Contest #5 designed by Lieutenant Geordi LaForge

Holodeck: A maze of metal with traps along the way.

Objective: To get to the middle, with or without your partner.

“Is that okay with everyone? I’ve taken the liberty of pairing everyone up already. So, Captain Picard, you are with Beverly, Deanna, you’re with Wesley, Commander Riker you are with Worf, and Data I’m sorry but you’ll have to go by yourself,” Geordi looked across at Data but his android face of course, did not show any emotion. “If there are no questions then, we can get started.” And so the competition began.

Picard and Beverly paced determinedly into the maze and immediately found a dead end ahead of them, but noticed that there was a string ladder loosely hung over the top. On the other side of the wall, Riker and Worf were looking at the same ominous wall, looking at the same string ladder. All four officers realised their only choice was to ascend the ladder. At roughly the same moment Picard and Riker both stepped onto the ladder and felt each other’s weight securing the rope. But just as Picard concluded that the ladder was safe to climb, Riker jumped off to let Worf climb first (after he insisted he was a faster climber). Picard immediately fell down a few metres onto Beverly, and Riker heard the faint cry of pain. But the ladder didn’t continue to slip, as Worf’s quick klingon reactions made him instantly grab their side of the ladder. He tugged on it and knew it couldn’t sustain his weight, or Riker’s and he rolled his eyes, thinking Riker had just been a bit dim-witted. On the other side, Beverly saw the ladder rise up from Worf’s tug and after struggling out from underneath her captain, tugged back. Finally Worf understood what was happening and tugged the rope one more time, but this time, held it steady. When Beverly tried to tug on the rope, it didn’t move, so she decided to start climbing. She was overjoyed when she didn’t fall clumsily on the third rung like Picard and when she reached the tenth rung, called to Picard that it was safe. Worf’s arm was aching, but he knew their plan was working because he could feel it, every time Beverly ascended another rung.

Finally at the top, and with Picard well on his way, she looked over the other side to see Commander Worf holding the ladder and Riker standing to the side looking on. “Hey!” she called down, and they both looked up, nodding in acknowledgement. Unfortunately, when she foolishly started climbing down, the ladder on Picard’s side was riding up a bit too fast. His weight was definitely not equal to Beverley’s weight and Worf’s pull. In just a few seconds, Picard was launched to the top, and flying down the other side just as quickly, but very luckily, Beverley was there to break his fall again. Unluckily however, Picard fell so hard that Beverly was holographically squashed and so she went to sit on the disqualified bench. But Picard hardly noticed, as the climbing wall was suddenly replaced with an entrance to the next ‘level’ (which was one ring closer to the centre of the maze).

Deanna, Wesley and Data were already onto the next ‘level’, so far facing no difficulties. But when Deanna suddenly took a wrong turn, she got separated from Wesley and a holographic Wesley came in.

“Oh there you are! I thought I’d lost you for a second!” Troi said with relief in her voice. The impostor smiled and started leading her into her fate. While this was happening, a holographic Data came running to Wesley and claimed he knew a way to the middle and wanted Wesley to come with him. So Wesley followed, ignorant of the fact that Data was leading him to his ‘death’. Meanwhile, oblivious, the real Data was 3 levels away from the beginning, and 3 levels away from the end.

Now a team of 3, Picard, Worf and Riker plodded along to find a humungous swamp, blocking their way to the level Data was now on. Cheerily, Riker jumped onto a stepping stone and followed them along their path until he reached a small island and called for Picard to go next and then Worf. But when Picard was with Riker on the island, Worf was looking very worried because he thought he saw the first rock move. He concluded that he was imagining it but when he placed his foot there, a magnificent beast leapt out at him with shining teeth. That was Worf disqualified.

On the disqualified bench, Worf sat with Beverly, Wesley and Deanna. Geordi had come down from his viewing point of the maze and sat with them. After a bit of friendly conversation, Geordi took the losers up to the viewing point so they could all watch their companions, either treacherously carrying on without a care in the world like Picard and Riker or just watching Data fly ahead. And fly ahead he did, as now he was 1 level away from his victory, having skipped 2 levels when he found a shortcut.

“Come on Commander, we are now1 level from the middle, maybe we can beat Data for once!” said Picard encouragingly. They were very happy because so far, they were having a problem free level but to their disappointment, another problem had just arisen before them. Or was it? At first they were wary of the big metal block in their way, afraid that it might turn into a giant monster but as they moved slowly closer nothing happened. So they started edging around it and 5 minutes later they were on the other side looking at a map of the maze they were in. Once they had worked out where they were, they literally jumped with joy because they only needed to turn a corner and then end would be within view.

But higher up, Geordi and the losers were laughing as they had put in an impossible problem for Data which stood between him and the end, while they deliberately gave Picard and Riker a helping hand. But Data was working fast. The impossible problem was that no matter how hard he tried to advance forward to victory, the further away he seemed to get from it. It was very frustrating. He even went as fast as he could possibly go, but it didn’t help at all. Eventually, Data realised that the tiles on the floor had significance. He decided to try dozens of various combinations and with typical Data perseverance managed to find the right one and got through to the end. Data won the competition, with Picard and Riker just 2 milliseconds behind him.

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