- A planet that was able to cloak itself for thousands of years suddenly reveals itself, with its inhabitants proposing peace. But, after initial negotiations, children of the Enterprise are kidnapped due to the infertility of the inhabitants.
- The Enterprise is delighted with a rare chance to visit a technologically advanced planet which long prevented access by means of a perfect cloaking technique. Prime administrator Radue shows how their people lead a life of leisure, trusting their central computer takes care of all necessities. But they can't solve a medical nightmare: endemic infertility, so they need to 'adopt' earthling children. Negotiations failing, they suddenly snatch Wesley and several younger, also gifted crew kids. Picard can barely keep negotiating credibly enough to avoid being chased too far in space ever to return, but Wesley manages to study and befriend the locals while planning a minimal risk revolt.—KGF Vissers
- The Enterprise is delighted with a rare chance to visit a technologically advanced planet Aldea, which long prevented access by means of a perfect cloaking technique. But now suddenly the cloaking device is off, and the planet reveals itself to the Enterprise. Rashella (Brenda Strong) welcomes the Enterprise to Aldea.
Prime administrator Radue (Jerry Hardin) & his wife Duana (Ivy Bethune) show Riker, Deanna, and Beverly, whom they had beamed down without asking them, how their people lead a life of leisure, trusting their central computer takes care of all necessities. But they can't solve a medical nightmare: endemic infertility, so they need to 'adopt' earthling children. In exchange, they propose to provide tech info that would take humans centuries to acquire. Their computer even conducts a scan of the entire ship, identifying all the kids on board the ship.
Negotiations obviously fail as Riker says no, while Deanna explains that humans are very attached to their offspring. The Aldeans suddenly snatch Wesley and several younger children as they have the ability to transporter anyone from the Enterprise without their wish. They are particularly interested in the gifted crew kids.
Picard can barely keep negotiating credibly enough to keep the Aldeans from disappearing behind their cloaking device again, while Data works on finding a way through their shields, so they can transport an away team down to the planet and neutralize their power source. Wesley manages to study and befriend the locals while planning a minimal risk revolt. He is the eldest of the abducted kids and takes charge. Radue assigns the kids to their new families, as per their future talents and interests. Rashella gets attached to a small girl and she won't allow Radue to assign her to her designated family. She wants to keep her.
Working with Duana, Wesley is shown the planet's computer and a mysterious room that he thinks contains the power source. The planet's computer has had no maintenance for many centuries. Beverly is allowed to meet Wesley briefly when she is down on the planet to negotiate with Radue and she uses Wesley to conduct a quick hidden scan on Duana.
Radue threatens Picard that if they don't accept his terms, he will throw the Enterprise into the depths of the Galaxy. He demonstrates that with a slight Repulsor to the Enterprise which puts them 3 days away from the planet at warp 9. Beverly figures that Duana is dying due to Chromosomal damage which could be hereditary or environmental. She later figures out that the Aldean ozone layer has weakened over centuries and hence the effect of their damage is far more now than in the past. It is reversible with proper treatment Meanwhile the kids on the planet are sad, and their adoptive families can see that, they are not happy.
Wesley gathers the kids and tells to resist their Aldean parents passively. They all stop eating. Picard and Beverly are invited for the last round of negotiations. Separately, Data and Riker beam down through the hole Data figured out in the shields. They work on knocking off the planet's power source. As Riker gets to the power source, Beverly explains to Radue that ozone depletion has led to radiation poisoning in their bodies for centuries. Sterility is only the latest symptom and if the kids stay, they will also die. Rashella believes Beverly. Riker disables the power source and Picard beams the kids up. Beverly treats the Aldeans. Picard figures out that removing the shield fixes the ozone layer. The myth of Aldea will die, but the people will live and produce kids.
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