Lower Decks ( episode ) Junior officers speculate on the reasons for recent unusual actions taken by the command crew near the Cardassian border . Summary . Teaser . Counselor Troi and Commander Riker are discussing crew evaluation s in Ten Forward , much to the dismay of Ensign Sam Lavelle , who is watching them from across the room with his friends Ensigns Sito Jaxa , Taurik , and Nurse Alyssa Ogawa . This concern deepens when another friend of theirs , waiter , tells them that Lavelle and Sito are apparently up for the same position : ops night duty officer , as well as the promotion to Lieutenant that comes with it . Act One . The crew performs a battle drill , with Lavelle and Sito on the bridge at conn and tactical , respectively , and with Taurik assisting Lieutenant Commander La Forge in engineering . Afterward , Riker offers advice to Sito on improving her performance , but snaps at Lavelle for acknowledging with more than one " aye . " Captain Picard enters the bridge from his ready room and orders a change of course to the Argaya system , near Cardassian space at maximum warp . When the senior officer s are in the observation lounge discussing the new orders , Sito is asked to fill in at ops . This indicates to Lavelle that his chances for promotion to the position are slim but Sito tries to assure him by suggesting Riker might feel she needs more practice than he . In engineering , Taurik enthusiastically shares some new ideas in warp field configuration with a somewhat annoyed La Forge who is intrigued but still slightly irritated by the Vulcan ' s forthright nature . In sickbay , Doctor Crusher tells Nurse Ogawa that she is promoting her to lieutenant . Ogawa shares her fears about her relationship with Lieutenant Powell but Crusher thinks she ' s overreacting . Later in Ten Forward , Sito is surprised and encouraged to find out from Lieutenant Worf that he recommended her for the ops position . Meanwhile , Lavelle laments the fact that , apparently , Riker does not like him . Ben , who is friends with Riker , tells him that Riker likes poker , jazz and he is Canadian . Lavelle tries to strike up a conversation with the first officer about this while Riker sits at the bar . Unfortunately , Riker is actually from Alaska and an embarrassed Lavelle jokingly states that they both get a lot of snow before making a haste departure . Close to the Cardassian border , the is searching in vain for an escape pod . Finally , it is located in Cardassian space , outside of normal transporter range . Act Two . With some adjustments from La Forge and Taurik , the pod ' s occupant is beamed to sickbay . Due to the sensitive nature of this person ' s identity , Crusher orders Ogawa to leave . Ogawa finds Sito standing outside with orders not to allow anyone other than senior officers to enter . Captain Picard then arrives , and after doing a double - take when he sees who is standing guard , enters . After seeing the mysterious visitor , Picard has Sito join him in his ready room and tells her that he doesn ' t believe she is ready for the Ops position , reminding her of her record with the disgraced Nova Squadron while at Starfleet Academy and how she participated in an attempt at a forbidden stunt which resulted in the death of a fellow cadet as well as the cover - up which impeded the ensuing investigation and asks what does that say about the kind of person she is . Sito tells him that she now understands how she was wrong to try and cover up the truth , and since then her record has been spotless . She also details how difficult her time at he Academy had been afterwards , as she didn ' t have any friends and none of the other cadets were willing to fly with her again . Picard isn ' t the least bit interested that she didn ' t enjoy the Academy , and sternly tells Sito that she should have been expelled as far as he ' s concerned and he doesn ' t know how she ended up on his ship before curtly dismissing her . Severely chastened , Sito leaves without another word . Act Three . In the shuttlebay , Taurik and La Forge are intentionally damaging the Type 6 shuttlecraft " " with a phaser rifle . Taurik is puzzled but La Forge offers no credible explanation as to why they are doing this . Taurik , remarking on his pattern of phaser fire , says that it would be consistent if the shuttle were under attack and had engaged evasive maneuvers . La Forge tells him it is an " " amazing coincidence . " " Ogawa is asked by Crusher to assist her with emergency surgery on the visitor and is ordered not to reveal the patient ' s identity to anyone else . Ogawa is shocked to find the patient is in fact a Cardassian . Later , the junior officer s are playing poker and speculating on who was in the escape pod . Ogawa is quiet about what she knows . They encourage Sito , after hearing of her encounter with the Captain . Lavelle still laments Riker ' s seeming dislike for him , but Sito tells him that it doesn ' t matter if Riker likes him as long as he respects him which he must