Accession : Defender of The Faith

(Divok is pouring something on the fire as Worf meditates) 

WORF: 

Torva luk do shel. Torva luk 

(a figure appears) 

WORF: 

I see Kahless. 

(Divok runs out. The figure walks forward and holds out his arms. Worf touches his hands.) 

WORF: You are real. 

(the other Klingons enter) 

KAHLESS: 

I am Kahless, and I have returned.

[Temple]

(Kahless and the group march in, and Kahless picks up the bat'leth from the throne) 

KOROTH: 

What are you doing? Who are you? 

DIVOK: 

It is Kahless. 

KAHLESS: 

I have returned. You doubt me. Who here knows the story of how this sword was forged? 

TORIN:

 No one knows. It is not written in the sacred texts. 

KAHLESS: 

I went into the mountains, all the way to the volcano at Kri'stak. There I cut off a lock of my hair and thrust it into the river of molten rock which poured from the summit. The hair began to burn. Then I plunged it into the lake of Lusor and twisted it into this sword. And after I used it to kill the tyrant Molor I gave it a name. Bat'leth. The sword of honour. 

KOROTH: 

You know. The story of the sword is known only to the High Clerics. 

It was never written down, so that if he returned, we could be sure it was Kahless. 

KAHLESS: 

I have returned because there is a great need in my people. They fight among themselves in petty wars and corrupt the glory of the Klingon spirit. They have lost their way. But it is not too late. I have returned and I will lead my people again. 

(Koroth kneels) 

KOROTH: 

Vorcha doh baghk, Kahless! 

ALL: (kneeling) 

Vorcha doh baghk, Kahless! Vorcha doh baghk, Kahless! 

(all, that is, except for Worf)

[Worf's chambers]

KAHLESS: What is it you are doing? 

WORF: I was getting my tricorder. 

KAHLESS: Tricorder? Is it a weapon? 

WORF: No, no. It is a tool. I intended to use it to see 

KAHLESS: To see if I was real. Proceed. Use your tricorder. Well? 

WORF: You are Klingon. 

KAHLESS: What else could I be? 

WORF: There are many possibilities. A shape shifter, a holographic projection. 

KAHLESS: So, you are a sceptic, Worf. I like that. 

WORF: How do you know my name? 

KAHLESS: We have met before. I appeared to you in a vision in the caves of No'Mat. You were just a child then. I told you that you would do something that no Klingon had ever done before. You still do not believe it is me, do you Worf? 

WORF: I want to believe. 

KAHLESS: That is a beginning.

[Temple]

(a dining table is set up in the aisle, as Kahless sits on his throne and is briefed by a priest) 

TORIN: Gowron is the Leader of the Council. He commands the entire Defence Force. If he chooses to oppose you 

KAHLESS: Do not worry. We are on the threshold of a new era for our people. Klingons from all over the Empire will flock to my banner. Yet something still weighs heavy on the brow of the son of Mogh. Are you contemplating yet another question for me? After three days, I am beginning to wonder if you know how to do anything else. 

WORF: Questions are the beginning of wisdom, the mark of a true warrior. 

KAHLESS: Do not forget that a leader need not answer questions of those he leads. It is enough that he says to do a thing and they will do it. If he says to run, they run. If he says to fight, they fight. If he says to die, they die. 

WORF: If the commander is worthy of their trust. 

KAHLESS: NuQ cha'tak. NuQ! 

(Torin hands Kahless his bat'leth. Worf is given another. They fight, and Worf gets some good blows in, knocking Kahless down) 

KAHLESS: (laughs) What is wrong? Is there only anger and bloodlust in your souls? Is that all that is left in the Klingon heart? We do not fight merely to spill blood, but to enrich the spirit. Look at us. Two warriors locked in battle, fighting for honour. How can you not sing for all to hear? We are Klingons! Yes! Let it out! Let the joy in your heart be heard. We are Klingons! 

KLINGON: We are Klingons. 

KAHLESS: We are Klingons. 

ALL: We are Klingons. We are Klingons. We are Klingons. We are Klingons. We are Klingons. We are Klingons.

WORF: 

The man who appeared to me on Boreth is not Kahless. He is a clone. 

GOWRON: 

A clone! 

WORF: 

Yes. 

