Let That Be Your Last Battlefield

"Let That Be Your Last Battlefield" was the 70th episode of Star Trek: The Original Series, the 15th episode of the show's third and final season, first aired on 10 January 1969. The episode was written by Lee Cronin^MA and Oliver Crawford^MA, directed by Jud Taylor^MA and novelized in Star Trek 5 by James Blish.

Summary[]

On a mission to decontaminate the planet Ariannus, the Enterprise retrieves a stolen shuttlecraft with one person aboard—Lokai—who is white on the right side of his body and black on his left side. An invisible spacecraft comes straight toward the Enterprise and leaves its pilot aboard before being destroyed. The pilot is Bele who is black on the right side of his body and white on his left side. Bele is a police commissioner from the planet Cheron V who has been chasing Lokai for 50,000 years across the galaxy. Although slavery was abolished on Cheron the ruling class is Bele's color and the ruled class is Lokai's color.

Lokai tries to enlist the Enterprise crew in his crusade and Bele claims to be superior color to Lokai to James T. Kirk and Spock. When the Federation refuses to honor Bele's request for custody of Lokai, Bele with the power of his will tries to hijack the Enterprise to Cheron in a standoff with Kirk who for his part activates the self destruct—which is only averted when Bele agrees to turn over control of the starship to Kirk.

When Ariannis is decontaminated, Bele hijacks the Enterprise again—after destroying the self destruct with his will. On arrival at Cheron, the ships sensors show that the entire humanoid population has wiped out one another. Lokai transports himself down to Cheron followed by Bele.

Log entries[]

Captain's log, stardate 5730.2.: The planet Ariannus is vital as a transfer point on regular space commercial lanes. It has been attacked by a bacterial invasion which threatens to render it lifeless unless checked. Our mission, to decontaminate it.

Captain's log, stardate 5730.7.: Having completed our mission to Ariannus, the Enterprise is now on course to Starbase 4. The crew is on normal routine and we are proceeding without incident.

Captain's log 5730.6.: In a deliberate act of sabotage, Commissioner Bele has burned out our destruct mechanism and, through the power of his will, has again taken over directional control of the Enterprise.

References[]

Characters[]

Episode characters[]

Bele • Clifford Brent^[1] • Christine Chapel • Pavel Chekov • Bill Hadley • James T. Kirk • Roger Lemli • Lokai • Leonard McCoy • Montgomery Scott • Spock • Hikaru Sulu • Nyota Uhura • Vinci^[2] • USS Enterprise computer • unnamed USS Enterprise (NCC-1701) personnel

Referenced only: Gregor Johann Mendel

Referenced only: Coalsack • Earth • Starbase 4

Shipboard areas[]

USS Enterprise: bridge • transporter room • hangar deck • recreation room

Planetary locales[]

Cheron: Cheron city

Races and cultures[]

Cheronian • Human • Vulcan

Referenced only: Romulan

Technology and weapons[]

intercom • sensors • starship • viewscreen • transporter

Materials and substances[]

atmosphere • blood • gas • oxygen

States and organizations[]

Commission on Political Traitors • Ministry of Health • Starfleet • Starfleet Command • United Federation of Planets

Ranks and titles[]

bureaucrat • captain • chief engineer • chief medical officer • commander • commanding officer • communications officer • commissioner • diplomat • doctor • engineer • Federation Starfleet ranks • Federation Starfleet ranks (2260s) • first officer • lieutenant • lieutenant commander • helmsman • medical practitioner • navigator • officer • scientist • science officer • second officer • weapons officer • tactical officer• pilot • police

Other references[]

commerce • warp 10 • self destruct • 20th century • ape • bacteria • blood • Civil Rights Movement • command frequency 2 • commissioner • death warrant • destruct sequence • directional control • due process • evolution • extinction • extradition • genocide • history • hull breach • intergalactic treaty • lava • logic • master computer • master race • memory bank • nucleotide • oxygen • political asylum • racism • recuperative powers • red alert • sabotage • scope • self destruct • shields • skin • slavery • spray tank • tractor beam • vocal cords • volcano • anatomy • arm • beaming • boot • captain's log • captain's log, USS Enterprise, 2268 • city • clothing • coordinates • diplomacy • disease • Federation members • finger • five-year mission • germ • government • homeworld • hour • humanoid • jumpsuit • language • lifeform • log entry • logic • matter • memory • microbe • microorganism • nation-state • orbit • pants • planet • poker • population • quadrant • races and cultures • rank • regulation • ship's log • ship's log, USS Enterprise • space • star • star system • stardate • Starfleet uniform • Starfleet uniform (2260s) • technology • title • tunic • uniform • universe • weapon

Chronology[]

years prior to 2268: Lokai organizes revolutions among the enslaved on Cheron. (prior to episode/novelization)
stardate 5430.2, 2268 (2260s chronology, 2264–2270 Enterprise voyages): Enterprise travels to Ariannus.

