Star Trek: The Next Generation s02e11 Episode Script
Contagion
Captain's log, stardate 42609.
1.
In response to a desperate plea from my old friend|Capt Donald Varley of the USS Yamato, I'm running a grave risk by taking the Enterprise|into the Neutral Zone.
Dangerous malfunctions|have been plaguing our sister ship.
Perhaps if both crews work together,|we can eliminate the problems before our presence is detected|by the Romulans.
How long to rendezvous, Mr Crusher? Four minutes and 33 seconds, sir.
Status of download, Mr Data? The Yamato log should be|in our computer by rendezvous.
Have you nailed down our hiccup? - Sir?|- The odd reading? No, sir.
It might be due to problems|being experienced by the Yamato.
Trouble, Number One? I'm not sure.
|Are we alone out here, Worf? Yes.
There are no other vessels|except the Yamato, which is coming|into visual range now.
At last.
- Transmission from the Yamato, sir.
|- On viewer.
What's a nice Captain|doing in a place like this? It's good to see you again,|despite your antique humour.
I hope your people can help us.
Malfunctions are becoming serious.
We lost an Engineering team when a computer shut down|a force field in a shuttle bay.
Any idea what caused this, sir? None.
They affect|every system simultaneously.
It's like the ship|decided to fall apart.
Maybe we should have run|these Galaxy-class ships across more drawing boards|before we built one.
You believe it's a design flaw? I don't know.
I'm grasping at straws.
We must fix it before I lose|more than an Engineering team.
Do you wish to evacuate any|nonessential personnel, sir? No.
That would be premature.
We'll get our teams|to work on it immediately.
I'm not comfortable|sitting around in the Neutral Zone.
I know you're wondering|what the hell I'm doing here.
Well, I heard rumours about|a couple of archaeological digs that made the Iconians|sound a lot less like legend.
I did a little investigating|and I located their home world.
In the Neutral Zone? In the Neutral Zone.
That was quite a risk to run|to satisfy archaeological curiosity! The risk would be in allowing|the Romulans to locate Iconia.
Fortunately, I got there first.
It's a virtually dead planet.
Enough technology remains to give|the Romulans an edge if they find Your transmission is breaking up.
Mr Data, try and clean that up.
Sir, there is an energy build-up|in the Yamato's Engineering section.
Yamato, this is the Enterprise.
Yamato, come in.
Magnetic seals in|the antimatter chamber are decaying! Captain! Donald, come in! Shields up.
Sir.
Sensors indicate|no life reading, sir.
Captain, another vessel|is coming within sensor range.
It is Romulan.
Space, the final frontier.
These are the voyages|of the Starship Enterprise.
Its continuing mission,|to explore strange new worlds, .
.
to seek out new life|and new civilizations, .
.
to boldly go|where no one has gone before.
Captain's log, supplemental.
The Yamato's entire crew|and their families, more than 1,000 people,|have been lost.
Circumstances unfortunately|permit us no pause for grief.
No response from the Romulan vessel.
Arm phasers and prepare|to lock on target.
Did they attack the Yamato? Unknown, sir.
Their weapon systems have been|fully activated.
Still no response.
Romulan vessel, this is Capt|Jean-Luc Picard of the Enterprise.
Capt Picard.
Explain your illegal presence|in the Neutral Zone! Explain yours.
Are you responsible|for the destruction of the Yamato? No.
But believe me, had we ex ercised|our right to defend the Neutral Zone, we would not have stopped|with one starship.
You will leave at once.
- Mute.
|- Comments.
- She's extremely anxious.
|- She just destroyed a starship.
Your scan was inconclusive.
|We don't know what happened.
Our presence here is provocative.
|It could force her to respond.
- Open.
|- We will comply when I know the cause|of the destruction of the Yamato, and I am satisfied|you were not responsible.
Picard out.
- Their cloaking device is engaged.
|- Good.
They can't fire.
Unless they have overcome|that deficiency.
The Yamato was destroyed|while they were cloaked.
Enough.
|I want answers, not conjecture.
Number One,|I want them at a meeting in one hour.
Aye, sir.
Sensors reveal that what we saw|was an uncontrolled and catastrophic|matter/antimatter mix.
The magnetic seals|between the chambers collapsed and Wait! That's not possible.
It is, but a highly improbable set|of circumstances has to take place.
Explain.
OK.
In the event|of a breach of seal integrity, there's a release system|which dumps the antimatter.
Such a dump began, was halted, and|the containment seals were dropped.
There was enough antimatter present|to lead to an explosion.
There is no evidence of weapon use? No, sir, none.
However it happened,|the Yamato did it to herself.
Theorize.
What could have caused|such a catastrophic malfunction? Capt Varley may have been right.
|There may be a design flaw.
In a Galaxy-class starship? Yes, sir.
It's the most|sophisticated machine ever built.
Maybe something was overlooked.
Knowing where the flaw is located,|can you isolate it and solve it? We're already working on it, sir.
Pull any personnel you can use.
If we have established|that the Romulans were not behind|the destruction of the Yamato, would it not be prudent to withdraw? If it is a design flaw,|we're better to stay where we are and give Geordi time to work on it.
Or what happened to the Yamato|could happen to us.
Computer, access|Capt Donald Varley's personal log.
Search parameter.
Locate entries containing words|Romulan and/or Iconian.
Working.
Personal log.
It was kind of Dr Ramsey to allow me|to take my own piece of legend from the archaeological dig|at Denius III.
My engineers have examined it, but are completely baffled|by its technology.
What was its purpose? I'm like a caveman|confronted by a tricorder.
I'm certain this device is Iconian, but how far had it travelled|before it was abandoned on this alien world? Personal log.