do . Lavelle feels better , and decides to stop trying so hard . Taurik is also concerned that his suggestions have put off La Forge . Meanwhile , Ben , who is also at the poker table , cleans out his preoccupied Starfleet friends until one by one they decide to turn in . The senior officers are also playing poker . Crusher notes that she saw Lieutenant Powell with another woman in Ten Forward . Troi tells her Powell should inform Ogawa , saying that it may hurt her initially but will be better for her in the long run . Also , Worf and Riker debate who to promote , Sito or Lavelle . Riker thinks Sito is too inexperienced , but Worf gives her his full confidence . Riker agrees to keep her in consideration , especially as he thinks Lavelle too eager to please . Troi points out that he and Lavelle are very much alike , and reminds him how during his time on the , he took up poker so he could join in the officers game . Riker decides not to be so hard on the young officer in the future . As the games break up , La Forge invites Taurik to engineering to try out his engine improvements . Moments later , Ben comes by , hoping to press his luck by engaging the remaining senior officers in a few more hands . Act Four . After his next " mok ' bara " class , Worf singles out Sito and tells her she must pass a " gik ' tal " challenge to move into his advanced class . He has her put on a blindfold and spar with him . But after being knocked down several times , she removes the blindfold and refuses to continue with the test . He praises her for standing up to the unfair treatment and hopes she will do so when it happens again . The " gik ' tal " was , of course , invented by Worf , in order to test ( and encourage ) Sito ' s ability to stand up for herself when she is being unfairly attacked . Sito takes Worf ' s advice and confronts Picard about his comments on her academy days . She asks him to judge her on her performance on the " Enterprise " , not her past mistakes . Picard is pleased . In actuality , he was the one who requested that Sito be assigned to the " Enterprise " as he wanted her to have a proper chance to redeem herself . In fact , he had only been testing her mettle for an important and dangerous assignment . In sickbay , Ogawa announces her engagement to Lieutenant Powell to a relieved Doctor Crusher . Sito joins Picard , Riker , and Worf in the observation lounge . With them is Joret Dal , a Cardassian military officer and a Federation operative . He was the occupant of the escape pod . Now Starfleet must get him safely back to Cardassian space . His return would be easier if he had a prisoner , allowing him to pose as a bounty hunter . As a Bajoran , Sito is a perfect candidate but Picard , knowing the extreme danger of the assignment , cannot bring himself to order her to do it . Sito volunteers , fully aware of how the Cardassians treat their prisoners . After she leaves , Dal expresses his regret that she is so young . The " Enterprise " officers share this regret . The shuttle " Curie " , that La Forge and Taurik damaged with phasers , will carry the two to Cardassian space , where , after passing through the border patrols , Dal will return Sito to the Federation in an escape pod . Sito says goodbye to Worf as she boards , with fake bruises provided by Crusher . Act Five . Sito wonders why Dal does what he does for Starfleet and he tells her that he is sick of the pointless fighting his people engage in , brought about by ambitious Gul s trying to make a name for themselves in combat . He believes what he does is worth it if it will bring peace to Cardassia . Sito is surprised to hear such a sentiment from a Cardassian . Their sensors alert them that a Cardassian border patrol has spotted them . On the " Enterprise " , Lavelle is worried about his friend Sito ' s absence . He realizes Taurik and Ogawa know something , and is upset when they won ' t speak of it . Taurik reminds him that they are Starfleet officers , and Ogawa says that she isn ' t allowed to talk about it . Lavelle then drops it . Later , on duty on the bridge , Lavelle has just finished a long - range scan , and does not find any escape pod . Riker tells them to narrow the scan field . Lavelle says that it would help if he knew what kind of life sign s to look for . He is told to scan for a Bajoran life sign . Lavelle wanted to know if he was looking for his friend . Riker senses his distress . Only after launching a probe do they detect something : debris just inside Cardassian space consistent with that of a Starfleet escape pod . Picard makes a note in his log that they have intercepted a Cardassian communication indicating that a Bajoran prisoner was killed in her pod while trying to escape . He then makes a ship wide announcement where he confirms Sito has been lost in the line of duty , describing her as an outstanding Starfleet officer who showed great courage , as well as strength of character and noting that he knows that her death will be deeply felt by everyone who knew