander Lamarr has verified that my internal systems
are functioning within standard parameters.
- I mean you.
How are you feeling?
- I do not understand the inquiry.
- Isaac...
my training is in biological psychiatry.
There's no precedent
for the psychoanalysis of an artificial lifeform.
But we have to try anyway.
Why did you do it?
- I have determined that my presence aboard the Orville has,
since the resolution of the Earth conflict,
been largely detrimental to the operation of this vessel.
I have caused great distress to a majority of the crew.
This has no doubt reduced their efficiency by a significant percentage.
My deactivation was intended to restore maximum operational output
aboard the Orville.
- And that's it?
- Correct.
- Did any small part of you do it
because you felt the sting of being ostracized?
- Negative. I am incapable of...
- I-I-I know, I know, I just...
I'm looking for a way in.
- Please clarify.
- Damn it, Isaac, you tried to kill yourself!
And I need to know that you're not gonna do it again!
- There is no reason to surmise
that crew efficiency will improve without my deactivation.
- Okay.
Uh...
I can see we need to do this more logically.
Do you accept my status as primary authority
when it comes to the psychological well-being of this crew?
- Yes.
- And do you acknowledge, when it comes to human behavior,
that my judgment as a medical professional is superior to yours?
- Yes.
- Then it is only logical for you to accept my assertion
that the psychological damage to this crew
would be much greater if you succeeded in taking your own life.
- Your reasoning is sound.
- Isaac...
you arrived at your decision based on your analysis
of all currently available data.
But what you didn't take into account is the possibility of change.
You don't know how this crew is going to feel
a year or even a month from now.
- I did not apply that data, as it is unavailable at this time.
- That's my point!
People who try to take their own lives
are unable to distinguish the future from the present.
There is no problem so immense that it can't be solved in time.
- It would appear so.
How soon shall I expect this change among the crew?
- You're a Kaylon.
Your people would like to see us all dead.
But you're also a person, and you're here with us.
And it's a lot harder to hate from up close.
Look...
I just need to know that you're going to be safe.
If at any time in the future you have these thoughts,
you come to me!
Do you promise?
- I... promise.
- Good.
- Has our session concluded?
- I guess it has.
Isaac.
I'm glad you're still here.
- Thank you, Doctor.
♪
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