Appendices[]

Related media[]

ST reference: Star Charts
- Depicts star charts of the Cheron system and homeworld.
TNG comic: "Here Today"
- A person who identifies themselves as Bele, but has Lokai's coloration, is trapped with the away team.
Ships of the Line 2010
- Shuttlecraft da Vinci

Adaptations[]

Images[]

Connections[]

Star Trek: The Original Series episodes and movies
Season 1	The Cage • "Where No Man Has Gone Before" • "The Corbomite Maneuver" • "Mudd's Women" • "The Enemy Within" • "The Man Trap" • "The Naked Time" • "Charlie X" • "Balance of Terror" • "What Are Little Girls Made Of?" • "Dagger of the Mind" • "Miri" • "The Conscience of the King" • "The Galileo Seven" • "Court Martial" • "The Menagerie" • "Shore Leave" • "The Squire of Gothos" • "Arena" • "The Alternative Factor" • "Tomorrow is Yesterday" • "The Return of the Archons" • "A Taste of Armageddon" • "Space Seed" • "This Side of Paradise" • "The Devil in the Dark" • "Errand of Mercy" • "The City on the Edge of Forever" • "Operation -- Annihilate!"
Season 2	"Catspaw" • "Metamorphosis" • "Friday's Child" • "Who Mourns for Adonais?" • "Amok Time" • "The Doomsday Machine" • "Wolf in the Fold" • "The Changeling" • "The Apple" • "Mirror, Mirror" • "The Deadly Years" • "I, Mudd" • "The Trouble with Tribbles" • "Bread and Circuses" • "Journey to Babel" • "A Private Little War" • "The Gamesters of Triskelion" • "Obsession" • "The Immunity Syndrome" • "A Piece of the Action" • "By Any Other Name" • "Return to Tomorrow" • "Patterns of Force" • "The Ultimate Computer" • "The Omega Glory" • "Assignment: Earth"
Season 3	"Spectre of the Gun" • "Elaan of Troyius" • "The Paradise Syndrome" • "The Enterprise Incident" • "And the Children Shall Lead" • "Spock's Brain" • "Is There in Truth No Beauty?" • "The Empath" • "The Tholian Web" • "For the World is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky" • "Day of the Dove" • "Plato's Stepchildren" • "Wink of an Eye" • "That Which Survives" • "Let That Be Your Last Battlefield" • "Whom Gods Destroy" • "The Mark of Gideon" • "The Lights of Zetar" • "The Cloud Minders" • "The Way to Eden" • "Requiem for Methuselah" • "The Savage Curtain" • "All Our Yesterdays" • "Turnabout Intruder"
TAS	"Beyond the Farthest Star" • "Yesteryear" • "One of Our Planets Is Missing" • "The Lorelei Signal" • "More Tribbles, More Troubles" • "The Survivor" • "The Infinite Vulcan" • "The Magicks of Megas-Tu" • "Once Upon a Planet" • "Mudd's Passion" • "The Terratin Incident" • "The Time Trap" • "The Ambergris Element" • "The Slaver Weapon" • "The Eye of the Beholder" • "The Jihad" • "The Pirates of Orion" • "Bem" • "The Practical Joker" • "Albatross" • "How Sharper Than a Serpent's Tooth?" • "The Counter-Clock Incident"
Movies	The Motion Picture • The Wrath of Khan • The Search for Spock • The Voyage Home • The Final Frontier • The Undiscovered Country • Star Trek • Star Trek Into Darkness • Star Trek Beyond

Timeline[]

published order
Previous episode: That Which Survives	TOS episode produced	Next episode: Whom Gods Destroy
Previous episode: Whom Gods Destroy	TOS episode aired	Next episode: The Mark of Gideon
Previous story: The Tholian Web	Star Trek 5	Next story: This Side of Paradise
chronological order
Previous Adventure: A Sucker Born	Pocket	Next Adventure: Whom Gods Destroy
Previous Adventure: Mudd in Your Eye	Voyages of the USS Enterprise (NCC-1701) (2264 to 2270)	Next Adventure: Crisis on Centaurus

Translations[]

1972: German : Das letzte Schlachtfeld, translated by Hans Maeter. (Williams)

1973: Turkish : Son Savaş Alanı, translated by Reha Pinar. (Altın Kitaplar)

1978: Italian : Un odio di mille anni, translated by Rosella Sanità. (Arnoldo Mondadori Editore)

1978: Japanese : 最後の戦場, translated by Hiroshi Saito. (Hayakawa Bunko)

External links[]

"Let That Be Your Last Battlefield" article at Memory Alpha, the wiki for canon Star Trek.
Let That Be Your Last Battlefield article at Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

↑ The character of Clifford Brent was not named in the episode but the same actor, wearing an officer's Starfleet uniform, was addressed as Brent in TOS episode: "The Naked Time". The same actor also played the character of Vinci.
↑ The character Vinci was not named in the episode but the same actor, wearing the same operations division Starfleet uniform, was addressed as Vinci in TOS episode: "The Devil in the Dark". The same actor also played the character of Clifford Brent.

[ref-brent-1] The character of Clifford Brent was not named in the episode but the same actor, wearing an officer's Starfleet uniform, was addressed as Brent in TOS episode: "The Naked Time". The same actor also played the character of Vinci.

[ref-vinci-2] The character Vinci was not named in the episode but the same actor, wearing the same operations division Starfleet uniform, was addressed as Vinci in TOS episode: "The Devil in the Dark". The same actor also played the character of Clifford Brent.

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