her ( with Picard himself saddened by her loss ) . Sito ' s friends are seen reacting to the news with shock and upset . Afterward , Ogawa and Taurik are sitting with Lavelle in Ten Forward , where Lavelle is regarding the rank pin for the promotion he has just received to lieutenant junior grade . He feels guilty about the promotion , wondering if he received it because Sito was killed . Ogawa and Taurik tell him that the best way to honor her memory is to excel in his new position . Ogawa attaches the pin to Lavelle ' s collar . At the same time , Worf is also in Ten Forward remembering Sito . Ben sees him sitting alone , and encourages him to join the other group . Worf doesn ' t think it is appropriate as he was her commanding officer while the others were her friends . Ben tells Worf that Sito considered him a friend , and Worf decides to join the junior officers as they remember her . Memorable quotes . " " It ' s a time honored strategy , Taurik . " " " " The vedeks of the Janalan Order maintain a round - the - clock chant for the benefit of the Bajoran people . " " " " Considering the history of your planet , that doesn ' t exactly validate what he ' s doing . " " " " You sure about dessert ? " " " " Yes , don ' t tempt me . " " " " Lavelle . " " " " Sir ? " " " " Resume previous course and speed . " " " " Aye , aye sir . " " " " One " aye " is sufficient acknowledgment , ensign . " " " " How would you like to be a spider under " that " table ? " " " " What ? " " " " A spider under the table . " " " " Is that like a fly on the wall ? " " " " I guess so . " " " " What could they be talking about ? " " " " Have you ever considered learning to lipread ? " " " " Defend yourself ! " " " " I ' m Bajoran . No one knows better than I do what Cardassians " do " to their prisoners . " " " " All my life I ' ve served in the military . Once , it was an institution dedicated to the security of Cardassia . Now it ' s little more than a platform for ambitious guls hoping to make their reputations in battle . I ' m sick of war . . . my people need peace . " " " " Why ? Did you crash the ship into something ? " " " " He likes poker , jazz . . . he ' s Canadian . " " " " Yeah ? My grandfather was from Canada . " " " " Sir . . . I ' m a little puzzled . Why are we " intentionally " damaging the shuttlecraft ? " " " " My grandfather was Canadian , you know . " " " " Really ? " " " " Aren ' t you one , too ? " " " " A grandfather ? " " " " No . Canadian , sir . Canadian . " " " " No , I grew up in Alaska . " " " " Oh . Well . . . they both . . . get a lot of snow . " " " " Yeah . " " " " It was good talking to you , sir . " " " " Yeah . " " " " I only filled in for ops for half hour but I had to degauss the main deflector dish , recalibrate the navigation grid and use internal sensors to find a lost puppy . " " " " Do you think Worf is chewing her out ? " " " " No , he always looks like that . " " " " Sir , is there really such a thing as a " gik ' tal " challenge ? " " " " No , there is not . But perhaps next time you are judged unfairly , it will not take so many bruises for you to protest . " " " " It ' s not your place to punish me for what I did at the Academy . I ' ve worked hard here . My record is exemplary . If you ' re going to judge me , judge me for what I am " now " . " " " " To all Starfleet personnel : this is the captain . It is my sad duty to inform you that a member of the crew , Ensign Sito Jaxa has been lost in the line of duty . She was the finest example of a Starfleet officer and a young woman of remarkable courage and strength of character . Her loss will be deeply felt by all who knew her . Picard out . " " Links and references . References . Alaska ; alpha shift ; ambassador ; Argaya system ; Bajor ; Bajor sector ; Bajoran ; beta shift ; blackjack ; blindfold ; bounty hunter ; cadet ; Canada ; Cardassia ; Cardassian ; Cardassian border ; Cardassian escape pod ; Cardassian military ; Cardassian patrol ship ; ; chant ; ; confinement beam ; crew evaluation ; crew evaluation report ; coffee ; cover - up ; " " ; debris ; deflector dish ; ; drill evaluation report ; escape pod ; evacuation pod ; evasive maneuvers ; expulsion ; Federation ; ; flight instructor ; flight test ; fly ; gamma shift ; " gik ' tal " ; gul ; helm ; hull resiliency ; inorganic matter ; internal sensor s ; Janalan order ; jazz ; junior officer ; Klingon ; Klingonese ; Lavelle ' s grandfather ; life support system ; lip reading ; long range scan ; lost puppy ; marriage ; " mok ' bara " ; nacelle ; navigation grid ; night shift ; observation lounge ; phaser ; phaser rifle ; plasma ; poker ; ; " Potemkin " senior staff ; ; ; Powell ' s " friend " ; probe ; propulsion system s ; puppy ; Reilly ; senior officer ; sensor sweep ; shackles ; shuttlecraft ; snow ; soccer ball ; spider ; Spock ; Starfleet ; Starfleet Academy ; subdural hematoma ; Tanaline Propulsion Laboratory ; Ten Forward ; " Terrace " ; three - dimensional chess ; Trakian ale ; turbolift ; vedek ; Vulcan ; warp field