Star Trek: The Next Generation: The Masterpiece Society

SYNOPSIS

The Enterprise is on a mission to warn the human colony of an artificial paradisiac biosphere on planet Moab 4's southern colony of the approach of a massive stellar fragment, which will impact with seismic force causing a tectonic disaster. However its competent, considerate leader Aaron Conor refuses to evacuate, confident their biosphere can withstand earthquakes. He does allow a small Enterprise party to visit their society, which they believe far superior after eight generations of selective breeding which nearly eliminated the remaining human risk factors. Despite their rigid rule never to leave, scientist Hannah Bates is allowed to come aboard to work out a method to deflect the approaching fragment jointly with Geordi, who as blind man would not even have been born in their society, by a tractor beam and updates to the biosphere itself. Picard disapproves of genetic 'predisposition' on principle, Troi becomes platonic intimate with Conor, who would be prepared to accept her even as genetically inferior mate. The deflection works at the last second before energy would have been fatally overcharged: the colony is safe from impact, but Hannah reports fatal tectonic damage, which Geordi soon finds to be faked in order to get out of controlled life. She and others want asylum aboard, but the colony's delicate balance can't cope with such change. Conor, although in fact tempted himself, feels guilty and desperately tries to save the society...