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May 7, 1997
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46 minutes
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150
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2024-09-13 10:17:36
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SUMMARY
Stardate: 50912.4. Crew members are replaced one-by-one with aliens from an unknown race.
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TRANSCRIPT
[Corridor - Deck six]
(Torres comes out of the holodeck, holding a bat'leth, which say to me that this story follows straight after Distant Origin.)
PARIS: Where are you going? You were doing great. You were in perfect position to deliver the death blow. All you had to do was follow through. Come on, let's try it again.
TORRES: Don't push me, Tom.
PARIS: I am not pushing you, I'm encouraging you.
TORRES: To do what?
PARIS: Try something new. This martial arts programme is the best work out I've ever had. No, it's more than that. Working with a bat'leth is an art. You have to use your mind and body, your movements
TORRES: Look, you may find all of this Klingon stuff really fascinating, but I don't. I'm not going to waste my time trying to disembowel a bunch of holographic monsters. I only came down here because you tricked me into that stupid bet!
PARIS: Would you watch it? You could take somebody's head off with that thing.
TORRES: I have tried this, and now I am finished. Got it?
PARIS: Look, if you don't like the programme, that's fine. But why do you always have to get so hostile?
TORRES: I am not hostile!
(A humanoid dressed in grey appears.)
DAMMAR: Where am I?
PARIS: Paris to Bridge. We have an alien visitor on deck six.
DAMMAR: What do you want with me? Why have I been abducted?
TORRES: We didn't abduct you. You just appeared here. We had nothing to do with it.
DAMMAR: What is this place?
PARIS: You're on a starship called Voyager. Where were you before?
DAMMAR: My colony on Nyria Three. I was walking home, and then I was here.
PARIS: What's wrong?
DAMMAR: It's cold here, and too bright.
TORRES: Let us take you to Sickbay. Our Doctor can run some scans. Maybe we can get some answers.
[Sickbay]
(In semi-darkness.)
EMH: I've increased the temperature to forty five degrees Celsius, and the light level should be more comfortable for you now.
DAMMAR: Yes, thank you. You're very considerate. I hope you'll excuse my initial suspicion. This experience has been very unnerving.
JANEWAY: I'd feel the same way in your place.
TUVOK: Do your people possess technology which could have transported you here?
DAMMAR: Not that I know of. I've heard of other races that have it. Maybe of them brought be here, but I can't imagine why.
EMH: Please describe the physical sensation of your experience.
DAMMAR: First I felt light-headed, and then everything around me seemed to bend or ripple. There was a moment of blackness and I felt a curious sensation of insects crawling on my skin. And then I found myself on your ship.
EMH: Interesting. I'll run a microcellular scan for residual energy traces.
TUVOK: Can you tell us where your colony is located?
DAMMAR: We're on the third planet of the Nyrian system, a red giant star with a large cloud of interstellar dust just beyond the fifth planet.
JANEWAY: Doesn't sound like any system we've encountered. Unfortunately our knowledge of this area of space is limited. I'd like you to look at a star chart to see if you recognise any astronomical markers.
DAMMAR: Of course.
JANEWAY: In the meantime my crew has begun scanning the area for any clues about what happened to you.
EMH: Lieutenant, if you don't mind.
TUVOK: Where is Kes today?
EMH: I don't know. She's late for her duty shift. Computer, locate Kes.
COMPUTER: Kes is not on board Voyager.
JANEWAY: When did she leave?
COMPUTER: Eleven hundred thirty two hours.
JANEWAY: What time did our alien visitor come on board?
COMPUTER: Eleven hundred thirty two hours.
[Engineering]
KIM: There's nothing to indicate that any other ships have been in this area for weeks, and the nearest inhabited world is over ten light years away.
TORRES: Whoever or whatever did this had to leave some energy trace.
KIM: Internal sensors aren't showing anything unusual in the corridor where the Nyrian appeared, or Kes's last known location.
TORRES: Then let's concentrate on the time. Run a level one analysis on all sensor readings, internal and external, at the exact moment it happened.
