Naomi Wildman, state your purpose here.
I was waiting for you. Kadis-Kot, remember? Our weekly game.
Reschedule for tomorrow. I'm working now.
- Redecorating isn't work. - Aesthetics are irrelevant.
I'm modifying the alcove to function as a cortical processing sub-unit.
That was my next guess.
Then I won't need to explain its purpose.
OK, you win. What do you do with the cortical processing...
Sub-unit. On Borg vessels, there's one in each unimatrix.
It downloads newly-assimilated data to the drones.
But Voyager isn't a Borg vessel and you're not a drone any more.
Voyager collects information - sensor scans, navigational projections,
engineering updates, away team reports, scientific analyses.
The results of our Kadis-Kot tournament?
That, too. The crew must study this information. An inefficient procedure.
This downloads the information into the alcove.
Which is going to download it into you.
Precisely. In a matter of hours, I will assimilate months worth of data.
- Can I try it sometime? - Your physiology is different from mine.
I'll stick to reading my lessons and listening to Neelix tell stories.
- I will see you tomorrow. - Can I watch?
OK, tomorrow.
Warning, plate is hot.
Go for authenticity and what do you get?
Second-degree burns.
I've been slaving over that for hours.
What was this bizarre rumour I heard
about half of deck 5 getting pregnant?
The Doctor was running generational
projections on the computer.
Tom Paris glanced at the monitor
and jumped to conclusions.
Then Neelix asked if he could turn
cargo bay 1 into a nursery.
Word travels fast on this ship.
Warp 10. By the way, I meant to tell you.
A Class-K nebula is 25 light years away.
We should take a look.
A major detour for a minor nebula.
We are explorers, remember?
Permission granted.
Main course. A recipe I've never tried.
But we are explorers, remember?
Regeneration cycle complete.
Seven of Nine to Lieutenant Torres.
- Lieutenant Torres, respond. - This had better be important.
I must speak with you at once.
I'm picking up interesting graviton fluctuations ten light years away.
- Can you be more specific? - Not at this distance.
Alter course. I want to take a look.
Chakotay had his heart set on that nebula.
He'll have to wait.
Captain, I need permission to shut down the sensor grid.
Seven thinks insects are disrupting the power flow.
A mating pair of photonic fleas, and their offspring.
How did you arrive at this theory?
I downloaded six months of ship's status reports
into my cortical sub-unit as I regenerated.
Learn while you sleep. I tried that once.
- It gave me a headache. - Goon.
Eight weeks ago, an away team encountered a freighter
carrying supplies from a territory that included a former Talaxian colony.
Mr Neelix acquired 12 kilograms of amber spice, a delicacy to his people.
And the sensor grid?
On the same day, Ensign Kim was repairing a replicator in the mess hall.
I remember. Neelix told me to try something he was cooking.
Made with amber spice, containing the larvae of the photonic fleas.
How could you possibly know that?
I also downloaded data regarding their life cycles.
The larvae flew out in search of nourishment - plasma particles.
The conduits within the sensor grid contain a supply of particles.
Ensign Kim gave the creatures access by exposing the grid.
The creatures tap into the conduit for nourishment
and the sensor emitters lose their resolution.
A logical, though highly-speculative, analysis.
Let's find a more suitable home for them.
- I'm picking up graviton fluctuations. - Take us out of warp. On screen.
Anybody want to hazard a guess?
- They're hailing us. - On screen.
I recommend maximum shielding. There are technical issues to work out.
- Graviton surge coming from that thing. - Shields to full.
Their apparatus is destabilising.
Better repair this power core. They'll be able to see the explosion all the way to...
Where did you say you were from?
I didn't, but we're from a planet called Earth.
- All the way to Earth. - Can we ask you what it does?
Catapult a vessel across space in the time it takes to say,
"Catapult a vessel across space.”
It'll make warp drive look like a wooden sledge.
Maybe we can help you with that power core.
Hm?
The core sends a graviton surge through the projectors which locks onto a ship
and sends it hurtling into null space.
It emerges a few hours later, hundreds, if not thousands, of light years away.
- I'm curious why you built this catapult. - Simple.