A galactic Rosetta stone.
The star fields on the artifact|were unintelligible until I took into account|200 millennia of stellar drift.
After that, it was easy|to pinpoint Iconia.
My First Officer is questioning my|order to violate the Neutral Zone.
But I'm convinced|I've taken the only proper course.
Should this technology fall|into the hands of the Romulans we might as well dock our ships|and defend ourselves with sticks.
Personal log.
We've been|spotted by a Romulan cruiser.
After playing hide-and-seek|through several solar systems, I think I've managed to elude them.
The Iconian probe scan.
Was it an attempt at communication? If only I knew|what we were dealing with here.
Personal log.
I can't send a team to the surface|of Iconia or scan its energy source because of these maddening|systems failures.
It's infuriating to be stopped at the|threshold of a dream by my own ship.
We're leaving orbit|to rendezvous with Picard.
If he can't help us|repair the Yamato, I must convince him|to continue this exploration.
The future wellbeing of the|Federation may well depend on it.
No further entries|conforming to search parameters.
Mr Data.
There's a reference in Varley's log|to a probe that scanned the Yamato.
Aye, sir.
We have a visual record.
Put it on main viewer.
What the devil is that? Have you seen|anything like that before? No, sir.
It appears to be|a scanner, possibly a transmitter.
- Transmitting what?|- Unknown, sir.
Engineering.
La Forge.
Any progress on|the matter&antimatter scan? Everything continues to check out.
|Now analyzing the magnetic coils.
When the Yamato was probed,|where was she? In orbit around a planet|at coordinates 227, mark 359.
ETA at warp factor eight? Sir.
That would put us close to|the Romulan side of the Neutral Zone.
Can't be helped.
Lay in a course.
- Warp factor eight.
|- Aye, sir.
- We'll assume the Yamato's mission.
|- And risk a war? Perhaps prevent one.
Come.
Sir, may I speak with you a moment? Yes, of course.
Well, what is it, Wesley? It's about the Iconians, sir.
I was told they were just a myth.
China was thought to be a myth|until Marco Polo went there.
The Iconians are certainly real.
|Sit down.
We know that three systems|within this sector had several cultural similarities|which could only be explained by there being a unifying influence.
So they colonized those worlds? Probably conquered.
- You mean they were warlike?|- Perhaps.
Ancient texts did speak|of "Demons of Air and Darkness".
Air and darkness? Legend has it that they travelled|without the benefit of spaceships, merely appearing out of thin air|on distant planets.
Sounds like magic! Well, we would appear magical|to Stone Age people.
How did you find this out? Archaeology has been a hobby|of mine since Academy days.
But why don't we talk about|what really brought you here? It's the Yamato, Captain.
I can't stop thinking about her.
All those people, .
.
dead! I don't know how you|and Cmdr Riker and Geordi, how you handle it so easily.
Easily? No, not easily.
We handle it|because we're trained to, .
.
as you will be.
Tea, Earl Grey, hot.
But if ever the time comes when the death of a single|individual fails to move us - Didn't you order tea, sir?|- Now that should not have happened.
Captain's log, supplemental.
|As happened to our sister ship, the Enterprise is experiencing|a series of system failures.
So far they are random, but they could be early symptoms|of what happened to the Yamato.
- Engineering.
|- La Forge.
Any progress on solving our problems? No, but I can eliminate one worry.
|It is not a design flaw.
Reviewing the Yamato logs, I think that probe had something|to do with their problems.
- How?|- I need to see the thing.
If it was the probe,|that explains the Yamato.
But how do you explain|the Enterprise's difficulties? I can't.
Are our problems likely to attain|the seriousness of the Yamato's? If you're asking for speculation,|I'd say yes.
I need time.
Mr La Forge, time is one thing|we do not have in abundance.
Analysis, Mr Data.
Scanning, sir.
- Well, Mr Data?|- No life-form readings, sir.
All major cities have been damaged.
The destruction is consistent|with large-scale orbital bombardment.
How long ago? Approximately 200,000 years, sir.
There is an energy source in|the smaller continent's mountains.
Magnify.
Is that Iconia? Capt Varley died|believing that it was.
Did you see that? Projectile launched|from the planet surface! Its size and composition match|the probe which scanned the Yamato.
Shields up.
Prepare a tractor beam.
Mr La Forge, I'm going|to assist you in your research.
A probe|has been launched from Iconia.
I'm going to capture it.
No, sir! Wait! Captain! Coming through! Bridge! Emergency! Stop! Stop! Damn it! Tractor beam ready, sir.
- Geordi, are you alright?|- Destroy the probe, sir! Quickly! Worf, target phasers.
- Phasers locked on target.
|- Fire! Welcome to the bridge, Mr La Forge.
Thank you, sir.
If that thing|had managed to scan us, we'd have had no chance|of saving the Enterprise.
That probe was transmitting|an alien computer program.
That program is now on the Enterprise|trying to rewrite our software.
We have two completely incompatible|computer systems trying to interact.
That's why our instruments|are so erratic? - Yes.
|- What can you do? Not much.
The Iconian program is so|sophisticated, I may never crack it.
Consider, Captain, this program|has entered an alien database, ours.
In less than seven hours|it has learned our systems and begun to reprogram our computer.
The earlier probe was responsible|for the Yamato's destruction? Yes.
Only inasmuch as it was the|probe that transmitted the program.
We weren't scanned by that probe.
|How did it get aboard the Enterprise? We downloaded the Yamato log,|and in that log was the program.
Why didn't we suffer the same fate? The program affected|the Yamato's systems simultaneously.
Here, it was deposited within|a specific section of our mainframe.
It has to work its way out.
|It gives us some breathing space.
Not much.