KIM: I'll get it started. It may take a while.
TORRES: You don't think I'm hostile, do you?
KIM: I er, wouldn't describe you that way, no.
TORRES: I know I have a temper, but that doesn't mean I'm always hostile, does it?
KIM: No, of course not.
TORRES: I'm forthright, I speak my mind, but that's very different from being hostile.
KIM: Very different.
TORRES: And if someone described me that way, they'd be way off of the mark, wouldn't they.
KIM: Way off.
TORRES: Then why do you look like you're afraid for your life?
(Saved by the beeps.)
TORRES: What is this?
KIM: Looks like a surge of polaron particles.
TORRES: Localise the source, I'll try to increase the sensor resolution. Do you have anything yet? Harry? Torres to bridge. Ensign Kim just disappeared.
[Bridge]
JANEWAY: And we just got another visitor.
(A dark-skinned young woman. A crewman vanishes in a corridor and a Nyrian appears in the Paxau Resort holoprogramme. Later -)
JANEWAY: Mister Tuvok, have you made any progress?
TUVOK: Increasing the shield strength has had no apparent effect. However, it
(Tuvok vanishes. A Nyrian appears in another part of the ship.)
[Sickbay]
EMH: Welcome to Sickbay. Take a number.
[Briefing room]
CHAKOTAY: In the last three hours we've lost twenty two of our people. According to the Nyrians, they've all showed up on their colony as though we're switching places.
PARIS: I went over our navigational charts with Dammar, but he's completely unfamiliar with this part of space. For all we know, that colony could be thousands of light years away.
CHAKOTAY: Any idea what might be causing these transfers?
TORRES: I'm not sure. Harry and I detected a surge of polaron particles right before he disappeared. They created a spatial distortion field around him but it collapsed as soon as he vanished.
PARIS: Could it have been some kind of spatial anomaly?
TORRES: It could have been anything. A naturally occurring phenomenon, like a wormhole of a subspace flow field, or a kind of technology like our transporters.
JANEWAY: All right, get back to your stations and keep looking. Confine the Nyrians to the cargo bays and post security details at every access point.
CHAKOTAY: In all fairness, Captain, they haven't been threatening in any way. They seem as puzzled by all this as we are.
JANEWAY: Chakotay, I don't care how they seem. All I care about is that I've had a knot in my stomach since the first Nyrian arrived. Something about this is wrong, I can smell it. Look at us, running around the ship, checking sensors and spinning theories, while the Nyrians slowly replace our crew. Consider this. There has been a consistent interval of nine minutes and twenty seconds between these exchanges. At that rate, our entire crew will be gone in eighteen hours. Tell me that doesn't put a knot in your stomach. You have your orders.
Captain's log, stardate 50912.4. It's been twelve hours since these mysterious exchanges began, and we still haven't discovered their cause. I've already lost over half my crew.
[Corridor]
CHAKOTAY: Cargo Bay two is almost full. We'll have to start converting the shuttle bays.
JANEWAY: Then do it. I want them where we can keep an eye on them.
CHAKOTAY: I'll have to reassign more crewmembers to security. Our ranks are getting a little thin.
JANEWAY: Shut down everything but the ship's essential functions. We'll be operating on a skeleton crew before long.
[Engineering]
JANEWAY: B'Elanna, you've developed a theory about what's happening?
TORRES: A Nyrian astrophysicist who arrived about an hour ago told me about some strange graviton fluctuations they detected at their colony. I ran some scans on this end and found the same thing.
JANEWAY: A wormhole?
TORRES: Possibly a baby one. And if I'm right, one end is opening intermittently inside Voyager. We could have past through it while it was forming and snagged on it somehow.
CHAKOTAY: Then how do we get it unsnagged?
TORRES: Now that I have this new information I'd like to have another talk with Rislan, the Nyrian scientist.
JANEWAY: Is Neelix still helping out with the new arrivals?
CHAKOTAY: I think he's in Cargo Bay two now.
JANEWAY: Janeway to Neelix.
