William Riker

In a parallel universe, Commander William Thomas Riker was the first officer of the USS Enterprise-D during the 24th century. As such, Capt. Picard often referred to him as "Number One."

In 2368, Picard sent him on a mission to check up on mining operations on Naia VII. He took Data and Worf with him and found that the mines, which were below the water level of the largely aquatic planet, had been built with insufficient regard to safety. In fact, a section of the mines flooded while he and his team were visiting. Riker was saved from drowning by Lt Cmdr Data.

After Riker returned to the Enterprise, Capt. Picard suggested that he inspect the ship's holodeck, which had just received a systems upgrade. Accompanied by Data and Beverly Crusher, he began a Dixon Hill programme set in 1940s San Francisco. He heard the Doctor's TARDIS materialise, but thought it was a bug in the upgrade. Similarly, when the Eleventh Doctor, Amy Pond and Rory Williams arrived and the Doctor identified Data as an android, Riker assumed that the simulation was malfunctioning, recognising Data as an anachronistic element in the setting. He ended the programme and was surprised to see that the Doctor, Amy, Rory and the TARDIS were not part of the simulation. After Worf escorted the trio to the ship's observation lounge, Riker asked Deanna Troi if she could sense anything from their visitors. The introductions were interrupted by news of the attack on Delta IV. (COMIC: Assimilation²)