Injury reports|are increasing, too, sir.
Dr Pulaski does not trust|the turbo lifts.
She is sending her teams|through access tunnels.
The Enterprise computer|is a lot like our own bodies, with voluntary|and involuntary systems.
Completely out of our control.
We're sitting on a bomb that could|go off any second.
Or maybe never.
The biobeds aren't working?|The ship is falling apart! I've had 35 emergency calls|scattered across 12 decks.
My trauma teams are being|run ragged trying to respond.
Biobeds! - Dr Pulaski?|- Yes? I've got a problem here.
|The knitter isn't working.
Try a splint.
- Doctor?|- Splint.
It's an ancient concept.
You take two flat pieces of wood,|or plastic, a bandage.
- The broken limb is kept immobile.
|- That's not practising medicine.
Yes, it is.
|It's a time-honoured way.
With your head, your heart|and your hands.
So jump to it.
Damn.
Try a bypass on|the shield-control interface.
No go.
Let me see if I can directly|access the master program.
- What happened?|- Any answer would be speculation.
This is yet another example of how|our actions have random results.
Thanks, Data.
I noticed.
Life support has failed|on decks seven and 13, sir.
What if this thing|can rewrite our entire system? It's so far beyond our understanding,|never mind our control.
Our own ignorance could kill us.
We may never We may never reach that point.
A variation of what happened|to the Yamato may destroy us first.
So, we sit and watch our ship|disintegrate around us? The probe was launched from Iconia.
Probably from an automated system.
There may be records|near the launch site that could help us find a solution.
- I'll arrange an away team.
|- And I'll lead it.
- You will lead it?|- Yes.
We've had this conversation|a hundred times.
And we will have it again.
I have|studied the Iconians.
I have to go.
The Enterprise is yours.
For as long as she lasts.
I've got a lock on the energy source|and it's working.
- But that could change.
|- We're aware of the risks.
Energize.
Transport complete.
Stay sharp.
I want to be able to|pull them out at a moment's notice.
Aye, sir.
- Commander, Romulan vessel.
|- Open hailing frequencies.
- They're arming torpedoes!|- Shields up! Go to red alert.
- The shields aren't responding!|- They're preparing to fire! Mr Crusher, I need those shields! - I'm trying, sir!|- They're firing! What happened? Instead of firing,|they disarmed and cancelled.
Fate .
.
protects fools, little children|and ships named Enterprise.
Lock phasers on them|and hold your fire.
- Sir, the shields are back up.
|- Impeccable timing.
Sir, the shields are back down.
- Phaser banks are down.
|- Shields are back up.
Another time and place,|this could be funny.
Status of torpedo banks? They're down, too.
If we have to fight, could you|find me some rocks to throw? Sir, the Romulan torpedoes|are continuing to arm and disarm.
Perhaps its attempt|to fire was unintentional.
- Open hailing frequencies.
|- Open.
Romulan vessel, this is Cmdr William|Riker of the USS Enterprise.
Why did you attempt to fire on us? This is Subcommander Taris|of the Haakona.
Why have you penetrated deeper|into the Neutral Zone? Why are you still here? I have claimed this planet|for the Romulan Empire.
This is the Neutral Zone.
|No one can claim anything.
Withdraw or I'll have to destroy|your ship and your away team! What the hell? This is your final warning.
|I will not Trouble with your systems, Commander? Maybe we should consider|postponing the war .
.
until we solve|our more immediate problem.
You're stalling for time.
Sir, another probe launched.
|Heading for the Romulans.
- Have we got our phasers back?|- No, sir.
Taris, if you have phaser capability,|prepare to use them now! - What?|- Destroy that probe! And not even a thank you.
She is frustrated, probably because|her ship is as crippled as ours.
Why would the Romulans be having|problems? They weren't probed.
They must have tapped into|the Yamato log.
Taris got more|than she bargained for.
Maintain red alert.
Try to keep our shields up in case|Taris decides to act on her threat.
Commander.
What about the away team? With the|shields up, we can't beam them back.
Captain's log, supplemental.
There is little left|on the surface of Iconia, but we have found a control centre|which seems to have remained intact.
Come in, Enterprise.
Still no response, sir.
Keep trying.
Communications|are bound to be erratic.
I would not like to become|a permanent resident of this planet.
Nor would l, Mr Worf.
Scanners show no other life forms|on the planet, sir.
I would not expect any.
Judging from the severity|of the bombardment, I doubt any Iconians survived.
Mr Data, let's see|what sense we can make of this.
Aye, sir.
- This is reminiscent of Dinasian.
|- Yes, sir.
There are also similarities|to Dewan and Iccobar.
Is it possible they form one language|family, beginning with Iconian? It is, sir.
Run a comparison using basic words|from Dinasian, Dewan and Iccobar.
See if we can reconstruct|a common root language.
Accessing, sir.
You're jumpy.
The tension on the ship is very high.
Any recommendation? Give everyone something to do,|to focus their attention.
Alright.
Let's consider evacuation.
For the planet? I know it's probably impossible|with Taris sitting out there, but it would give everyone|something to do.
You go and organise it.
You may need me if you have|to negotiate with Taris.
I'll manage.
Right now, they're more important.
Captain.
Your original hypothesis is correct.
Iconian is the parent tongue|of a language family consisting of Iccobar,|Dewan and Dinasian.
I've constructed an understanding|through a comparison of root words, such as mother, father, child, home,|tribe, food, life, death, yours You know my interpretation|of the signals will not be exact? Yes.
Let's get on with it.
This appears to be manual override.
That was not manual override.
Demons of Air and Darkness indeed.
- What is that?|- A gateway? These scenes|could be holographic images.
Be careful! - That was very foolish.
|- But proves this is not a holograph.
