Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) selects her new Number One as Captain Saru (Doug Jones) leaves for pastures new at the end of Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 2, “Under the Twin Moons”. Written by Alan McElroy and directed by Doug Aarniokoski, “Under the Twin Moons” depicts Burnham and Saru’s “last dance” together, which takes them to the abandoned planet of Lyrek in the Vileen system in search of the Progenitors’ treasure. Fighting off the planet’s formidable security systems with assistance from Ensign Adira Tal (Blu del Barrio) and a returning Lt. Sylvia Tilly (Mary Wiseman), Burnham and Saru obtain the next clue in their hunt for the Progenitors’ treasure.

Meanwhile, Book (David Ajala) and Dr. Hugh Culber (Wilson Cruz) attempt to create a psychological profile for Moll (Eve Harlow) and L’ak (Elias Toufexis), which reveals some surprising information. While Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 2, “Under the Twin Moons” largely focused on Saru’s action-packed last day as a Starfleet officer, it also provides tantalizing teases about the backstories for Discovery‘s new heroes and villains. As the reshuffled crew of the USS Discovery head toward their next location, it will be interesting to see if these new dynamics will help or hinder the hunt for the Progenitors’ technology as Discovery season 5 continues.

Rayner Is Burnham’s New Number One

Discovery’s Saru replacement isn’t a yes man.

At the start of Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 2, Captain Rayner (Callum Keith Rennie) was severely reprimanded for his reckless actions on Q’Mau, jeopardizing his future as a Starfleet officer. However, despite this, Rayner reached out to the USS Discovery, helping Tilly and Adira find solutions to Burnham and Saru’s predicament on Vleen. This impressed Burnham, who recognized that Rayner’s gruffness and his recklessness on Q’Mau were borne out of an unwavering commitment to the mission at hand, and an overriding desire to protect Starfleet and the Federation.

Which is why, at the end of Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 2, Burnham requests to have Rayner assigned to the USS Discovery as her Number One. Burnham’s decision is also inspired by Saru, who saw her potential way back in Star Trek: Discovery season 1, even when she was a convicted mutineer. Now that Saru has left the USS Discovery, she wants to honor his legacy by giving Kellerun Captain Rayner the sort of second chance that she too was afforded.

Burnham and Rayner’s dynamic should be fascinating to watch during Star Trek:Discovery season 5, especially as she’s made it very clear that she doesn’t want him to be a “yes man“, nor does Rayner wish to be one. More interesting still is that, by selecting Rayner, Burnham is ignoring Saru’s initial suggestion of her ex-lover, Book, for the role of Discovery’s new First Officer. Hopefully, later episodes will drill down into why the unpredictable and reckless Rayner is a better Number One for Burnham than the man that she used to trust with her life.

“Action Saru” Has Officially Left The USS Discovery

The Kelpien lives up to his nickname on his final Starfleet mission.

There are moments in Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 2, “Under the Twin Moons” that play on the cop show cliché of the detective being killed on their last shift before retirement. Thankfully, Star Trek‘s first Kelpien doesn’t meet his end on the mission to Lyrek, even if he does sustain some minor injuries while living up to his “Action Saru” nickname. While Michael believes that the nickname was given to Saru by Booker, her Number One reveals that “Action Saru” originated with Discovery’s acerbic engineer, Commander Jett Reno (Tig Notaro), who was impressed by how he handled himself in the 32nd century.

Saru’s Kelpien abilities made him the ideal candidate to temporarily disable Lyrek’s security systems for long enough to retrieve the next clue. Every skill that Saru possesses is on display in his final Star Trek: Discovery away mission; moving through the jungle at speed, dodging phaser blasts, and shooting drone-destroying needles from his neck. All that’s left is a final touching farewell between Saru and Burnham, in which he advises her on how to look after his garden, before he heads off to Federation Headquarters to take up his new diplomatic role.

Moll And Booker Have A Family Connection

Book’s mentor was Moll’s father.

The end of Star Trek: Discovery season 4 saw Book sentenced to community service for his crimes against the United Federation of Planets and Species 10-C. After months of helping to resettle the refugees left homeless by the DMA, Book has now been assigned to the USS Discovery to track fellow Couriers, Moll and L’ak. Studying the intelligence that Discovery has acquired thus far, Book recognizes that they’re a couple in love, not unlike Burnham and Book were at the start of Discovery season 3. Convincing Moll and L’ak to talk to him, Book isn’t able to lure the couple into his trap, as they once again evade Discovery.