NEELIX [OC]: Neelix here, Captain.
JANEWAY: I'd like you to find one of the Nyrians who
(Janeway vanishes.)
NEELIX [OC]: Neelix to Captain Janeway. I lost contact. What did you say?
CHAKOTAY: Chakotay to Neelix. The Captain's gone. We need you to find a Nyrian scientist called Rislan and get him to Engineering as soon as you can.
NEELIX [OC]: Right away, Commander.
CHAKOTAY: Do what you have to do to get some answers, B'Elanna.
[Cargo Bay two]
NEELIX: Excuse me, are you Doctor Rislan?
RISLAN: It's still too cold in here.
NEELIX: I'll adjust the environmental controls. Again. But I must ask you
RISLAN: And the air is too humid.
NEELIX: I'll take care of it right away, but I must ask you to go to our Engineering room. I believe you're urgently needed.
RISLAN: I trust it'll be suitably warm and dark there.
NEELIX: We'll make sure you're comfortable. A security guard will escort you.
SECURITY: Right away, sir.
[Bridge]
(Chakotay is running the ship from the helm. He has one other bridge crew, a young woman.)
LANG: Commander, there's a problem with the internal sensors on deck four. It looks like a circuit relay malfunction.
CHAKOTAY: I can't spare anyone for repairs. You'll have to make do. How do you like your first day as Chief of Security, Ensign?
LANG: It's everything I dreamed it of, sir.
CHAKOTAY: Who says there's no room for advancement on this ship.
LANG: Another disappearance. It's Neelix.
CHAKOTAY: How many people does that leave us?
LANG: Forty.
CHAKOTAY: More than one hundred Nyrians. I want access to all systems restricted to authorised voice prints only. Seal off any part of the ship that we're not using and place security forcefields around sensitive areas. Warp core, armoury, torpedo bays. And let's hope I'm just being paranoid.
[Engineering]
RISLAN: If you as me, a tetryon scan is a waste of time. A multispectral sweep would be much more useful.
TORRES: Actually, I didn't ask, and I've already initiated the tetryon scan.
RISLAN: You're the expert.
TORRES: Neutrinos, ionised hydrogen, theta band radiation.
RISLAN: Just what you'd expect to find in a wormhole.
TORRES: It's what we're not finding that I'm interested in. The scan shows no quantum level fluctuations whatsoever.
RISLAN: That's not so unusual.
TORRES: It's more than unusual, it's impossible. I don't think this is a wormhole at all.
RISLAN: Perhaps it's a subspace flow field then.
TORRES: I'm going to run a pattern analysis with the original data. No, definitely not a flow field. The spatial harmonics are incompatible. I don't think this is a natural phenomenon.
(Rislan knocks out his guard and takes his phaser.)
RISLAN: Don't move. I won't hurt you unless you force me to.
TORRES: Your people have been behind this all along. What are you doing?
RISLAN: Moving you to the head of the line.
[Habitat]
(A quite attractive outdoor place, with lots of flowers.)
JANEWAY: B'Elanna, are you all right?
TORRES: Captain, the Nyrians are responsible for the exchanges. I think they have some kind of technology.
(Two armed Nyrian guards enter. One takes Torres' comm. badge, then they leave.)
TORRES: What do they want with us?
JANEWAY: I don't know. They refuse to answer any questions.
KES: They've given us food, water and medical supplies. Everything but information.
TORRES: Where's the rest of the crew.
JANEWAY: In other compounds just like this one, scattered throughout the woods.
TORRES: This doesn't seem like a Nyrian colony. It's not warm enough or dark enough for them.
PARIS: Exactly. It's more like an idyllic version of Earth. As though it were created specifically for us.
TORRES: Do we have any idea what planet we're on?
JANEWAY: Not yet. I sent Tuvok to investigate the other compounds and see what he could find out. Until be gets back, all we have are unanswered questions.
[Bridge]
LANG: Decks eleven through fifteen are completely shut down. Most of the remaining crew are on security detail near the cargo and shuttle bays.