If I stepped through, we could see|if this is truly a gateway.
No, Data.
You might not get back.
|I can't risk losing you.
This gate would seem to take us|beyond the confines of this planet.
Is this how the Iconians travelled? Crossing light years|as easily as we would cross a room? Those places could be on worlds|in distant corners of the galaxy.
I think the Iconians|might have outfoxed their enemies.
Maybe they didn't all die|in the bombardment.
Some of them|could have passed through this.
This is what Varley feared.
- This is what he died for.
|- Sir? The Romulans could use|this technology as a weapon.
- Like the Iconians did.
|- No, I disagree.
Captain, nothing here indicates|this was a military command centre.
Perhaps a transporter room? - The probe was hostile.
|- We can't make that assumption.
It devastated the Yamato, but what|if it was by accident not design? What I'm going to say|may sound unscientific, but standing on this soil,|breathing in this air, my instincts say|we may have got them wrong.
We do know the Iconians|were conquerors.
Only according to descendants|of those who attacked this world.
The victors invariably write|history to their advantage.
It is an unfortunate tendency|in many cultures to fear what they do not understand.
It's possible that their enemies,|confronted by this technology, may have attacked the Iconians|out of fear.
Sir! Was that really the Enterprise? I believe that it was.
Gentlemen, we have a way home.
Captain, there is a vast|underground power source which is controlled by this console.
I believe my triggering|of the gateway has caused an upsurge|in the power level.
I have access.
Data, can you hear me? Data, respond.
Captain - Are you alright?|- No I am damaged.
How bad is it? The Iconian program is attempting|to rewrite my software.
Physical manifestations,|blindness, motor cont Sir, without him we have no hope|of deciphering the program.
Captain.
The Enterprise again.
How long is the interval? About four minutes.
|If the cycle holds.
Next time the Enterprise appears,|go through it with Data.
Geordi can learn from him.
|Maybe help him.
- We don't know if that is a gateway.
|- This will be the test.
Aye, sir.
Destroy the tricorder.
It contains everything|we've discovered up to this point.
Precisely why it must be destroyed.
How long? About three minutes.
I'm running out of time.
We all are.
Data.
I have to destroy this.
This control room must not be allowed|to fall into Romulan hands.
I understand, sir.
How? How do I do it?|How do I destroy everything? The control room,|the probes, all of it! The power source, sir.
I detonate it.
- But how? How do I do that?|- The probes, sir.
Probes? The probes? Launch? I launch the probes? But why? - What good will that do?|- The doors, sir.
Doors? Perhaps the probes|are in a launch bay.
If the doors are closed, the backwash from the rockets|will overload the power bridge.
Yes, sir.
The doors open automatically|when the launch begins.
- And I will override.
|- Correct, sir.
Which control keys? Damn.
You can't see.
Help.
Worf, help him up.
Describe, please.
I'm in front of the gate.
To my left|there is a small triangular screen.
Right.
One meter.
Right.
To my right is a larger screen.
|The top is solid amber.
- The left, red|- Correct.
Key, blue, |amber, amber, red.
That's the launch sequence? How do I override the doors? Blue, blue, blue.
I hope that's not a stutter.
I don't know what the delay is|between launch and detonation.
I won't key the launch sequence|until you're through the gate.
How long until|the Enterprise reappears? Almost time.
Captain, .
.
you will be killed.
- I'll go through the gate.
|- But where will you end up? Very shortly, anywhere|will be preferable to this room.
Mr Worf, I am depending on you|to get Data back to the Enterprise.
He may be their only hope.
Aye, sir.
- Commander, look.
|- What happened? Where's the Captain? We must take Data to Engineering.
|Hopefully the Captain will follow.
I don't know how to help him.
|Comparing recorded norms to these current readings shows all|his functions are just going crazy! If we had an expert,|a Maddox, somebody He's gone.
What the hell? - I am accessing.
|- The self-correcting mechanism.
Captain? It's kicking in to make minute|adjustments in the positronic brain.
I am on the Enterprise!|How did I get here? He cleared the Iconian program|from his system.
How? I was on Iconia,|now I am on the Enterprise.
- This is critical.
How?|- Give me a second to think.
There was an incompatible program|in Data's system.
The mechanism looked for a way to|keep him alive.
The solution The solution was a shutdown|and a total wipe of affected memory.
- Inquiry.
What have I forgotten?|- Can you do it with the Enterprise? I don't see why not.
|But it must be a complete shutdown to effect a wipe of the Yamato log, including every event|since we downloaded it.
I'll reload the ship's programs|from the archives in the core.
Geordi, if we shut down, it means|we'll be bringing down the shields.
We're hanging nose to nose|with the Romulans! Whether it's Romulan phasers or our|own warp engines, we're just as dead.
Make it so.
May I help? All systems functioning.
- Lock on the Captain, get him back.
|- Scanning, sir.
Got him! - I've lost him.
|- Damn it! Got him, sir.
- On the Romulan ship!|- How the hell? Go to your stations.
You did this! - You sabotaged my ship!|- No.
I cannot deactivate|the auto-destruct, but at least I have the satisfaction|that you will die with us.
Not, I think, today, Commander.
Bridge, Picard.
Take us out of here.
The Romulan vessel|is set to auto-destruct.
Wait! Open hailing frequencies.
Cmdr Taris, our Chief Engineer will|transmit how to purge your system.
Agreed, Enterprise.
Standing by.
Commander, your transmission|has been received and acknowledged.
Now, Mr Data, warp speed, please.
In case Taris's engineer|is not as efficient as La Forge.
Aye, sir.
Well, Number One, I see why you|keep the away missions to yourself.
