Star Trek: Discovery (TV Series)

The Vulcan Hello (2017)

Sonequa Martin-Green: Michael Burnham

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Quotes 

• Saru : Their hull is covered in hollow, ornamental metallic pods, thousands of them, tightly interlocked, forming a kind of... armor.

  Michael Burnham : Not the most efficent defense.

  Saru : I suspect its purpose is more symbolic than practical. They contain Klingon biological material in various states of decay. Remote dating is wildly divergent. Some bones date back thousands of years, others only hours old.

  Michael Burnham : Their entire ship is covered with coffins.

  Saru : Commander, the captain listens to you. Tell her. We must withdraw.

  Michael Burnham : I'm afraid that's no longer possible.

  Saru : Your world has food chains. Mine does not. Our species map is binary. We are either predator or prey. My people were hunted. Bred. Farmed. We are your livestock of old. We were biologically determined for one purpose and one purpose alone: to sense the coming of death. I sense it coming now.

• Captain Phillipa Georgiou : We can't lock onto it, and we don't have a shuttle maneuverable enough to navigate the ring.

  Michael Burnham : I'll go. All I need is a thruster pack.

  Saru : With the high levels of radiation kicking off those binaries, she'll have twenty minutes until her DNA starts to unravel like noodles.

  Michael Burnham : Like noodles? I'll be back in nineteen. A flyby.

  Saru : It seems a waste of the ship's resources. What will be gained?

  Michael Burnham : You do understand that being afraid of everything means you learn nothing. There's no opportunity to discover, to explore.

  Saru : And here I thought we were doing a deep-space communication relay audit.

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : You're both right. Saru, go with her.

  Michael Burnham , Saru : Captain!

  Michael Burnham : Best to keep variables to a minimum. I wouldn't want to put my colleague at risk.

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : And you, Mr. Saru, are you equally happy not to be put at risk?

  Saru : Oh, on any occasion, Captain.

• Captain Phillipa Georgiou : What's the mood outside?

  Michael Burnham : Saru is the only one talking. He strongly believes we should about-face.

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : There is a space station at Eagle-Twelve, three light-years away. The Andorian colony at Gamma Hydra is six. Shenzhou is the only line of defense if the Klingons attack.

  Michael Burnham : Not if. When.

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : I have to hope that whatever happens here can serve as a bridge between our civilizations.

  Michael Burnham : That's the diplomat in you talking. What does the soldier say?

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : Nothing good.

• Michael Burnham : Hello, Sarek. I'm happy to see you.

  Sarek : So many years. And still you allow emotional considerations to impede your logic.

  Michael Burnham : They inform my logic. I need your help.

  Sarek : I assume the timing of the call was not coincidental. The quadrant reports a new star in the sky. What have you done out there, on the edge of Federation space?

  Michael Burnham : We've encountered the Klingons.

  Sarek : How rare to meet one's own demons in the flesh.

  Michael Burnham : I killed one.

  Sarek : In light of the fact that they killed your parents, some might think that only fair. However, if a death was necessary, I am satisified it was not yours. I'm most certain you did not call me for emotional solace.

  Michael Burnham : We're facing off. No fire has been exchanged. But they didn't turn on that beacon until Starfleet was on its way to our position. I think they're summoning more of their kind.

  Sarek : An odd proposition, given that their empire has been in disarray for generations. But you are describing something out of the ordinary. Restraint in the face of conflict. When a civilization acts in opposition to is instincts, it may be under the influence of something, or someone, new. Great unifiers are few and far between, but they do come. Often, such leaders will need a profound cause for their followers to rally around.

  Michael Burnham : A war.

  Sarek : Be very careful that your assumptions are not being driven by your past.

  Michael Burnham : This isn't about what happened, Sarek. It's what's happening now. How did the Vulcans achieve diplomatic relations with the Klingons?

  Sarek : That is a solution particular to us. One cannot assume it would work on a ship commanded by humans.

  Michael Burnham : Sarek... please.

  Sarek : I caution you, be considered with how you use this information. You cannot save lives that have already been lost.

  Michael Burnham : Tell me. How did you keep the Klingons at bay?

• Michael Burnham : Captain, we have to fire on them. Hit that ship with everything we've got.

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : Absolutely not. They haven't powered weapons. They don't appear to pose an imminent threat.

  Michael Burnham : The Klingon threat is always imminent and inevitable.

  Kamran Gant : Tactical log's ready.

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : Thank you, Mr. Gant. I'd like to remind you, we're wildly outgunned.

  Michael Burnham : 240 years ago, near H'Atoria, a Vulcan ship crossed into Klingon space. The Klingons attacked immediately. They destroyed the vessel. Vulcans don't make the same mistake twice. From then on, until formal relations were established, whenever the Vulcans crossed paths with Klingons, the Vulcans fired first. They said "hello" in a language the Klingons understood. Violence brought respect. Respect brought peace. Captain, we have to give the Klingons a Vulcan "hello".

