Homeward ( episode ) Worf ' s foster brother violates the Prime Directive by saving a group of villagers from a doomed planet . Summary . Teaser . The answers a distress call from the planet Boraal II : It is experiencing atmospheric dissipation and will be rendered uninhabitable in just a few hours . Lieutenant Worf is especially concerned with this recent development as his foster brother , Nikolai Rozhenko , is assigned to the cultural observation post on the planet . Worf asks Captain Picard for his permission to beam down and see if his foster brother is all right . Picard , concerned that Worf ' s visit may conflict with the Prime Directive , agrees , but says that Worf must be surgically altered to pass as a Boraalan . After his alteration into a Boraalan by Dr . Crusher , Worf beams down to a cave sheltered from the intense storms on the planet . Shortly after , Worf finds Rozhenko and many Boraalans inside the cave and discovers that Rozhenko has broken the Prime Directive by helping the Boraalans survive . Act One . When Worf enters the cavern protecting the Boraalans , he is questioned by a male Boraalan named Vorin , who assumes that the storm on the surface has stopped , since Worf was able to make it to the caves alive . Worf refuses to answer the question and only wants to speak to his brother . Worf asks Rozhenko why he did this . Rozhenko says that he was unable to stay at his observation post and watch the Boraalans slowly die . Worf says that the captain will most definitely want to speak with him . Back on board the " Enterprise " , Rozhenko explains his actions to the senior staff , including Captain Picard . Rozhenko says that he wants to save the village by creating an atmospheric bubble over a small section of the planet , which will protect the Boraalans . Picard refuses to compound the damage that Rozhenko has inflicted upon the Prime Directive and the Boraalan culture . Rozhenko is at once disappointed about Picard ' s decision and asks to transmit his logs back to the ship , stating that the only way he will now be able to save the Boraalan culture is by preserving it in a museum . Worf tries to heal his brother ' s pain by helping him to transmit the logs to the ship , but Rozhenko refuses his help . Later on the bridge , Rozhenko goes to the science station at the back on the bridge to transmit his logs to the ship ' s computer . There , the crew witnesses the imminent destruction of Boraal II . Picard reminds everyone on the bridge that this is one of the few times that they must face the ramifications of the Prime Directive and to honor it . Rozhenko tells the captain that he finds no honor whatsoever in what the crew is doing and leaves the bridge before Boraal is destroyed . Then , a plasmonic burst hits the ship and causes a power drain . Worf finds out that the drain is coming from deck ten . Riker asks Worf to go down to the deck with a security team . Worf makes his way down to deck ten , and then to the holodeck . Worf attempts to enter the holodeck , but the controls have been overridden . Suddenly , the doors slide open anyway , and Worf then hears Rozhenko ' s voice , drawing Worf towards the mouth of a cave . Rozhenko stands at the mouth with a PADD in his hand and reveals that all of the Boraalans did not actually die , but were beamed aboard the " Enterprise " - D just before the destruction of their homeworld . Worf is shocked at his brother ' s actions , another blatant disregard of the Prime Directive . Act Two . Later , in a corridor , Rozhenko explains that he was able to make the plasmonic bursts look like they overloaded the ship ' s sensors so he could beam up the Boraalans without anyone on the ship noticing . The plan worked perfectly . Worf is dismayed at his brother ' s increasingly delinquent behavior and says during a conversation in a turbolift that he wants nothing to do with him after his actions . Rozhenko is sent to Picard ' s ready room where he is berated by the captain for his actions , and is told that as well as destroying his career , the " Enterprise " now has a group of unaware Boraalans on board while the crew has no idea what to do with them . Rozhenko reveals that he did not beam up the Boraalans without a plan ; he plans to find a new class M planet for the Boraalans and to gradually change the terrain on the holodeck so it will appear that the Boraalans are traveling through the caves towards their new home . Although he is still very unhappy about the whole situation , Picard is forced to conclude that there isn ' t any other alternatives so they ' ll give the plan a try . Picard , Geordi La Forge , Dr . Crusher , and Data meet in stellar cartography to find a new home for the Boraalans . However , La Forge finds out that the holodeck is malfunctioning , its image processor destroyed by the atmospheric dissipation , and that it is not a question of " how " the holodeck will cease to function , but " when " . Rozhenko prepares to go back into the holodeck to prepare the Boraalans for their journey , but Picard is unwilling to leave him alone with them