CHAKOTAY: What, all thirteen of them?
LANG: Twelve, sir.
GENNARO [OC]: Crewman Gennaro to bridge. I'm in Engineering and I just found Ensign Molina. He's unconscious but okay.
CHAKOTAY: What about the Nyrian scientist he was watching?
GENNARO [OC]: There's no sign of him, sir.
CHAKOTAY: Find him. That's a priority.
LANG: Where are you going?
CHAKOTAY: To have a talk with the Nyrians.
[Cargo Bay two]
(The cargo bay is empty of life.)
CHAKOTAY: Chakotay to all hands. Security alert. The Nyrians may be trying to take control of the ship. Everyone, get to the bridge or main Engineering and secure them against possible intruders.
[Jefferies tube]
DAMMAR: Second team, take control of weapons.
[Bridge]
(Two crew come to help Lang.)
LANG: Start by reinforcing the containment fields. Reroute emergency power. We've got to seal those doors.
(Too late. The Nyrians enter. Lang shoots two before being shot herself. There is another very brief battle in Engineering.)
[Corridor]
CHAKOTAY: They're everywhere. They're even decrypting our access codes. The Nyrians obviously prepared for this before they got here. They must have tapped into our computer somehow, gotten enough information to plan this mission down to the letter.
(Chakotay suddenly realises he is talking to himself.)
CHAKOTAY: Larsen? Chakotay to anybody who's left. Please respond.
GENNARO [OC]: Gennaro here sir.
CHAKOTAY: Anybody else? The two of us aren't going to win this, so we might as well make life as difficult for the Nyrians as we can. Sabotage everything you can get your hands on.
GENNARO [OC]: Understood.
CHAKOTAY: Good luck.
[Bridge]
DAMMAR: What's our status?
RISLAN: We have shut off their security measures on all decks. We should have full computer access soon, but their navigational controls are not working.
DAMMAR: Not working?
RISLAN: There are two humans still moving through the ship. They seem intent on causing damage.
DAMMAR: Find them.
(Dammar takes the Captain's chair.)
RISLAN: They're sabotaging the power systems. The anti-matter reactor's shutting down.
(Chakotay turns the lights on full in Engineering. The Nyrians there flee.)
NYRIAN 1: What happened?
NYRAIN 2: This way.
[Cargo Bay two]
COMPUTER: Warning. Disabling lateral EPS relays may disrupt computer functions throughout the ship.
CHAKOTAY: Let's hope so. Chakotay to Gennaro. They're trying to delete the Doctor's programme. Are you anywhere near Sickbay? Gennaro? Computer, how long ago did Crewman Gennaro leave the ship?
COMPUTER: Seven minutes and twenty seconds.
[Bridge]
RISLAN: I've located the last human. He's on the fifth deck.
DAMMAR: Send a patrol to stop him.
RISLAN: I already have.
[Sickbay]
CHAKOTAY: Activate Emergency Medical Holographic programme.
EMH: Please state the nature. Hello?
CHAKOTAY: Doctor, over here.
EMH: Commander, what's happening?
CHAKOTAY: You're program's going to be deleted unless I can download you into the mobile emitter before I disappear, which should be any second now.
(The Nyrians start to force open the door. The EMH hypos the first one, blocking the door.)
CHAKOTAY: Got it!
(The EMH vanishes. Chakotay palms the mobile emitter as the other Nyrians enter.)
CHAKOTAY: All right. I know when to quit.
[Habitat]
EMH: I've never been completely cut off from the ship before. What if the emitter's power supply runs out?
TORRES: Let's hope we're not stuck here long enough to find out.
JANEWAY: Tuvok, what did you learn?
TUVOK: There are ten compounds like this one, spread over approximately four square kilometres. They are surrounded on all sides by wilderness.
(A Nyrian woman speaks.)
TALEEN: Could I have your attention? Now that you've all arrived here safely I'd like to welcome you to your new home.
JANEWAY: I'm not particularly interested in being welcomed. Why have you brought us here?