GOWRON: 

Did you really think you would get away with this kind of fraud, Koroth? I will have you and this abomination put to death. 

WORF: 

It does not matter, Gowron. You will still not be able to stand against him. 

GOWRON:

 What? He's not real. You just said so. 

WORF: 

I said he was not the Kahless, but in the minds of our people he can be just as powerful as Kahless. Even now, two members of your own crew are sitting on our Holodeck waiting for him to return. 

GOWRON:

 I do not care what they think. 

WORF: 

But hey are not alone. Like many of our people, they need something to believe in, just like I did. Something larger than themselves, something that will give their lives meaning. They need Kahless. 

GOWRON: 

But when they find out the truth? 

WORF: 

It will not matter, Gowron. Despite the facts, they will still believe. They will make a leap of faith and there will be others just like them. Not everyone, but enough to plunge the Empire into civil war if you oppose them. 

GOWRON: 

What are you saying? That I should just hand over the Empire? 

WORF: 

No, that would be unwise as well.

 

KOROTH: 

Then what are you proposing, Worf? 

WORF: 

You were right about one thing, Koroth. Our people are becoming decadent and corrupt. They need moral leadership. Kahless can be that leader, as Emperor. 

GOWRON: There hasn't been an Emperor in three centuries! 

WORF: 

The political power will remain with the High Council. Kahless would be a figurehead, but he will have the ability to rally the people, to lead by example, to guide them in spiritual matters. 

KOROTH: 

The title is meaningless without the power to back it up. 

WORF: 

Real power comes from within the heart. You would have the power to mold the Klingon heart. You could return them to honourable ways according to the original teachings of Kahless which are within you. It would be a great challenge, if you have the courage to accept it. 

GOWRON: 

And what will we tell the people about their new Emperor? That he appeared in a cave or a laboratory? 

WORF: 

We will tell them the truth. All of the truth. But we will tell them that even if he is not the real Kahless, he is the rightful heir to Kahless. 

GOWRON: And if I refuse to go along with this? 

WORF: 

Then my brother and those who support him on the Council will fight you, and I will fight you. And the Empire will fall back into civil war. 

GOWRON: 

What do you say about this, Koroth? 

KOROTH: 

What I say is unimportant. 

KAHLESS: 

It is acceptable. 

(Koroth kneels before his Emperor. Worf does the same) 

KAHLESS: Join with me, Gowron. Let us usher in this new era together. 

GOWRON: Vorcha doh bagh (kneels) Kahless.

Accession : Glory to You and Your House

GOWRON: 

Enough! I don't want to hear anything more about finances, mergers, or currency transactions!

The charge has been made that you have used money to bring down a Great House. 

What do you say to this, D'Ghor? 

 "A Klingon regards the honor of his or her family to be valuable, above all else. The family name can be besmirched by any member of the family, regardless of age or infirmity. A Klingon would sooner kill himself and his closer brother than live with a mark on the name of his ancestral lineage. The family is all, and a member of the family is responsible for the actions of his kin. The oldest son of a Klingon warrior may be called upon to give his life for the actions of his father." 

Never A Plan Like Yours To Study History So Wisely

Never Play, Letting Your Trousers Slip Half-Way

Neighbours Persuaded Lovely Yvonne To Shut Her Window

(Norman, Angevin, Plantagenet, Lancaster, York, Tudor, Stuart, Hanover, Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, Windsor (or Wettin).

As the Houses of Lancaster and York were really branches of the House of Plantagenet, the first mnemonic can be simplified to 

No Plan To Study History Wisely

In addition, The House of Windsor was a branch of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, which in turn is a branch of the House of Wettin, thus keeping the mnemonic.

Or, to go for the full package, the mnemonic can be extended to 

No Plan Like Yours To Study Our Saxon History So Wisely

Norman, Plantagenet, Lancaster, York, Tudor, Stuart, Orange, Stuart, Hanover, Saxe-Coburg, Windsor.

 "I started thinking about [...] Houses, and sort of, you know, the idea of bonding people to a Klingon House [....] The idea of bloodlines and families and sort of this Shakespearian idea of how the Klingon Empire ran – I was starting to, sort of, deal with that in this episode."

"We've never explored the hows and whys regarding the naming of Klingon Houses. The House of Mogh reference was probably something that Worf carried on out of respect for his deceased father. This might be the right of a son – to perpetuate a single name for the House instead of supplanting it with his own."

