The following contains spoilers for Star Trek: Prodigy Season 1, Episode 15, "Masquerade," now streaming on Paramount+.
Star Trek: Prodigy continues the USS Protostar’s budding partnership with the spacefaring scoundrel Thadiun Okona, with the misfit crew barely escaping Vice Admiral Kathryn Janeway by heading into the Romulan Neutral Zone. However, while a diplomatic crisis is averted for the time being, the Romulans are now after the Protostar themselves and Janeway refuses to give up the chase. These pursuers converge as the Protostar seeks repairs, with at least one character revealing their true colors as the hunt for the experimental starship escalates.
With the Protostar hiding out in the Neutral Zone’s asteroid belt in order to fix damage endured during its chase with the USS Dauntless, Okona proves invaluable by lending assistance and offering a fresh direction. Dal quickly becomes jealous at how much the rest of the crew takes a liking to Okona while Okona recommends they stop at a remote outpost for more extensive repairs. Dal is annoyed at his authority being subverted by their guest, but the rest of the crew happily agree to the option -- though Hologram Janeway warns them the station has a reputation for scientific experimentation expressly banned by the Federation.
At the outpost, Dal is shocked to discover from the resident geneticists that he is an augmented human who was genetically spliced with DNA from 26 other extraterrestrial species. Considering himself a failed experiment derived from the radical theories and processes by Arik Soong, he laments that he doesn’t have biological parents. Dal quietly accepts an offer from the outpost’s scientists to undergo a procedure that would continue to augment his abilities and unlock his full potential -- though Gwyn is still concerned about changes to his personality.
Admiral Janeway implores Starfleet Command to allow her to venture into the Neutral Zone to recover the Protostar but is soundly rejected by former Enterprise-D captain turned Admiral Jellico. He orders her to destroy the ship if it is compromised by Romulans. Ascencia volunteers to infiltrate the Neutral Zone to pursue the Protostar alone, despite Janeway warning her of the inherent risk. The Romulans are one step ahead of the Dauntless with their special operations team, the Tal Shiar, tracking down the Protostar to the outpost. They board it, subduing Hologram Janeway and Zero.
Learning that the Romulans have beaten them to the Protostar, Janeway contemplates destroying the starship while the Tal Shiar intercept the Protostar’s landing party. Okona flees, leaving the crew to fend for themselves, both Dal’s augmented abilities allow him to easily defeat the Tal Shiar squad. The genetic augmentation begins to visibly affect Dal’s body and personality; the different species spliced into his DNA cause him to grow unstable -- leading to physical side effects as he mutates.
As Dal’s friends take him back to the Protostar to get the procedure reversed, they are pursued by the Tal Shiar, with Murf surprisingly stepping up to save the day. Admiral Janeway orders the Dauntless to stand down when it becomes clear that the Tal Shiar are defeated. Dal is restored to normal in sickbay. But frustrated by this development, Ascencia privately meets with the Diviner and activates a stowaway Drednok... revealing herself to be a sinister clone of Gwyn, sent back in time to recover the Protostar. There are now three enemies on the Dauntless plotting against Starfleet.
Created by Kevin and Dan Hageman, Star Trek: Prodigy releases new episodes Thursdays on Paramount+.