TALEEN: Your vessel will be used to defend Nyrian acquisitions.
CHAKOTAY: Is this the way you operate, gradually changing places with the crew of a ship?
TALEEN: Ships, colonies, spacestations. We've found it's much more effective than warfare. We aren't a cruel people. We've tried to make this experience as painless as possible. And as you can see, we've gone to great lengths to create an environment in which you will be comfortable.
JANEWAY: Nonetheless, we are being held here against our will.
TALEEN: Well, I'm afraid that's unavoidable. But I think you'll be happy here. The food dispensers have been programmed with selections from your own computer files. We have even downloaded literature and entertainment from your cultural database.
CHAKOTAY: What happens if we try to leave this little paradise?
TALEEN: I think you'll find there's nowhere to go.
JANEWAY: We don't accept that. We will find a way out of here.
TALEEN: Captain, your lack of gratitude is unbecoming. You and your crew could have found yourselves somewhere far less hospitable.
CHAKOTAY: It's still a prison.
TALEEN: If you want to be miserable here, that is your choice. But since there's nothing you can do about your situation, I suggest you accept it. Gracefully. We're ready now.
(The Nyrians beam away.)
JANEWAY: Tuvok, tell me about this wilderness you've found. How rugged is it? Can we walk out?
TUVOK: I don't believe so. In every direction I went, I encountered a natural barrier. A sheer cliff, an impassable river. These obstacles completely surround the colony.
CHAKOTAY: A perfectly isolated area. Doesn't that seem a bit convenient?
JANEWAY: This place does have an artificial quality. l wouldn't be surprised if the whole thing is holographic, and the wilderness was created to keep us from exploring too far.
KIM: Captain.
(One of the rocks is fuzzy. An alien steps through it.)
JARLATH: Sorry for the intrusion, but l wanted to welcome you. I'm Jarlath, your neighbour.
JANEWAY: Where did you come from?
JARLATH: My people live in the other environment, through that portal. It's quite different, more desert-like. This place is so green, but I'm sure it's suitable for you. The Nyrians undoubtedly had a good look through your databanks.
TUVOK: Were your people brought here by the Nyrians?
JARLATH: They took us one by one. Ah, is this what you eat?
JANEWAY: They took you from your colony?
JARLATH: They claimed not to know what was happening, and by the time we got suspicious, there were too many of them. We've been here ever since.
JANEWAY: Do you have any idea where here is?
JARLATH: No. Mmm, not bad. Would you be interested in trading for some of these? The last inhabitants of this environment had no concept of a barter system, but you strike me as a much more sophisticated group.
JANEWAY: If there were people here before us, maybe we could get out the same way.
JARLATH: Oh, l don't think you'd like their method of escape. They all died from a plague.
KIM: Captain, there must be some kind of forcefield here, but I can't find it.
JARLATH: Pretty well camouflaged, isn't it? It took are almost nine years to find the portal.
TORRES: How did you get it open?
JARLATH: Well, I, I have my ways.
JANEWAY: I consider that information a valuable commodity.
JARLATH: Well, I'd be happy to make a trade, but the portal only leads into our environment. You're welcome to visit, of course.
JANEWAY: There may be other portals, if you can show us how to find them.
JARLATH: I look forward to our collaboration.
(Night time. Torres is fiddling with the EMH's mobile emitter.)
TORRES: What do you see now?
EMH: Fascinating. Everything is glowing with it's own energy. Even the plants are emitting a faint thermal signature. It's really quite lovely.
TORRES: Aside from the aesthetic consideration, how's your optical resolution?
PARIS: The Captain sent me down to get an update.
TORRES: Well, we're just about ready. I've reconfigured the Doctor's optical sensors and as soon as they're aligned he should be able to detect the microwave signature of the portals.
EMH: Then I can begin my new career as a tricorder.
TORRES: About the other day. I might have been a bit oversensitive about the Klingon programme.
PARIS: Don't worry about it.
TORRES: That should just about do it. I think we can start scanning now.
