'Inheritance' (Story Code 262) by Dan Koeppel and René Echevarria Story by Dan Koeppel

The U.S.S. Enterprise crew is assisting husband-and-wife scientists Pran and Juliana Tainer, whose homeworld, Atrea IV, is under threat; the planet's molten core is solidifying, and will eventually be rendered completely uninhabitable unless the core can be re-liquefied with hot plasma injected into drill holes. Lieutenant Commander Data soon receives some astonishing news from Juliana: she was once married to his creator, Doctor Noonian Soong, effectively making her his mother. She explains that the reason Data does not know her is because his memory was erased just before the crystalline entity attacked the colony on Omicron Theta, and she and Soong were forced to flee before he could be reactivated. When Data informs her of her ex-husband's death, Juliana is shaken, but hopes to spend more time with her 'son'. Doubting Juliana's claims, and confused because she never attempted to contact him, Data seeks advice from Counselor Troi, who tells him to confront his mother. The following day, as Juliana works on the drilling process with Data, she tells him of his 'childhood'; when the initial drilling is successful, Data then takes his mother to see his quarters, impressing her with his skill on the violin, and his talent for painting, particularly one of Lal, his late daughter. Learning that Data hopes to have another child, Juliana reveals that she and her husband had three android ‘miscarriages’ before a successful creation: Lore; she eventually admits that she was initially opposed to Data's creation, fearing that he would become evil like his brother. Data still has suspicions concerning Juliana, and looks into her medical records; however, before he can pursue matters, reports come in of a cave-in in one of the magma pockets. Data and Juliana beam down to the caves and reset the plasma injectors before the seismic activity can render their work useless; but after the work is completed, they find that they have to jump from a high ledge to reach the beam-back point. Juliana misses the jump and falls to the ground, but when Data goes to rescue her he finds her unconscious - and with her arm broken off. It seems that Juliana is an android too…

Patrick Stewart (Captain Jean-Luc Picard), Jonathan Frakes (Commander William Thomas Riker), LeVar Burton (Chief Engineer Lieutenant Commander Geordi La Forge), Michael Dorn (Security Chief Lieutenant Worf), Gates McFadden (Doctor Beverly Crusher), Marina Sirtis (Councelor Deanna Troi), Brent Spiner (Lieutenant Commander Data), Fionnula Flanagan (Juliana Tainer), William Lithgow (Pran)

Directed by Robert Scheerer
Produced by Ronald D. Moore and Peter Lauritson
Co-Produced by Brannon Braga
Executive Producers Jeri Taylor, Michael Piller and Rick Berman

TX:
22nd November, 1993

Notes:
*Featuring Captain Jean-Luc Picard, Commander William Thomas Riker, Chief Engineer Lieutenant Geordi La Forge, Security Chief Lieutenant Worf, Doctor Beverly Crusher, Councelor Deanna Troi and Lieutenant Commander Data