That's where the excitement is.
|What's been happening here? Same old routine, I suppose?
1.
In response to a desperate plea from my old friend|Capt Donald Varley of the USS Yamato, I'm running a grave risk by taking the Enterprise|into the Neutral Zone.
Dangerous malfunctions|have been plaguing our sister ship.
Perhaps if both crews work together,|we can eliminate the problems before our presence is detected|by the Romulans.
How long to rendezvous, Mr Crusher? Four minutes and 33 seconds, sir.
Status of download, Mr Data? The Yamato log should be|in our computer by rendezvous.
Have you nailed down our hiccup? - Sir?|- The odd reading? No, sir.
It might be due to problems|being experienced by the Yamato.
Trouble, Number One? I'm not sure.
|Are we alone out here, Worf? Yes.
There are no other vessels|except the Yamato, which is coming|into visual range now.
At last.
- Transmission from the Yamato, sir.
|- On viewer.
What's a nice Captain|doing in a place like this? It's good to see you again,|despite your antique humour.
I hope your people can help us.
Malfunctions are becoming serious.
We lost an Engineering team when a computer shut down|a force field in a shuttle bay.
Any idea what caused this, sir? None.
They affect|every system simultaneously.
It's like the ship|decided to fall apart.
Maybe we should have run|these Galaxy-class ships across more drawing boards|before we built one.
You believe it's a design flaw? I don't know.
I'm grasping at straws.
We must fix it before I lose|more than an Engineering team.
Do you wish to evacuate any|nonessential personnel, sir? No.
That would be premature.
We'll get our teams|to work on it immediately.
I'm not comfortable|sitting around in the Neutral Zone.
I know you're wondering|what the hell I'm doing here.
Well, I heard rumours about|a couple of archaeological digs that made the Iconians|sound a lot less like legend.
I did a little investigating|and I located their home world.
In the Neutral Zone? In the Neutral Zone.
That was quite a risk to run|to satisfy archaeological curiosity! The risk would be in allowing|the Romulans to locate Iconia.
Fortunately, I got there first.
It's a virtually dead planet.
Enough technology remains to give|the Romulans an edge if they find Your transmission is breaking up.
Mr Data, try and clean that up.
Sir, there is an energy build-up|in the Yamato's Engineering section.
Yamato, this is the Enterprise.
Yamato, come in.
Magnetic seals in|the antimatter chamber are decaying! Captain! Donald, come in! Shields up.
Sir.
Sensors indicate|no life reading, sir.
Captain, another vessel|is coming within sensor range.
It is Romulan.
Space, the final frontier.
These are the voyages|of the Starship Enterprise.
Its continuing mission,|to explore strange new worlds, .
.
to seek out new life|and new civilizations, .
.
to boldly go|where no one has gone before.
Captain's log, supplemental.
The Yamato's entire crew|and their families, more than 1,000 people,|have been lost.
Circumstances unfortunately|permit us no pause for grief.
No response from the Romulan vessel.
Arm phasers and prepare|to lock on target.
Did they attack the Yamato? Unknown, sir.
Their weapon systems have been|fully activated.
Still no response.
Romulan vessel, this is Capt|Jean-Luc Picard of the Enterprise.
Capt Picard.
Explain your illegal presence|in the Neutral Zone! Explain yours.
Are you responsible|for the destruction of the Yamato? No.
But believe me, had we ex ercised|our right to defend the Neutral Zone, we would not have stopped|with one starship.
You will leave at once.
- Mute.
|- Comments.
- She's extremely anxious.
|- She just destroyed a starship.
Your scan was inconclusive.
|We don't know what happened.
Our presence here is provocative.
|It could force her to respond.
- Open.
|- We will comply when I know the cause|of the destruction of the Yamato, and I am satisfied|you were not responsible.
Picard out.
- Their cloaking device is engaged.
|- Good.
They can't fire.
Unless they have overcome|that deficiency.
The Yamato was destroyed|while they were cloaked.
Enough.
|I want answers, not conjecture.
Number One,|I want them at a meeting in one hour.
Aye, sir.
Sensors reveal that what we saw|was an uncontrolled and catastrophic|matter/antimatter mix.
The magnetic seals|between the chambers collapsed and Wait! That's not possible.
It is, but a highly improbable set|of circumstances has to take place.
Explain.
OK.
In the event|of a breach of seal integrity, there's a release system|which dumps the antimatter.
Such a dump began, was halted, and|the containment seals were dropped.
There was enough antimatter present|to lead to an explosion.
There is no evidence of weapon use? No, sir, none.
However it happened,|the Yamato did it to herself.
Theorize.
What could have caused|such a catastrophic malfunction? Capt Varley may have been right.
|There may be a design flaw.
In a Galaxy-class starship? Yes, sir.
It's the most|sophisticated machine ever built.
Maybe something was overlooked.
Knowing where the flaw is located,|can you isolate it and solve it? We're already working on it, sir.
Pull any personnel you can use.
If we have established|that the Romulans were not behind|the destruction of the Yamato, would it not be prudent to withdraw? If it is a design flaw,|we're better to stay where we are and give Geordi time to work on it.
Or what happened to the Yamato|could happen to us.
Computer, access|Capt Donald Varley's personal log.
Search parameter.
Locate entries containing words|Romulan and/or Iconian.
Working.
Personal log.
It was kind of Dr Ramsey to allow me|to take my own piece of legend from the archaeological dig|at Denius III.
My engineers have examined it, but are completely baffled|by its technology.
What was its purpose? I'm like a caveman|confronted by a tricorder.
I'm certain this device is Iconian, but how far had it travelled|before it was abandoned on this alien world? Personal log.
A galactic Rosetta stone.