PARIS: Good. I'll tell the Captain. Er, about the programme. I didn't mean to push you.
TORRES: I know. You didn't, and I didn't mean to lash out at you like that.
EMH: A typical defensive reaction. Using an aggressive outburst as a shield against a perceived emotional threat.
PARIS: That says it, all right.
TORRES: Oh, that's very funny coming from you.
PARIS: And what is that supposed to mean?
TORRES: Well, you're hardly one to talk about being defensive.
PARIS: And why is that exactly?
TORRES: Well, you just pretend that nothing bothers you and then you turn everything into a joke.
EMH: That's a valid observation. Defence mechanisms come in many forms.
PARIS: That's ridiculous. I am an easy-going person, who is just trying to be friendly to someone who is obviously terrified of having a friend.
EMH: Fear of intimacy is a common indication of low self-esteem. Perhaps if you stopped to analyze the root cause, you might
(Torres shuts him up via the emitter.)
TORRES: If you find it so difficult to be my friend, then why keep trying?
PARIS: That's a good question. I think I'll stop wasting my time.
(Paris leaves. The EMH presents his emitter for resetting. Elsewhere, Tuvok and Chakotay are working at a table.)
NEELIX: I pulled a power cell and some relay circuits out of a food dispenser. And this little thing looks like some sort of capacitor.
TUVOK: It should do. If you can find another like this one, we'll be able to construct a second weapon.
CHAKOTAY: You're assuming the first one will work.
TUVOK: Yes.
NEELIX: I'll get on it right away. Maybe if I take apart the sonic shower assembly.
CHAKOTAY: I've got to give you credit, Tuvok, working on the fly with nothing but random parts, with no guide to follow. I never thought Vulcans had much of a knack for improvising.
TUVOK: Our circumstances seem to require a certain flexibility.
CHAKOTAY: You could say that. This reminds me of those survival classes they put us through at the Academy. Surprise tactical simulations, getting dropped off in the woods with no chance to prepare. They certainly taught you to live by your wits.
TUVOK: That was a lesson I had already learned. During the Rite of Tal'oth, I survived in the Vulcan desert for four months with a ritual blade as my only possession. After that, Starfleet training exercises seemed less of a challenge.
CHAKOTAY: I guess so.
TUVOK: This weapon is complete. When Mister Neelix returns with a second capacitor, I'll improvise another.
(Next day.)
EMH: Lieutenant, I haven't seen any sign of a portal. Frankly, I'm getting tired of this.
TORRES: Holograms don't get tired. Keep looking.
JARLETH: We've been trying to get out of here for years. The closest I ever came was finding the portal between our two environments. I don't mean to be pessimistic, but I don't think there is a way out.
JANEWAY: There must be. We just have to keep looking.
JARLETH: Well, I know it's too early for you to accept this, but life here isn't so bad. Once we stopped trying to escape, we actually began enjoying ourselves.
TORRES: Captain, we've found something.
EMH: It's directly in front of me.
JANEWAY: Here?
EMH: Yes. Right there.
(Jarleth points a little gizmo at it, and a door opens.)
EMH: Well, if my scanning services are no longer required, I'll return to my medical duties.
[Access tunnel]
(They enter a curved corridor.)
JANEWAY: We can cover more ground if we split up. Tuvok and I will take this direction. You three go that way. We'll meet back here in twenty minutes.
JARLETH: I don't think we're supposed to be in here.
PARIS: B'Elanna, over here.
(They open the door to a mountainous rain forest.)
TORRES: There's another one.
(A building on stilts, on a rocky shore.)
TORRES: Self-contained biospheres, every one of them different.
[Control room]
(Meanwhile, going the other way around.)
JANEWAY: It's definitely some kind of control station. I can bring up information, but I can't understand what it says.
TUVOK: If the Nyrians downloaded Voyager's cultural database, you may be able to tap into the translation algorithm.
(Accessing. Lang: English.)
JANEWAY: Oh, much better. The Federation habitat, population one hundred and forty eight. At least they haven't detected that anyone's missing.