after all the trouble he ' s caused and asks Worf to accompany his brother . Worf is initially unwilling and suggests possibly sending someone else , like Counselor Troi , but Picard is unwilling to confuse the Boraalans further by introducing another new person to them . Worf is forced to agree . Act Three . Rozhenko and Worf return to the holodeck simulation and announce to the Boraalans that their village was destroyed and there is nothing left . The Boraalans are dismayed to hear this , but Rozhenko says that they will be able to find a new home and that it is a great distance from their present location and they must hurry . Worf says that it will be " very " different from the home they knew ; even the stars in their new home may look different . Vorin asks why they would be different and how Worf knows that they will be safe at their new home . Rozhenko backs up Worf by saying that he knows that they will be safe . Suddenly , a woman named Tarrana screams because she sees the holodeck grid flashing in a pool of water . Worf tries to calm down the Boraalans by saying that it is an omen , the Sign of La Forge , supposedly a good omen . La Forge understands Worf ' s predicament and fixes the problem . Rozhenko announces that their journey to their new home is blessed . He later goes over to Worf and says that they make quite a team . Worf says bluntly that they are " not " a team . Meanwhile , in stellar cartography , Data and Dr . Crusher are searching space for a new homeworld for the Boraalans . They come up with two solutions , Draygo IV or Vacca VI in the Vaccan system , located in the Cabral sector . The Draygo system is located only three light year s away from Cardassian space and there are constant border disputes in the area , which rules it out , so Data and Dr . Crusher choose Vacca VI despite Crusher ' s worries due to the planet having a less hospitable environment than the Boraalans are used to . She also struggles with the profound importance on their selection of a new homeworld for the Boraalans – how will the Vaccan system be affected in the future by their society , will the climate be suitable for them , will they flourish on their new home ? Data believes that they can make no guarantees on what the future may hold , they must simply make the best choice they can . Finally settling on Vacca VI , the " Enterprise " will reach the planet in 42 hours . In the holodeck , Worf notices that Rozhenko has become close with a Boraalan named Dobara . As he is noticing them , Vorin is drawing a chronicle , which documents the history of his village , including Worf and Rozhenko leading them to safety . Worf then announces that they must leave now . Vorin then realizes that he is missing one of his chronicles . Worf asks him to leave it behind , but Vorin says that without it , the village ' s future means nothing . Worf allows him to go . An elder Boraalan asks Worf to help him with his gear and asks him that if he does not make it to the Boraalans ' new home , he wants Worf to become his daughter ' s husband . Worf assures the elder that they " will " make it . Vorin finds his scroll , but just as he is about to leave , he sees the holodeck arch half embedded in a cavern of rocks . He puts his hand into it , which dissolves the holo - image surrounding the door . Vorin opens the door and steps out into the " Enterprise " s corridors , shocked by what he sees . Act Four . Vorin , afraid and confused , makes his way to Ten Forward , where a group on onlookers begin to crowd around him . Fortunately , Deanna Troi and Commander Riker are in the lounge , and they quickly realize what has occurred . They ask everyone else to back away from Vorin . Troi explains that they are both friends of Rozhenko and Worf . Vorin asks where he is and he is subsequently brought to sickbay , where Dr . Crusher announces to Captain Picard that his neuro - physiology is too complicated , so she cannot perform a memory wipe . Picard is now forced to explain that Vorin and the rest of his village has spent the last two days on the " Enterprise " and not on their homeworld . In the holodeck , Worf finds out that Vorin was able to exit the holodeck , and informs Rozhenko that Vorin will have to make a choice : if he wants to stay on the " Enterprise " , or to return to the holodeck and forever keep his knowledge a secret . Worf then accuses Nikolai of having never changed from the disobedient man he was when he was younger , always causing chaos wherever he went , refusing to take any responsibility for his actions and causing their parents to always worry about what kind of trouble he would be getting in next . Rozhenko argues that Worf was the perfect son and that he has become too involved in Starfleet protocols to think of others , but Worf counters that at least he didn ' t make their mother cry all the time . Soon after , Worf realizes that the holodeck malfunctions are increasing and talks to La Forge through his combadge . Later , Dobara approaches Worf while he is alone to tell him that Rozhenko is deeply distraught from their