However, Moll’s birthmark reveals something more surprising; that L’ak’s partner in crime is Moleen, the daughter of Book’s mentor, Cleveland Booker IV. Book tells Culber that while he never met his mentor’s daughter, he had seen a holo-image, suggesting that father and child were separated when Moll was around 7 years old. As Booker lost his entire family and home planet to the Dark Matter Anomaly in Star Trek: Discovery season 4, Moll now represents the closest thing he has to a sister. However, it remains to be seen if this family connection will be enough to convince Moll to turn her back on her villainous ways.

Admiral Vance Has A History With Rayner

They saw action together after the Burn.

It first becomes clear that Captain Rayner and Admiral Charles Vance (Oded Fehr) during the investigation into the events on Q’Mau. After Vance quietly chides Rayner for not helping his case, he later thanks Burnham for her words of support. Vance and Rayner’s connection becomes clearer at the end of Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 2, when the Admiral reveals that the two men saw action together. Unlike Vance, Rayner is struggling to readjust to a time of peace in the Federation, warning President Laira Rillak (Chelah Horsdal) that “war is always a possibility.”

Vance and Rayner’s friendship stretches back 30 years, meaning that they served together during the aftermath of the Burn. This 30-year bond enabled Vance to quietly convince Rayner to take early retirement, rather than leave Starfleet and the USS Antares, in disgrace. Admiral Vance was clearly touched when Burnham requested Rayner as her Number One, perhaps recognizing that she was the one officer who might get through to his wayward friend.

Tilly Is Back As Discovery’s Science Advisor

She’s on loan from Starfleet Academy.

After showing signs of frustration with the current crop of Starfleet Academy cadets in Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 1, Tilly gets assigned to her old ship in the second half of Star Trek: Discovery‘s season 5 premiere. On loan from Starfleet Academy, Tilly is the USS Discovery’s science advisor for the duration of their hunt for the Progenitors’ technology. Given that it was Tilly who unearthed the recordings of Dr. Vellek (Michael Copeman) in the first place, this only seems fair. In episode 2, Tilly teams up with Adira – who is glad to have their friend and mentor back – to provide assistance to Burnham and Saru on their mission to Vleen.

Tilly’s return to Star Trek: Discovery and her interactions with Captain Rayner’s hologram suggest some fun material to come for both Mary Wiseman and Callum Keith Rennie. It’s also fitting that, as Saru, one of Burnham’s early champions, leaves Discovery, another of her closest friends and supporters comes back aboard. Tilly is also able to lend an ear to Adira’s concerns about their relationship with Gray Tal (Ian Alexander), as they become more comfortable with their role aboard the Discovery. It’s therefore hard to deny that Tilly being back aboard the USS Discovery is a very good thing indeed.

Discovery Has The First Piece Of The Treasure Map

All five pieces will lead to the Progenitors’ technology.

With the next piece of the puzzle – a piece of patterned stone – taken from Lyrek, Captain Burnham and the crew set to work figuring out what it means to Star Trek: Discovery‘s treasure hunt. Consulting Dr. Vellek’s journal once again, Commander Paul Stamets (Anthony Rapp) sees a link between the piece of stone and the illustrations in the journal. Producing a 3D version of the sketch, Stamets and Burnham realize that the stone segment fits neatly into one of the patterned slots like a jigsaw piece.

Burnham surmises that this is one part of a treasure map that will lead to the Progenitors’ technology and the source of all humanoid life in the universe. Once all five segments are assembled, it will somehow show the USS Discovery the way to where the secrets of existence are hidden. While this is an exciting development, there are still four pieces left to find, and Moll and L’ak are hot on the trail as Star Trek: Discovery season 5 continues.

The Next Piece Of Season 5’s Treasure Map Is On Trill

Adira and Gray are about to be reunited.

As well as the piece of the treasure map, Burnham and Saru also found a poem that provided the next location. The full poem was obscured by one of Lyrek’s many statues, meaning that Moll and L’ak only read the first verses, which would lead them to Betazed. Reading further, Saru recounted the next verses of the poem, and they were words that spoke to Adira and their thoughts about Gray.

“A world like no other, where two souls entwine, join as one…”

This, combined with the mention of water, invoked memories of the Trill homeworld for Adira. As the USS Discovery heads to Trill in Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 3, “Jinaal”, Adira and Gray will be forced to confront their relationship. However, romantic reconciliations may need to take a backseat if Moll and L’ak are already heading to Trill to find the next piece of the Progenitors’ puzzle.