(Habitat: Tanatuva. Habitat: Bourget.)
JANEWAY: Here's another environment, and another.
(Habitat: Zooabud.)
JANEWAY: How many are there?
TUVOK: Captain, there's data here for ninety four different environments.
JANEWAY: They're holding thousands of prisoners. There's got to be something that'll tell us what the layout of this place is. Authorised access only.
TUVOK: I'll try to bypass their security codes.
JANEWAY: Good, I'm getting something. Incredible. Tuvok, we're on a ship.
TUVOK: We should attempt to locate the bridge.
JANEWAY: Well if there is one, I can't find it. There seems to be a more extensive control centre four decks above us. Maybe I can access it from here. More security lock-outs.
TUVOK: We may need to disable the entire security sub-routine.
(An alarm sounds. They make their way back.)
[Bridge]
TALEEN [on viewscreen]: There's been an unauthorised access at one of the terminals. Some of the lifeforms have escaped their habitat.
DAMMAR: Find them and put them back.
TALEEN [on viewscreen]: We are attempting to do that now. However, if they resist, stronger measures may become necessary.
DAMMAR: If they leave you no other alternative, you have the authorisation to use force.
(Transmission ends.)
DAMMAR: How soon can we go to warp? I want to get back there.
RISLAN: Just a few minutes.
[Access tunnel]
JARLETH: Let's go back.
PARIS: No, we've got to find the Captain and Tuvok. They might need our help.
JARLETH: We have to help ourselves. This is our chance to get back into our own environments.
TORRES: If you want to go, then go. We're not leaving them behind.
(Paris and Torres leave.)
NYRIAN GUARD: Don't move.
JARLETH: I surrender. I'm sorry. It wasn't my idea. They made me come along. They, er, went around that corner.
NYRIAN GUARD: Follow them.
[Control room]
(In another control room, Tuvok neck-pinches a Nyrian.)
TUVOK: He just activated a translocator control. One lifeform was sent from an access tunnel to the biosphere adjacent to ours.
JANEWAY: That must have been Jarleth. This translocator is what the Nyrians used to get on our ship.
TUVOK: Then we should be able to use the same method to return to Voyager.
JANEWAY: Assuming we can figure out how to use it.
[Bridge]
RISLAN: We're getting an incoming message from the biosphere vessel. Audio only.
TALEEN [OC]: Taleen to Dammar. Some of the lifeforms have accessed the control system. They have weapons. We need reinforcements.
DAMMAR: We're on our way to you now. Increase speed to maximum velocity. Take us close enough to translocate our entire security force at once.
RISLAN: Yes, sir.
[Access tunnel]
PARIS: Something's wrong with the phaser.
TORRES: Power cells probably running out. These aren't exactly Starfleet issue.
PARIS: We've got to get out of these tunnels. There must be somewhere to hide in one of these habitats.
TORRES: Tom, I think I've found one. Here is it.
(An arctic snowstorm hits them.)
TORRES: Remember how we had to warm up the ship for the Nyrians?
PARIS: This is the last place they'd want to follow us.
TALEEN: Stop!
(Torres and Paris go inside.)
TALEEN: Follow them. That's an order.
[Control room]
TUVOK: This translocator has an extremely long range. Over ten light years.
JANEWAY: Great distances must limit it's capacity. That's why the Nyrians could only send one person to Voyager at a time and bring one of us here.
TUVOK: Their method has the added advantage of appearing innocent, at least in the beginning.
JANEWAY: I can't find the command pathways to get the system operative, and I don't imagine we have much longer before they find us.
[Argala Habitat]
TORRES: Maybe coming in here wasn't such a good idea.
PARIS: Let's hope it's worse for them than it is for us.
TORRES: Careful. That phaser's just about dead.
(Paris fires at the rocks above the Nyrian's heads, and they retreat.)
TORRES: They can't last much longer. We've just got to stay one step ahead of them.
PARIS: We don't want to get too far away from the portal. Maybe we should find a place to hide.
