Varley, an archeology buff like Picard, believed he had found the fabled planet of Iconia within the Neutral Zone, and feared that the Romulans might be attempting to acquire advanced Iconian technology for use against the Federation.
They find a teleportation portal that allows instantaneous travel to a number of destinations, including the Enterprise and Haakona bridges.
Before the structure explodes, Picard uses the gate to jump onto the Haakona's bridge and discovers that their ship is set on an auto-destruct sequence they cannot stop.
With the transporters back online, Picard is beamed off the Haakona, and Riker sends instructions to the Romulans on how to clear the virus.
The Romulans successfully restart their computers, and both ships peacefully leave the Neutral Zone as the Iconian base destroys itself on the surface of the planet.
Staff graphic designer Michael Okuda said of the plot, "I thought it was exciting, but the level of computer technology was not quite as advanced as it will really be that far into the future.
[6] An Iconian gateway was central to the plot of "To the Death", a 1996 episode in season 4 of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.