“Conspiracy” is episode twenty-five of season one of Star Trek: The Next Generation.
The Enterprise is en route to Pacifica for a scientific mission, although the crew is also looking to get in some relaxation. On the bridge, Geordi is finishing telling a joke to Data, who then analyses it, decides that it’s very humorous and decides to laugh. Laughing does not come naturally to Data and it’s creepy. Troi is looking forward to a swim, and tells Data the holodeck just isn’t the same. Worf is not interested in swimming. A call comes in, Code 47, a confirmed Starfleet Emergency message for the captain’s eyes only.
Riker wakes Captain Picard and tells him. Picard takes the call, which is from Captain Walker Keel, an old friend of his. Keel says there’s something wrong and they can’t talk about it, even over a secure channel. They need to meet in person, at the old mining colony on Dytallix B. Trust no-one.
Picard heads to the bridge and orders a course change. There are to be no records in the logs and they aren’t to tell Pacifica. Data fills in Riker on the current state of Dytallix B. It’s basically deserted. Riker updates the captain.
Worf has detected three Starfleet ships in orbit around the planet. The Renegade, the Thomas Payne and the Horatio. Attempts to communicate have been ignored. Picard orders no further attempts be made. There are three lifeforms on the surface at the entrance to a mining tunnel. The captain will beam down to that location. Alone.
On the surface, Picard is met by Keel and two other captains. The other two have phasors trained on Picard. Keel first wants Picard to confirm several things from their past. Once he is satisfied, he introduces captains Rixx and Scott and asks Picard if he’s noticed anything unusual about Starfleet Command. No; but the Enterprise has not had much contact. There have been strange patterns, unusual orders, high ranking officials agreeing to irrational proposals, as well as deaths that are supposed to be accidents. Something is happening and they expect the Enterprise to be a target soon. By who or what, they are not sure. But, Keel says, some of Starfleet’s top command staff, officers he has known for years, are bluffing their way through questions about old times. That’s why the questions. There’s not much evidence, but Keel wants Picard to keep his eyes open.
In his ready room, the captain discusses some things with Troi. Close friends are few and far between and Jack Crusher and Walker Keel were and are two of the captain’s closest. He trusts Keel and there’s a reason Keel would break regulations. Troi warns Picard he’s putting his own career at risk by keeping Keel’s actions a secret. Picard is going ahead, but will not implicate the rest of the crew without solid evidence.
Picard wants Data to review Starfleet command orders for the past six months. Dr Crusher arrives on the bridge; Keel was the one who introduced her and Jack, as was just revealed, and she would have loved to have seen him. Worf reports an unusual disturbance and Picard orders the ship to investigate. There’s what’s clearly a debris cloud and according to Worf it’s of a space vessel. It could be from one of the ships orbiting Dytallix. By the amount of wreckage, it can only be the Horatio.
The captain now believes there is a problem and tells Riker. Though there’s no proof, last time Picard saw Admiral Quinn, in “Coming of Age”, Quinn had warned about a subversion in the Federation. Keel did the same thing, and now he’s dead. Riker doesn’t believe there’s a conspiracy. However, Data has found something, though when he goes off on one of his tangents, even the Enterprise‘s computer tells him to essentially shut up.
Riker is saying that with no facts, they have to assume the explosion was an accident, when Data arrives. Picard suggests sabotage, but Riker says they can’t be certain. Data thinks they can. He has found usual activity in the orders he searched. Unusual shuffling of command staff and frequent contact with certain members of Starfleet Command. It appears to be a clandestine attempt to take over vital sectors of Federation territory. As a prelude to invasion. Riker says they can hardly warp over to Starfleet Headquarters and demand to know what’s going on. Data asks why not, and Picard agrees.
One enemy discovers that, if you are going to attack people, Dr Crusher is one to avoid.
There’s a scene in this episode which is frequently deleted when shown on television – it’s rather dark for the series – though part of that scene is also usually shown in “Shades of Gray”.