TORRES: Let me see the phaser. My hands are completely numb.
PARIS: Here. I would have thought all that hot Klingon blood would have kept you warm.
(Paris blows on her hands.)
TORRES: Shows how much you know about Klingons. They have much less tolerance for the cold than humans do.
PARIS: Really? I thought that was Cardassians.
TORRES: No, they just complain about it more.
PARIS: Better?
TORRES: I think that'll amplify the power cell enough for one more shot.
(A Nyrian finds them, then passes out from the cold. A second one comes up behind them.)
PARIS: B'Elanna!
(Torres shoots the Nyrian.)
PARIS: Nice shot. Now let's get out of here before we freeze to death.
[Control room]
JANEWAY: I've got the basic operation down, but I can't quite figure out how to lock on to a target. Can you access anything that might function like our targeting scanners?
TUVOK: There are biosensors contained within the monitoring programs of each habitat. Perhaps
JANEWAY: What is it?
TUVOK: I'm detecting human lifeforms in one of the environments. The Argala habitat.
JANEWAY: Tom and B'Elanna.
TUVOK: Possibly. They may have taken refuge there to hide from the Nyrians.
JANEWAY: Doesn't look very inviting, does it.
TUVOK: The temperature is minus twenty degrees Celsius.
JANEWAY: They can't last long in that. We've got to get them out.
TUVOK: Captain, there's a ship approaching at high warp. It's Voyager.
JANEWAY: If the Nyrians are bringing in reinforcements, we're in trouble. Keep working on those bioscanners.
[Argala Habitat]
TORRES: I didn't think we were this far from the portal. I don't think I can go any farther.
PARIS: You have to keep moving.
TORRES: Oh, I'm so sleepy.
PARIS: No, B'Elanna, get up.
TORRES: No, you go on. I'm just going to rest here.
PARIS: If you do that, you'll die.
TORRES: No, I'll be fine. I just have to close my eyes for a minute.
PARIS: Oh no, I am not going to let you do this. On your feet now, Torres. That's an order.
TORRES: You can't give me orders. We're the same rank.
PARIS: I am a bridge officer, and I have seniority.
TORRES: Oh yeah, by two days!
PARIS: On your feet, now! Come on, you've been wanting to take a swing at me for days. Now's your chance.
TORRES: You're just trying to get me moving.
PARIS: You will keep moving. Or do I have to throw you over my shoulder and carry you out?
TORRES: Don't even try it.
(Torres and Paris get translocated back to the Federation habitat. Which means two other people get switched...)
DAMMAR: Where are we?
RISLAN: The Argala habitat, sir.
DAMMAR: Get us out of here. Where's the portal?
(Janeway translocates in.)
DAMMAR: You did this!
JANEWAY: I've taken control of your translocation system. My tactical officer is standing by, waiting for my next order.
DAMMAR: And, and what would that be?
JANEWAY: That depends on you. Surrender my ship and release all the prisoners here.
DAMMAR: Unacceptable.
JANEWAY: All right. You can stay where you are and greet your fellow crewmembers as we translocate them here to join you.
RISLAN: And if we do surrender?
JANEWAY: We'll find you a nice warm habitat where you'll be comfortable while we contact the native worlds of your prisoners and arrange for their return. And once we've disabled your translocator, you'll be free to go. I'm sorry you don't wish to be reasonable. Mister Tuvok, get me out of here and prepare to
DAMMAR: No! Wait!
Captain's log, stardate 50929.6. The Nyrians have surrendered Voyager, and my crew is safely back on board. The former prisoners on the habitat vessel have contacted their native worlds, and are waiting to be taken home.
[Holodeck - Paxau Resort]
(Torres sits on a recliner next to Paris.)
TORRES: Nice day.
PARIS: Beautiful.
TORRES: Things were pretty chilly there for a while.
PARIS: I guess they were.
TORRES: It feels good to be warm again.
PARIS: Yeah, it sure does.
2024-09-13 10:17:36 -
Pike:
Added the transcript.
