“Relics” is episode four of season six of Star Trek: The Next Generation.
The Enterprise has picked up a distress call from the USS Jenolan, a transport missing for 75 years. When they drop out of warp, the ship lurches from a massive gravity field, though there are no stars or other bodies listed in the area. Sensors pick up an extremely strong gravity source in the area. A ball. 200 million km in diameter. Captain Picard wonders if it could be a Dyson Sphere. Data agrees it seems to meet the requirements. The captain explains to Riker what one is, a hollow sphere built around a star. With more area than 250 million M-class planets. Worf has detected the source of the distress call; the Jenolan has crashed into the sphere. No lifesigns, some power and minimal life support.
Worf, Geordi and Riker beam over. The Jenolan‘s transporter is still online and the pattern buffer is in a continuous cycle. There’s a pattern in the buffer, intact. Riker asks if there’s any way someone could survive inside. Geordi says there’s only one way to find out. And activates the transporter, rematerializing TOS‘s Montgomery Scott. Scotty thanks them and says there’s someone else in the buffer. Unfortunately, his pattern has degraded. He’s gone.
Riker introduces himself as being from the Enterprise; Scotty assumes that Kirk got it out of mothballs (Generations hadn’t been filmed yet, though the events of it would be in Scotty’s past; in-universe, he’d think Kirk was dead; there was a similar error related to STE later). Scotty asks how long he’s been missing. Then Worf appears. Riker says there are a few things they should talk about.
Beaming back, Scotty starts examining the transporter. He explains the Jenolan suffered warp engine failure. They detected the sphere and started doing a standard survey. Then they had more problems, got caught in the gravity well and crashed. Scotty and Franklin were the only two survivors. Geordi thinks Scotty’s use of the pattern buffer was brilliant. Only 50% brilliant according to Scotty.
In sickbay, Dr Crusher is treating Scotty’s broken arm when the captain arrives. Records didn’t show Scotty as a member of the Jenolan‘s crew; Scotty says he was a passenger, going to settle down and enjoy his retirement. The captain would love to talk to Scott about his career, and wants Geordi to scan the sphere. Scotty wants to go with, but the doctor tells him to get some rest.
Ensign Kane shows Scotty to quarters; Scotty is stunned by the size of the quarters, and starts reminiscing about “Elaan of Troyius” then “Wolf in the Fold”, but the ensign excuses himself as he has to return to duty. Geordi is in engineering when Scotty arrives; the latter wants to help. Unfortunately, his help isn’t that helpful. Quite a bit of his knowledge is out of date and he reminisces again about The Naked Time. He advises Geordi not to tell the captain how long it will definitely take to do something; that’s no way to be considered a miracle worker. Geordi, uncharacteristically, snaps at Scotty for being in the way. Scotty leaves.
In Ten Forward, Scotty asks for a Scotch. He isn’t impressed with it and says it’s not Scotch. Data comes over and explains synthehol. Scotty comments that Data is not quite human. No; he’s an android. synthetic Scotch and synthetic commanders. Data believes Guinan keeps a limited supply of non-synthehol. He gets a green bottle. Scotty asks what it is. Data looks at it, sniffs it and proclaims it is green. Which Scotty himself proclaimed about a drink in “By Any Other Name”. Scotty prefers this drink.
Scotty is feeling adrift and obsolete, because he’s been displaced in time by so much. Then the Enterprise runs into trouble with the Dyson Sphere and Geordi and Scotty have to team up to help. Just because something is old, doesn’t mean you throw it away.