"Power Play" is the 115th episode of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: The Next Generation. It is the 15th episode of the fifth season. Set in the 24th century, the series follows the adventures of the Starfleet crew of the Federation starship Enterprise-D. In this episode, alien entities take over the minds of Data, Troi, and Miles O'Brien. The story begins when the spaceship picks up a distress signal, and upon investigation seems to be coming from the USS Essex, a spaceship lost two hundred years earlier. The episode is noted for having five different writers involved in the story and screenplay. Casting This episode includes Rosalind Chao playing Keiko, who also appeared in episodes such as "Data's Day", "The Wounded", "Disaster", and went on to have a recurring guest role in Star Trek Deep: Space Nine. Plot The USS Enterprise approaches Mab-Bu VI, a moon covered in electromagnetic storms, from where it has detected a distress call. Lt. Commander Data discovers that the distress call is standard for Daedalus-class starships, which went out of service 172 years ago. He then finds that the USS Essex, a Daedalus-class ship, was lost in the region over 200 years ago. After concluding that visiting a ghost ship with an away team in such hazardous conditions is a waste of resources, Picard decides to move on and report the whereabouts of the once-missing ship. However, Troi indicates that she feels a living presence on the surface. Data announces that electromagnetic interference precludes the use of the transporter to the moon; Picard authorizes a shuttlecraft mission, crewed by Riker, Data, and Troi. As the shuttlecraft travels towards the moon's surface, the crew loses control, and makes a crash landing. By the time the shuttle lands, all communication with the Enterprise has been cut off by electromagnetic interference. Riker suspects he has a broken arm due to the crash landing and the three crew members emerge from the shuttlecraft to learn about their surroundings. They observe the front of a massive electrical storm. A tricorder scan indicates EM bursts across the entire spectrum. Back on the Enterprise, the crew discuss rescuing the crew of the shuttle. Ro Laren uses the descent angle of the shuttlecraft to approximate the landing site. Transporter chief Miles O'Brien proposes that he should transport to the surface and use a pattern-enhancing device to allow a reliable transport