The star fields on the artifact|were unintelligible until I took into account|200 millennia of stellar drift.
After that, it was easy|to pinpoint Iconia.
My First Officer is questioning my|order to violate the Neutral Zone.
But I'm convinced|I've taken the only proper course.
Should this technology fall|into the hands of the Romulans we might as well dock our ships|and defend ourselves with sticks.
Personal log.
We've been|spotted by a Romulan cruiser.
After playing hide-and-seek|through several solar systems, I think I've managed to elude them.
The Iconian probe scan.
Was it an attempt at communication? If only I knew|what we were dealing with here.
Personal log.
I can't send a team to the surface|of Iconia or scan its energy source because of these maddening|systems failures.
It's infuriating to be stopped at the|threshold of a dream by my own ship.
We're leaving orbit|to rendezvous with Picard.
If he can't help us|repair the Yamato, I must convince him|to continue this exploration.
The future wellbeing of the|Federation may well depend on it.
No further entries|conforming to search parameters.
Mr Data.
There's a reference in Varley's log|to a probe that scanned the Yamato.
Aye, sir.
We have a visual record.
Put it on main viewer.
What the devil is that? Have you seen|anything like that before? No, sir.
It appears to be|a scanner, possibly a transmitter.
- Transmitting what?|- Unknown, sir.
Engineering.
La Forge.
Any progress on|the matter&antimatter scan? Everything continues to check out.
|Now analyzing the magnetic coils.
When the Yamato was probed,|where was she? In orbit around a planet|at coordinates 227, mark 359.
ETA at warp factor eight? Sir.
That would put us close to|the Romulan side of the Neutral Zone.
Can't be helped.
Lay in a course.
- Warp factor eight.
|- Aye, sir.
- We'll assume the Yamato's mission.
|- And risk a war? Perhaps prevent one.
Come.
Sir, may I speak with you a moment? Yes, of course.
Well, what is it, Wesley? It's about the Iconians, sir.
I was told they were just a myth.
China was thought to be a myth|until Marco Polo went there.
The Iconians are certainly real.
|Sit down.
We know that three systems|within this sector had several cultural similarities|which could only be explained by there being a unifying influence.
So they colonized those worlds? Probably conquered.
- You mean they were warlike?|- Perhaps.
Ancient texts did speak|of "Demons of Air and Darkness".
Air and darkness? Legend has it that they travelled|without the benefit of spaceships, merely appearing out of thin air|on distant planets.
Sounds like magic! Well, we would appear magical|to Stone Age people.
How did you find this out? Archaeology has been a hobby|of mine since Academy days.
But why don't we talk about|what really brought you here? It's the Yamato, Captain.
I can't stop thinking about her.
All those people, .
.
dead! I don't know how you|and Cmdr Riker and Geordi, how you handle it so easily.
Easily? No, not easily.
We handle it|because we're trained to, .
.
as you will be.
Tea, Earl Grey, hot.
But if ever the time comes when the death of a single|individual fails to move us - Didn't you order tea, sir?|- Now that should not have happened.
Captain's log, supplemental.
|As happened to our sister ship, the Enterprise is experiencing|a series of system failures.
So far they are random, but they could be early symptoms|of what happened to the Yamato.
- Engineering.
|- La Forge.
Any progress on solving our problems? No, but I can eliminate one worry.
|It is not a design flaw.
Reviewing the Yamato logs, I think that probe had something|to do with their problems.
- How?|- I need to see the thing.
If it was the probe,|that explains the Yamato.
But how do you explain|the Enterprise's difficulties? I can't.
Are our problems likely to attain|the seriousness of the Yamato's? If you're asking for speculation,|I'd say yes.
I need time.
Mr La Forge, time is one thing|we do not have in abundance.
Analysis, Mr Data.
Scanning, sir.
- Well, Mr Data?|- No life-form readings, sir.
All major cities have been damaged.
The destruction is consistent|with large-scale orbital bombardment.
How long ago? Approximately 200,000 years, sir.
There is an energy source in|the smaller continent's mountains.
Magnify.
Is that Iconia? Capt Varley died|believing that it was.
Did you see that? Projectile launched|from the planet surface! Its size and composition match|the probe which scanned the Yamato.
Shields up.
Prepare a tractor beam.
Mr La Forge, I'm going|to assist you in your research.
A probe|has been launched from Iconia.
I'm going to capture it.
No, sir! Wait! Captain! Coming through! Bridge! Emergency! Stop! Stop! Damn it! Tractor beam ready, sir.
- Geordi, are you alright?|- Destroy the probe, sir! Quickly! Worf, target phasers.
- Phasers locked on target.
|- Fire! Welcome to the bridge, Mr La Forge.
Thank you, sir.
If that thing|had managed to scan us, we'd have had no chance|of saving the Enterprise.
That probe was transmitting|an alien computer program.
That program is now on the Enterprise|trying to rewrite our software.
We have two completely incompatible|computer systems trying to interact.
That's why our instruments|are so erratic? - Yes.
|- What can you do? Not much.
The Iconian program is so|sophisticated, I may never crack it.
Consider, Captain, this program|has entered an alien database, ours.
In less than seven hours|it has learned our systems and begun to reprogram our computer.
The earlier probe was responsible|for the Yamato's destruction? Yes.
Only inasmuch as it was the|probe that transmitted the program.
We weren't scanned by that probe.
|How did it get aboard the Enterprise? We downloaded the Yamato log,|and in that log was the program.
Why didn't we suffer the same fate? The program affected|the Yamato's systems simultaneously.
Here, it was deposited within|a specific section of our mainframe.
It has to work its way out.
|It gives us some breathing space.
Not much.
Injury reports|are increasing, too, sir.