"I think I used the word 'House' in my draft [of 'The Bonding'], even though it's not in the episode." 

Ronald D. "Klingon-Guy" Moore

(The Bonding" audio commentary, TNG Season 3 Blu-ray) 

(On the Klingon homeworld, on a slightly shabby couch, Quark is hypo'd awake) 

QUARK: 

What? What happened? Where am I? 

TUMEK: (ancient family retainer) 

You are on Qo'noS. 

QUARK: 

Qo'noS? The Klingon homeworld. 

TUMEK: 

You are in the ancestral home of what used to be known as the House of Kozak. 

QUARK: 

What's it called now? 

TUMEK: 

Kozak died without a male heir. The House no longer has a name. 

QUARK: 

What about Kozak's brother, D'Ghor? 

TUMEK: 

That pahtk's name is not spoken in this house. 

He is no brother to Kozak. 

His family has been a sworn enemy of this House for 7 generations. 

QUARK: 

But he came to DS9. He told me... 

TUMEK: 

What he told you were lies. He wanted you to say that Kozak had died in honourable combat so that no special dispensation would be granted. 

QUARK: 

I don't understand. 

TUMEK: 

If Kozak had died in an accident and left no male heir, the Council might have decided that this was an unusual situation and granted special dispensation. 

That might have allowed Grilka to become Head of the Family even though she's a woman. 

But if Kozak died in an honourable fight, and was simply defeated by a better opponent, then no dispensation would have been granted, and without a male heir the House will fall. 

GRILKA: 

That hasn't happened yet, Tumek, and there is still time to prevent it from ever happening. 

(She offers a robe to Quark.) 

GRILKA: 

Put this on. 

QUARK: 

Why? 

GRILKA: 

Because if you do not, I will kill you. 

TUMEK: 

I beg you, consider what you do here, mistress. 

GRILKA: 

The decision is made. There is no other choice. 

(Quark struggles into the robe and Grilka takes his hand.) 

GRILKA: 

Go'Eveh lu cha wabeh. Mo ka re'Chos. 

TUMEK: 

Repeat my words Go'Eveh lu cha wabeh. To va re'Luk. 

QUARK: 

Let me ask just one 

(Grilka puts a knife to Quark's throat) 

GRILKA:

 Repeat the words. 

QUARK: 

Go'Eveh lu cha wabeh to va re'Luk. 

TUMEK: 

Ghos ma'lu Kah! 

(Grilka kisses Quark, then spits.) 

TUMEK: 

It is done. 

QUARK: 

What's done? 

TUMEK: 

The ceremony is complete. You are husband and wife.

A Race of Warriors

Nor Shall My Sword Sleep at my Side...

DOCTOR: 

Well, believe me, I know the Ice Warriors, Jo. 

They're a savage and a warlike race. 

[Usually only with each other.]

No, among the delegates, only Ssorg's strength could have shifted that statue. 

JO: 

I still think you're jumping to conclusions. 

IZLYR:

 Sit down, Princess. 

Why did you try to escape? 

JO: 

I was frightened. 

Can you blame me? 

IZLYR: 

So, Princess, you believe that we tried to kill Arcturus. 

JO: 

Well if you didn't, 

why was the missing servo-unit in your room? 

IZLYR: 

Perhaps you brought it here as part of your scheme to trap us. 

JO: 

But that's just Not True! 

I... One of you must have tried to kill Arcturus. 

IZLYR: 

Nobody tried to kill him. 

JO: 

What? 

IZLYR: 

To destroy Arcturus, 

the helium regenerator must be deactivated. 

JO: 

What about the unit? 

IZLYR: 

Merely sensor equipment. 

Disconnecting that only produces metabolic coma. 

JO: 

So it couldn't be fatal? 

IZLYR: 

Only uncomfortable. 

JO: 

I'm sorry if I might have misjudged you, 

but the Doctor did say you were A Race of Warriors. 

[That isn't quite what he said, now is it...?]

IZLYR: 

We were once, but now we reject violence 

except in self-defence. 

JO: 

What about Ssorg's gun? 

This is supposed to be a peaceful mission. 

IZLYR: 

Unfortunately, in order to preserve Peace, it is necessary to Survive. 

