Descent ( episode ) The Borg begin a new offensive against the Federation , but this time they ' re acting as individuals ; Data experiences his first emotions while fighting them . ( " Season finale " ) Summary . Teaser . Data is playing cards on the holodeck with simulations of Isaac Newton , Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking . They engage in a conversation about the curvature of space - time and the " apple story " . Hawking has just laid down a winning hand of four sevens when Riker calls for red alert . The responds to a distress call from Ohniaka III , an outpost with little strategic value . The " Enterprise " arrives to find a mysterious ship in orbit . An away team consisting of Riker , Worf , Data , and security officer Corelki find that all personnel on the station are dead and it appears that whoever was responsible for the attacks was specifically interested in their deaths . Data overrides a control panel , causing a door to open and revealing that the attackers are the Borg . Act One . In the ensuing battle , the away team notice a marked difference in Borg behavior when compared to earlier encounters . Most notably , one Borg , Bosus , expressed sympathy for another by name , Torsus , after it is killed by the away team , promising that he would make the away team " suffer " for the death of his comrade , and referring to himself with the singular pronoun " I " . In a similar unusual display , after a Borg kills Corelki and attacks Data , Data becomes uncharacteristically enraged and brutally kills a Borg in hand - to - hand combat . The engagement ends shortly afterward and the Borg transport out . Picard orders pursuit , but the Borg vessel disappears through a subspace distortion . La Forge will need time to understand the method used , so they go back to the planet . Following the Borg ' s departure , Data reveals to Riker that he had genuinely felt anger , and is stunned . Act Two . Later , in a briefing in the observation lounge , Riker describes the marked differences in Borg behavior as compared to their previous encounters . The Borg were more aggressive , emphasizing destruction over assimilation , and Riker compares their behavior to that of Klingon s rather than the Borg they had encountered in the past . Worf notes furthermore that they demonstrated facets of individuality rather than a collective consciousness , in referring to themselves in the singular " I " over the plural " we " , as well as their concern for their dead comrade . It is hypothesized that the developments of named Borg and assertions of individuality may be tied to the influence of the Borg Hugh , who developed a sense of individuality after being rescued by the crew in 2368 . Later , Admiral Alynna Nechayev arrives on the and assigns the " Enterprise " to head a three - ship contingent of a fifteen - ship task force in the sector , consisting of the " Enterprise " , the , and the . Nechayev berates Picard for having sent Hugh back to the Borg when they had a chance to destroy the Collective in one swift stroke . Despite Picard ' s insistence that Hugh ' s budding individuality had ethically compelled him to respect his desire to return to the Collective , she demands it would be better for Picard to safeguard Federation citizens rather than submit to his own feelings in the future . Meanwhile , Data is trying to make sense of the emotion he felt earlier . He speaks with La Forge and Troi about his recent feelings of rage , and begins to fear that negative emotions are the only ones he is capable of feeling , despite all attempts to elicit other positive emotions through experimentation . Troi assures him that feelings of anger are natural , and are not to be suppressed . However , what most worries Data is that he felt pleasure after killing the Borg on Ohniaka III , which in turn worries Troi as well . Act Three . After sixteen hours of patrol , the " Enterprise " had no further Borg encounters , though tension still ran high on board and throughout the surrounding sector , causing at least one false alarm from the New Berlin Colony . During this time , analysis of the subspace distortion through which the rogue Borg ship escaped is revealed as an " artificially - created energy conduit " , which later becomes labeled as a transwarp conduit . Picard reviewed mission recordings of Hugh ' s experiences on the " Enterprise " , and revealed to Riker an ounce of regret and second thoughts over sending Hugh back to the Collective . Though Riker maintains it was the moral thing to do , Picard is still fighting with himself over whether it was the right thing to do , given that Hugh presented the opportunity to destroy the Collective before it had caused further destruction . La Forge later joins Data in a holodeck simulation of his experience with the Borg , wherein he tries to recreate the emotional response it had generated on the outpost . Despite multiple attempts , Data tells him that he has not been able to duplicate the sensation , repeatedly and dispassionately killing the simulated Borg while increasing its strength with each failure . Data then asks La Forge if he could help him deactivate the safety protocol s on the holodeck in order to augment the Borg ' s strength to dangerous levels . While La Forge refuses to let him put his life on the line for a theory , Data genuinely believes it will allow him to answer his questions of emotion that he has sought throughout his entire life . Data asserts his ownership over his life , and that he can risk it if he chooses , but despite compassion La Forge refuses . Shortly afterward , the " Enterprise " receives a distress call from the MS I colony , and immediately responds . The " Enterprise " gives chase to the Borg vessel , and is pulled into the transwarp conduit as it attempts to flee the system . Act Four . As the " Enterprise " exits the conduit her shields are down significantly . With a single Borg weapons shot , shields are down completely and two Borg transport aboard the bridge . After succeeding in killing security officer , the Borg are neutralized , though in the diversion the Borg vessel was able to escape . This incident further compounds the differences in Borg behavior for the " Enterprise " crew , notably in that the disabled Borg were left behind instead of vaporizing them , as had been done on previous occasions . One of the Borg survives , and during his interrogation it reveals that he does not have a designation , but a name : " Crosis " , given to him by an individual referred to as " the one " , and , " the one who will destroy [ them ] " . Picard argues with him on this emphasis of destruction , that it is the purpose of the Borg to assimilate rather than destroy . However , Crosis reveals that the " modus operandi " of these particular Borg is far different from those encountered in the past , in that they " " do not assimilate inferior biological organisms , they destroy them " " , reflecting the development of an internalized ideological identity in these Borg rather than a mere collective identity as linked cybernetic organisms . After an unsuccessful attempt by Picard to communicate with him by referring to himself as Locutus , he orders Dr . Crusher to perform an autopsy of the dead Borg to find any connection to Hugh as an explanation for this behavior , and also leaves Data alone with the Borg to conduct a biospectral analysis . While Data is alone with the Borg , it attempts to communicate with him . After activating an unknown device on its body that noticeably affects Data in some way , Crosis begins talking to Data about emotions . Despite resistance to Crosis ' insistent inquiries Data relents and reveals his experience on Ohniaka III . Crosis pointedly asks him if it felt good to kill , and though Data fights with his understanding of ethics he reveals the pleasure he felt in killing , despite the fact that Dr . Soong gave him programming that defines his sense of right and wrong . It quickly becomes evident that Crosis is goading Data into admitting his like of brutal pleasure . Data admits that it was a potent experience , and noticeably appears to be getting seduced by emotion . Data ' s ethics begin to deteriorate as he admits he wants to feel this way again . When Crosis asks him if he had a friend , Data mentions La Forge , and in a tremendous reversal of his ethical programming Data says he would kill his friend like the Borg he killed in order to feel emotions again . During this exchange , La Forge continued his analysis of the subspace conduit and its operation . As he explains the analysis a shuttlecraft leaves the shuttlebay , revealed to contain Data and the Borg prisoner , and proceeds through the transwarp conduit . Act Five . After a short flight through the conduit they emerge 65 light - years away , it is revealed that there had been significant Borg activity in the surrounding three sectors from the terminus , as there had been indications both of advanced civilizations , recent plasma weapon discharge , and no signs of life . The shuttlecraft is tracked to a planet with unusually high EM interference . Weighing the risk of putting an away team down to the surface without knowing what could be waiting for them , to which Riker replies that they ' ll have to take that risk of being surrounded by Borg ; Picard orders a well - armed away team down to the surface near the shuttle , with the transporter chief maintaining a lock on all of them at all times . The shuttle " El - Baz " is found abandoned in a field , with no structures in the immediate area and no signs of Data or the Borg prisoner . Sensing a need to cover more ground , Picard decides to establish a command post near the " El - Baz " and wants to use the shuttles for low - level reconnaissance , therefore ordering the designated pilots to the shuttle bay . Finally , he orders all available personnel including La Forge and himself to put together four - man away teams , while leaving a skeleton crew on board . When asked by La Forge who would be in command of the " Enterprise " , Doctor Crusher enters the bridge and asks for last orders . Picard orders her not to wait for him or anyone else , but to take the " Enterprise " back to the conduit , and return to Federation space should the Borg return and threaten the ship . Both officers wished each other good luck , with Picard adding " captain " to her title . Twelve teams from the " Enterprise " had been deployed so far , with Riker and Worf in one and Picard , La Forge , Troi , and a security officer armed with a phaser rifle in another . After leaving Wallace and Towles manning the command post on the planet , Picard ' s team search the surface . Troi sees a structure in the distance . Picard ' s team enter the structure some distance from the landing site , the interior and exterior bare save for a unknown claw - like insignia in the decor . When the crew attempt to leave the building , a large number of armed Borg flood the building , displaying a near - mob mentality . The security officer is killed , and shortly afterward Lore appears on a promontory in the hall , revealing himself as their leader . Data reveals himself as in league with his brother , as well as their plans to destroy the Federation . TO BE CONTINUED . . . Memorable quotes . " " But then I said " In that frame of reference , the perihelion of Mercury will have precessed in the opposite direction . " " " " " All the quantum fluctuations in the universe will not change the cards in your hand . " " " " Do not patronize me , sir . I invented physics . The day that apple fell on my head was " the " most momentous day in the history of science . " " " " Not the apple story again . . . " " " " Wrong again , Albert . " " " " You have killed Torsus . I will make you suffer for this . " " " " Stop " it " ! Stop ! Stop ! Stop ! Stop ! Stop ! " " " " What happened ? " " " " I got angry . " " " " If it meant that you could feel emotions again , the way you did on Ohniaka III , would you kill your friend ? Would you kill Geordi ? " " " " Yes . . . I would . " " " " . . . transmit another copy of Starfleet ' s ship recognition protocols , and tell them to read it this time ! " " " " They were fast , aggressive , almost vicious . It was more like fighting Klingons than . . . " ( realizing ) " . . . Borg . " ( to Worf ) " No offense . " " " " None taken . " " " " Biological organism : Human . Sever spinal cord below third vertebrae . Death is immediate . " " " " . . . feelings aren ' t positive and negative . They simply exist . It ' s what we do with those feelings that becomes good or bad . " " " " Data . " " " " That ' s not Data . " " " " What ? " " " " You should listen to her , captain . She ' s way ahead of you . " " " " Lore ! " " " " The sons of Soong have joined together , and together we will destroy the Federation . " " " " It may turn out that the moral thing to do was not the right thing to do . " "