Dr Pulaski does not trust|the turbo lifts.
She is sending her teams|through access tunnels.
The Enterprise computer|is a lot like our own bodies, with voluntary|and involuntary systems.
Completely out of our control.
We're sitting on a bomb that could|go off any second.
Or maybe never.
The biobeds aren't working?|The ship is falling apart! I've had 35 emergency calls|scattered across 12 decks.
My trauma teams are being|run ragged trying to respond.
Biobeds! - Dr Pulaski?|- Yes? I've got a problem here.
|The knitter isn't working.
Try a splint.
- Doctor?|- Splint.
It's an ancient concept.
You take two flat pieces of wood,|or plastic, a bandage.
- The broken limb is kept immobile.
|- That's not practising medicine.
Yes, it is.
|It's a time-honoured way.
With your head, your heart|and your hands.
So jump to it.
Damn.
Try a bypass on|the shield-control interface.
No go.
Let me see if I can directly|access the master program.
- What happened?|- Any answer would be speculation.
This is yet another example of how|our actions have random results.
Thanks, Data.
I noticed.
Life support has failed|on decks seven and 13, sir.
What if this thing|can rewrite our entire system? It's so far beyond our understanding,|never mind our control.
Our own ignorance could kill us.
We may never We may never reach that point.
A variation of what happened|to the Yamato may destroy us first.
So, we sit and watch our ship|disintegrate around us? The probe was launched from Iconia.
Probably from an automated system.
There may be records|near the launch site that could help us find a solution.
- I'll arrange an away team.
|- And I'll lead it.
- You will lead it?|- Yes.
We've had this conversation|a hundred times.
And we will have it again.
I have|studied the Iconians.
I have to go.
The Enterprise is yours.
For as long as she lasts.
I've got a lock on the energy source|and it's working.
- But that could change.
|- We're aware of the risks.
Energize.
Transport complete.
Stay sharp.
I want to be able to|pull them out at a moment's notice.
Aye, sir.
- Commander, Romulan vessel.
|- Open hailing frequencies.
- They're arming torpedoes!|- Shields up! Go to red alert.
- The shields aren't responding!|- They're preparing to fire! Mr Crusher, I need those shields! - I'm trying, sir!|- They're firing! What happened? Instead of firing,|they disarmed and cancelled.
Fate .
.
protects fools, little children|and ships named Enterprise.
Lock phasers on them|and hold your fire.
- Sir, the shields are back up.
|- Impeccable timing.
Sir, the shields are back down.
- Phaser banks are down.
|- Shields are back up.
Another time and place,|this could be funny.
Status of torpedo banks? They're down, too.
If we have to fight, could you|find me some rocks to throw? Sir, the Romulan torpedoes|are continuing to arm and disarm.
Perhaps its attempt|to fire was unintentional.
- Open hailing frequencies.
|- Open.
Romulan vessel, this is Cmdr William|Riker of the USS Enterprise.
Why did you attempt to fire on us? This is Subcommander Taris|of the Haakona.
Why have you penetrated deeper|into the Neutral Zone? Why are you still here? I have claimed this planet|for the Romulan Empire.
This is the Neutral Zone.
|No one can claim anything.
Withdraw or I'll have to destroy|your ship and your away team! What the hell? This is your final warning.
|I will not Trouble with your systems, Commander? Maybe we should consider|postponing the war .
.
until we solve|our more immediate problem.
You're stalling for time.
Sir, another probe launched.
|Heading for the Romulans.
- Have we got our phasers back?|- No, sir.
Taris, if you have phaser capability,|prepare to use them now! - What?|- Destroy that probe! And not even a thank you.
She is frustrated, probably because|her ship is as crippled as ours.
Why would the Romulans be having|problems? They weren't probed.
They must have tapped into|the Yamato log.
Taris got more|than she bargained for.
Maintain red alert.
Try to keep our shields up in case|Taris decides to act on her threat.
Commander.
What about the away team? With the|shields up, we can't beam them back.
Captain's log, supplemental.
There is little left|on the surface of Iconia, but we have found a control centre|which seems to have remained intact.
Come in, Enterprise.
Still no response, sir.
Keep trying.
Communications|are bound to be erratic.
I would not like to become|a permanent resident of this planet.
Nor would l, Mr Worf.
Scanners show no other life forms|on the planet, sir.
I would not expect any.
Judging from the severity|of the bombardment, I doubt any Iconians survived.
Mr Data, let's see|what sense we can make of this.
Aye, sir.
- This is reminiscent of Dinasian.
|- Yes, sir.
There are also similarities|to Dewan and Iccobar.
Is it possible they form one language|family, beginning with Iconian? It is, sir.
Run a comparison using basic words|from Dinasian, Dewan and Iccobar.
See if we can reconstruct|a common root language.
Accessing, sir.
You're jumpy.
The tension on the ship is very high.
Any recommendation? Give everyone something to do,|to focus their attention.
Alright.
Let's consider evacuation.
For the planet? I know it's probably impossible|with Taris sitting out there, but it would give everyone|something to do.
You go and organise it.
You may need me if you have|to negotiate with Taris.
I'll manage.
Right now, they're more important.
Captain.
Your original hypothesis is correct.
Iconian is the parent tongue|of a language family consisting of Iccobar,|Dewan and Dinasian.
I've constructed an understanding|through a comparison of root words, such as mother, father, child, home,|tribe, food, life, death, yours You know my interpretation|of the signals will not be exact? Yes.
Let's get on with it.
This appears to be manual override.
That was not manual override.
Demons of Air and Darkness indeed.
- What is that?|- A gateway? These scenes|could be holographic images.
Be careful! - That was very foolish.
|- But proves this is not a holograph.