JO: 

Well, if you didn't do it, who did? 

Who could benefit by it? 

IZLYR: 

Perhaps The Doctor will be able to explain.

"Whoever you hate will end up in your Family. 

You don't like Gays? 

You're gonna have a Gay Son. 

You don't like Puerto Ricans? 

Your daughter's gonna come home with 

'Livin' La Vida Loca!' *

[ * That is one catchy-ass song!  That shit is like the Puerto Rican 'WHOMP! There it Is'..! ]

You hate Warriors - Well, Guess What...?

The Way of The Warrior has been misunderstood 

as a means to kill and destroy others.

Those who seek Competition are making a grave mistake.

To smash, injure or destroy 

is the worst sin a human being can commit.

The real Way of The Warrior is to prevent slaughter - 

it is The Art of Peace, The Power of Love.

Saruman: 

You have fought many wars and slain many Men, Théoden-King, and made peace afterwards. 

Can we not take council together as we once did, my old friend? 

Can we not have peace, you and I?

Théoden: 

We shall have peace. 

We shall have peace, when you answer for the burning of the Westfold, and the children that lie dead there! 

We shall have peace, when the lives of the soldiers, whose bodies were hewn even as they lay dead against the Gates of the Hornburg, are avenged! 

When you hang from a gibbet, for the sport of your own crows, we shall have peace!

Saruman: 

Gibbets and crows?! Dotard!

What do you want, Gandalf Greyhame?

 Let me guess - the Keys of Orthanc? 

Or perhaps the Keys of Barad-dûr itself, 

along with 

The Crowns of  Seven Kings 

and the rods of the Five Wizards!

Gandalf the White: 

Your treachery has already cost many lives. 

Thousands more are now at risk.

But you could save them, Saruman. 

You were deep in The Enemy's council.

Saruman: [smiling] 

So you have come here for information. 

I have some for you.

Something festers in the heart of Middle Earth. 

[ It Does.]

Something that you have failed to see. 

[ He Has.]

But the Great Eye has seen it. 

[ True. ]

Even now, he presses his advantage. 

His attack will come soon. 

[ True. ]

You are all going to die.

[ True. But no Today. Today is not a Good Day to Die.]

But you know this, don't you, Gandalf? 

[ He Does.]

You cannot think that this Ranger will ever sit upon the Throne of Gondor! 

[ He Does.]

This exile, crept from The Shadows, will never be crowned King! 

[ Ouch. Wishful Thinking by The White Wizard - Swing & a Miss. ]

Gandalf does not hesitate to sacrifice those closest to him, those he professes to love. 

[ He Does. But not to excess. And that group of people includes Himself. ]

Tell me, what words of comfort did you give the halfling, before you sent him to his doom? 

The path that you have set him on can only lead to Death.

[ True. But no Today. It's a Wasting Death. ]

Gimli: 

I've heard enough! 

Shoot him, stick an arrow in his gob!

Gandalf the White: 

No. Come down, Saruman, and your life will be spared.

Saruman: 

Save your pity and your mercy! 

I have no use for it!

Gandalf the White: [sternly]

Saruman! Your staff is broken!

[ And it is. ]

Théoden: 

Gríma! You need not follow him. 

You were not always as you are now. 

You were once a Man of Rohan!

 Come down.

Saruman: 

"A Man of Rohan"?

What is the House of Rohan, but a thatched barn, where brigards drink in the reek, and their brats roll on the floor with the dogs?! 

[ Currently True. ]

The victory at Helm's Deep does not belong to you, Théoden Horse-Master! 

[ True.]

You are a Lesser Son of Greater Sires!

[ Also True. But irrelevant. ]

[ Arthur was a bastard, born of Lies, Treachery and Rape. ]

Théoden: 

Gríma, come down. 

Be free of him.

Saruman: 

Free?! He will never be free!

Gríma Wormtongue: 

No.

Saruman: 

Get down, cur! 

Gandalf the White: 

Saruman! 

You were deep in The Enemy's council. 

Tell us what you know.

Saruman: 

You withdraw your guard and I will tell you where your doom will be decided. 

I will not be held prisoner here!

[ All True - His Kung-Fu is still The Best. Even with no Rod ]

"Whoever you hate will end up in your Family.