arguments . Dobara then informs Worf that she wishes to consider Worf a part of her family , as Dobara is carrying Rozhenko ' s child . Act Five . The " Enterprise " arrives at Vacca VI , but it will be a few hours before the transporter will be able to beam down the Boraalans , and Picard has one more problem to take care of : Vorin . Picard goes to Vorin ' s quarters and asks him what he wants to do . Vorin announces that he wants to go back to his people , but he does not know what to tell them . Picard asks Vorin if he intends to tell the truth , and reminds him that his fellow villagers might think that he was hallucinating or that he is insane . Vorin knows that he cannot tell the truth , but he thinks that he cannot be able to live with a secret . Picard offers Vorin to stay on the " Enterprise " but Vorin tells Picard that he will need more time . Worf and Rozhenko get into yet another argument , this time about Rozhenko ' s upcoming fatherhood . They are about to physically attack each other when the holodeck begins to malfunction and is about to fail . Worf contacts Commander La Forge and asks him to generate lightning storms and thunder , so it looks like a massive storm . After all the Boraalans have been herded into their tents by Rozhenko , Worf tells La Forge to beam down the Boraalans to Vacca VI . A few seconds later , the Boraalans , including Worf and Rozhenko , beam down in an identical spot on Vacca VI , where the " storms " have suddenly stopped . Picard notes that the mission was a success , but their success has come at a high price ; Vorin , utterly unable to make a choice , committed an apparently ritualistic suicide in his quarters . Picard states to Dr . Crusher that he wishes Vorin could have bridged the gap between their two cultures and that he could have gotten to know the Boraalan man better . Worf returns to Vacca VI to say goodbye to his brother . Rozhenko announces that he will replace Vorin as the new village chronicle and he will stay with the Boraalans . Worf smiles and jokes that Rozhenko was never an artist , and they share a small laugh . Rozhenko laments that their parents would probably not understand his actions , but Worf promises he will explain to them that he was happy . Worf and his brother embrace , and the " Enterprise " - D warps away from Vacca VI , the new homeworld of the Boraalans . Memorable quotes . " " Are the two of you close ? " " " " We are brothers . " " " " . . . They deserve the chance to survive . And isn ' t that what the Prime Directive was truly intended to do ? To allow cultures to survive and grow naturally ? " " " " Not exactly . The Prime Directive was designed to ensure non - interference . " " " " But aren ' t we interfering either way ? If we take no action , it ' s a conscious decision to let the Boraalans die . " " " " Exactly . We have the power to save some of them . All we have to do is exercise it . " " " " This is one of those times when we must face the ramifications of the Prime Directive and honor those lives which we cannot save . " " " " I find no honor in this whatsoever , Captain . " " " " I wasn ' t going to let those people die just because your captain started quoting Federation dogma . " " " Duty ? That ' s all that really matters to you , isn ' t it ? I refuse to be bound by an abstraction . " " " " How can we grow when everything that made us who we are is gone ? " " " " This is my brother , Worf ! He ' s come to help us . " " " " I can ' t tell them the truth . . . but I don ' t think I can live with a secret . " " " " Worf , very good work . Apparently we don ' t make such a bad team after all . " " " " We are " not " a " team " ! " " " " How could you have mated with a Boraalan ? What were you thinking ? ! " " " " It is the sign of La Forge . " " " " If I had been more like you . . . We wouldn ' t have had so many problems . " ' " " " No . If you had been more like me , these people would not be here now . You gave them a chance at a new life . " " " " The storms will not return . " " " " As I said he would , my brother Worf has saved us all . " " " " ' The village will need a new chronicler . Someone has to begin it . My child will need a father . My place is here , I ' m finally taking responsibility . " " " " I will have to explain this to mother and father . " " " " They won ' t understand . " " " " They may . I will tell them that you are happy . " " Links and references . References . 47 ; atmospheric dissipation ; Boraalan ; Boraal II ; Boraal II / Vacca VI transformation ; Cabral sector ; Cardassian sector ; chef ; chronicle ; ; class M ; dogma ; drawing ; Draygo IV ; EPS distribution net ; EPS system ; EPS transfer link ; Federation ; foster brother ; Gault ; Gault colony ; holodeck ; hologrid ; holo - programs ; interspecific reproduction ; ion storm ; materialization error ; memory wipe ; mesosphere ; neurophysiology ; number one ; plasmonic energy burst ; Prime Directive ; ; ; seer ; Sign of La Forge ; Starfleet Academy ; stratosphere ; Starbase 87 ; suicide ; synchronous orbit ; troposphere ; Vaccan system ; Vacca VI