If I stepped through, we could see|if this is truly a gateway.
No, Data.
You might not get back.
|I can't risk losing you.
This gate would seem to take us|beyond the confines of this planet.
Is this how the Iconians travelled? Crossing light years|as easily as we would cross a room? Those places could be on worlds|in distant corners of the galaxy.
I think the Iconians|might have outfoxed their enemies.
Maybe they didn't all die|in the bombardment.
Some of them|could have passed through this.
This is what Varley feared.
- This is what he died for.
|- Sir? The Romulans could use|this technology as a weapon.
- Like the Iconians did.
|- No, I disagree.
Captain, nothing here indicates|this was a military command centre.
Perhaps a transporter room? - The probe was hostile.
|- We can't make that assumption.
It devastated the Yamato, but what|if it was by accident not design? What I'm going to say|may sound unscientific, but standing on this soil,|breathing in this air, my instincts say|we may have got them wrong.
We do know the Iconians|were conquerors.
Only according to descendants|of those who attacked this world.
The victors invariably write|history to their advantage.
It is an unfortunate tendency|in many cultures to fear what they do not understand.
It's possible that their enemies,|confronted by this technology, may have attacked the Iconians|out of fear.
Sir! Was that really the Enterprise? I believe that it was.
Gentlemen, we have a way home.
Captain, there is a vast|underground power source which is controlled by this console.
I believe my triggering|of the gateway has caused an upsurge|in the power level.
I have access.
Data, can you hear me? Data, respond.
Captain - Are you alright?|- No I am damaged.
How bad is it? The Iconian program is attempting|to rewrite my software.
Physical manifestations,|blindness, motor cont Sir, without him we have no hope|of deciphering the program.
Captain.
The Enterprise again.
How long is the interval? About four minutes.
|If the cycle holds.
Next time the Enterprise appears,|go through it with Data.
Geordi can learn from him.
|Maybe help him.
- We don't know if that is a gateway.
|- This will be the test.
Aye, sir.
Destroy the tricorder.
It contains everything|we've discovered up to this point.
Precisely why it must be destroyed.
How long? About three minutes.
I'm running out of time.
We all are.
Data.
I have to destroy this.
This control room must not be allowed|to fall into Romulan hands.
I understand, sir.
How? How do I do it?|How do I destroy everything? The control room,|the probes, all of it! The power source, sir.
I detonate it.
- But how? How do I do that?|- The probes, sir.
Probes? The probes? Launch? I launch the probes? But why? - What good will that do?|- The doors, sir.
Doors? Perhaps the probes|are in a launch bay.
If the doors are closed, the backwash from the rockets|will overload the power bridge.
Yes, sir.
The doors open automatically|when the launch begins.
- And I will override.
|- Correct, sir.
Which control keys? Damn.
You can't see.
Help.
Worf, help him up.
Describe, please.
I'm in front of the gate.
To my left|there is a small triangular screen.
Right.
One meter.
Right.
To my right is a larger screen.
|The top is solid amber.
- The left, red|- Correct.
Key, blue, |amber, amber, red.
That's the launch sequence? How do I override the doors? Blue, blue, blue.
I hope that's not a stutter.
I don't know what the delay is|between launch and detonation.
I won't key the launch sequence|until you're through the gate.
How long until|the Enterprise reappears? Almost time.
Captain, .
.
you will be killed.
- I'll go through the gate.
|- But where will you end up? Very shortly, anywhere|will be preferable to this room.
Mr Worf, I am depending on you|to get Data back to the Enterprise.
He may be their only hope.
Aye, sir.
- Commander, look.
|- What happened? Where's the Captain? We must take Data to Engineering.
|Hopefully the Captain will follow.
I don't know how to help him.
|Comparing recorded norms to these current readings shows all|his functions are just going crazy! If we had an expert,|a Maddox, somebody He's gone.
What the hell? - I am accessing.
|- The self-correcting mechanism.
Captain? It's kicking in to make minute|adjustments in the positronic brain.
I am on the Enterprise!|How did I get here? He cleared the Iconian program|from his system.
How? I was on Iconia,|now I am on the Enterprise.
- This is critical.
How?|- Give me a second to think.
There was an incompatible program|in Data's system.
The mechanism looked for a way to|keep him alive.
The solution The solution was a shutdown|and a total wipe of affected memory.
- Inquiry.
What have I forgotten?|- Can you do it with the Enterprise? I don't see why not.
|But it must be a complete shutdown to effect a wipe of the Yamato log, including every event|since we downloaded it.
I'll reload the ship's programs|from the archives in the core.
Geordi, if we shut down, it means|we'll be bringing down the shields.
We're hanging nose to nose|with the Romulans! Whether it's Romulan phasers or our|own warp engines, we're just as dead.
Make it so.
May I help? All systems functioning.
- Lock on the Captain, get him back.
|- Scanning, sir.
Got him! - I've lost him.
|- Damn it! Got him, sir.
- On the Romulan ship!|- How the hell? Go to your stations.
You did this! - You sabotaged my ship!|- No.
I cannot deactivate|the auto-destruct, but at least I have the satisfaction|that you will die with us.
Not, I think, today, Commander.
Bridge, Picard.
Take us out of here.
The Romulan vessel|is set to auto-destruct.
Wait! Open hailing frequencies.
Cmdr Taris, our Chief Engineer will|transmit how to purge your system.
Agreed, Enterprise.
Standing by.
Commander, your transmission|has been received and acknowledged.
Now, Mr Data, warp speed, please.
In case Taris's engineer|is not as efficient as La Forge.
Aye, sir.
Well, Number One, I see why you|keep the away missions to yourself.
That's where the excitement is.
|What's been happening here? Same old routine, I suppose?