• Michael Burnham : First officer's log, stardate 1207.3. On Earth, it's May 11, 2256, a Sunday. The crew of the U.S.S. Shenzhou has been called to the edge of Federation space to investigate damage done to one of our interstellar relays. Blast burns around the hole are inconclusive. Were they caused by an asteroid, or was it deliberately destroyed to limit Starfleet communications? And if so, by whom? Despite the risks of our mission, I remain optimistic. It's hard not to be in the face of such beauty - in this case, a binary star system. Around these two suns, ice, dust, and gasses collide to form planets future generations will call home. A humbling reminder that all life is born from chaos and destruction.

• Michael Burnham : Your chief science officer is worried. Something took a bite out of our relay. Saru thinks it was malicious.

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : Saru's Kelpien; he thinks everything's malicious. What do you think? Any idea what it is?

  Michael Burnham : By all indications, nothing intelligent.

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : But?

  Michael Burnham : Starfleet's reputation for tech hygiene is exemplary. When a relay goes down, the Federation sends a ship to fix it.

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : You think someone's trying to get our attention?

  Michael Burnham : If they are, they have.

• Saru : I have taken the initiative of keeping us at maximum scanning distance in case of anything threatening out there, Captain.

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : Yes. Number One tells me you suspect foul play.

  Saru : Despite the first officer's constant need to dismiss my ideas...

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : She apparently agrees with you.

  Saru : Really?

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : I'm shocked, as well. Ensign Connor, agreement between my senior officers. Note the date and time.

  Danby Connor : Noted, Captain.

  Michael Burnham : Is this amount of sarcasm always necessary?

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : Necessary? No. But I do like it.

• Michael Burnham : I can't remember who said sculptures are crystallized spirituality. Headlamp.

  [the lamp on her biosuit turns on] 

  Michael Burnham : But I see what they meant. This is Burnham in the blind. I'm above the object, which is old. Centuries old. It's difficult to tell if it was constructed or carved. The only word to effectively describe it is... wow.

• Captain Phillipa Georgiou : Number One, you should be in sickbay.

  Michael Burnham : What... have they made contact?

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : Who's "they"?

  Michael Burnham : There are Klingons out there. We need to go to red alert.

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : Michael. Almost no one has seen a Klingon in a hundred years.

  Michael Burnham : I have. One attacked me on that object. Check my helmet cam.

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : The footage was corrupted.

  Saru : Internal sensors show that the commander has entered the bridge in an irradiated state. Without immediate treatment, her condition will most certainly be terminal.

  Michael Burnham : He was warrior caste. His... his EV suit bore a Klingon house insignia.

  Saru : She also has a grade-three concussion.

  Michael Burnham : I am not delusional. This has nothing to do with a concussion. Phillipa... there are Klingons.

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : Red alert.

• Michael Burnham : The ideal outcome for any Klingon interaction is battle. They're relentlessly hostile, sir. It's in their nature.

  Brett Anderson : The Federation and the Klingon Empire have always been on the cold side of war. We've had only fleeting run-ins with them for a century. And now you presume to know their motivation because it is "in their nature"? Considering your background, I would think you're the last person to make assumptions based on race.

  Michael Burnham : With respect, it would be unwise to confuse race and culture.

• Michael Burnham : We come in peace, that's why we're here. Isn't that the whole idea of Starfleet?

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : Hey, I taught you that.

  Michael Burnham : You don't trust me, Captain?

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : I trust you with my life, Commander Burnham, but it doesn't change the fact that you're lost. Very lost.

  Michael Burnham : Technically, we would be lost.

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : How long until that storm comes crashing down on us?

  Michael Burnham : I estimate one hour, seventeen minutes, twenty-two seconds. Which is why I've made sure we're not lost.

• Saru : Based on initial readings, I would say the relay doesn't appear to have been damaged naturally. I don't like the look of that.

  Michael Burnham : Well, keep looking.

  Saru : Well, the comment was figurative; I'm expressing concern.

  Michael Burnham : Finish your scans so you can express facts instead.

• Captain Phillipa Georgiou : Tell me what happened.

  Michael Burnham : He ambushed me. I hit my thruster pack to get away. I somehow knocked him into his blade. I killed him. But that object could be hiding a Klingon raiding party, obsucred behind that scattering field.

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : If there are Klingons in this sector, they may be responsible for the damage to our relay.

  Saru : If there are Klingons in this sector, we should withdraw immediately.

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : This is Federation space. Retreat is not an option. Whatever is over there needs to show itself. If it's hiding Klingons, we've got to flush them out.

• Saru : Something is scanning us. They've detected our weapons signature.

  Michael Burnham : Wait.

  [on the viewscreen, a Klingon warbird decloaks] 

  Danby Connor : No warp signatures detected, Captain.

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : Then where did they come from? Mr. Gant, disengage phase cannon targeting. Number One, get to sickbay. I need you fixed up and back on the bridge, stat. Mr. Januzzi, contact Starfleet Command. Send an encoded message. Tell them we have engaged the Klingons.

• [last lines] 

  Danby Connor : Captain! Incoming! Warp signatures detected.

  Captain Phillipa Georgiou : Is it Starfleet?

  Michael Burnham : No. Those ships are Klingon.