I've been looking for a way to get home.
- We know the feeling. - I was exploring an unstable wormhole.
Before I knew it, I was here and my home planet was there.
I faced a journey of at least ten years. Instead, I decided to build a catapult.
- Have you tested it yet? - I sent a probe nearly 600 light years.
But it destabilised the core. I've been trying to fix it ever since.
We can send an engineering team.
Too dangerous. I wouldn't send my own crew.
We could adjust the core reaction from here.
A few well-timed graviton pulses might do it.
That's generous, but I have nothing to give in return.
We're not asking for anything in return.
You could use the catapult after I make my jump. It should still be functional.
1,000 light years won't get you back to Earth.
But it would cut a few years off our trip.
If you're successful and if I'm satisfied a jump would be safe for Voyager,
then we'll take you up on that offer. Thank you. Let's get started.
Come in.
- Good morning. - Perhaps not.
The alien, Mr Tash, is trying to deceive us.
His catapult is the same technology used to trap Voyager
in the Delta Quadrant five years ago.
I scanned the catapult myself. Sensors didn't pick up anything unusual.
You spent the night in your new alcove.
Processing the information and cross-referencing it with the database.
When the catapult destabilised,
sensors recorded a momentary burst of epsilon radiation.
Unusual, but not unheard of.
Epsilon radiation is a by-product of a tetryon reactor.
According to your entries in the database,
your only encounter with that technology was in the Alpha Quadrant.
A coherent tetryon beam locked onto Voyager
and you were hit by a displacement wave
pulling you across 70,000 light years.
The source of that tetryon beam was the Caretaker's array.
Mr Tash claims that his catapult will be able to do something very similar.
He didn't want us to send over a repair team.
Out of concern for our safety.
It's obvious he was trying to hide his tetryon reactor.
The first time we met a Caretaker, we were pulled across the galaxy.
The second time we were almost killed. I'm not eager for a third round.
Is this any way to treat a colleague?
Not so much as a molecule of Caretaker DNA.
Thank you, Doctor.
There's a tetryon reactor powering your catapult.
You didn't want us to find it, did you?
Unless you answer my questions, I'll resume course
and you can ask somebody else for help.
Look, I acquired the tetryon reactor at great cost.
This territory is full of species who'd do anything for advanced technology,
including steal it.
I apologise for the deception, but you do understand.
We made an agreement to cooperate. I see no reason not to continue.
- Thank you, Captain. - Keep me informed on your progress.
That reactor came from somewhere.
I can't ignore the possibility of a Caretaker.
- Keep scanning. - There's another possibility.
It is from the same array that brought you to the Delta Quadrant.
- That's a long shot, Seven. - Maybe not.
In reports, you believed the only way to keep the array
from falling into the wrong hands was to destroy it.
It's possible the destruction was incomplete.
And one of the reactors survived?
We scanned for debris. There was nothing but fused pieces of metal alloy.
- I wish to re-examine the records. - In case we were mistaken?
- Yes. - Go right ahead.
Describe the debris remaining after the array was destroyed.
Particulate dust and metallic fragments composed of an unknown alloy.
Vapour composed of hydrogen, helium, mercury and argon.
- Anything left of the tetryon reactor? - Negative.
Specify the yield of the tricobalt device.
20,000 teracochranes.
- Who programmed the device? - Commander Tuvok.
Display the detonation.
Advance the image by 0.01 seconds.
Again.
Isolate grid 37 and magnify.
- Is that a tractor beam? - Insufficient sensor data.
- Identify its source. - Insufficient sensor data.
Identify the isolated section of the array.
- Secondary power core. - Which contained a tetryon reactor.
Affirmative.
I've been reviewing the data on the destruction of the Caretaker's array.
Unfortunately, the sensor records are incomplete.
We were being attacked by the Kazon. Half the ship's systems were down.
- A single Kazon vessel. - Armed to the teeth.
You fired the tricobalt charge that destroyed the array.
- Correct. - Under the captain's orders.
- Did you also program the charge? - Yes.
- Under the captain's orders as well? - Not directly. I determined the yield.
- 20,000 teracochranes. - Correct.
According to sensor estimates of the array's hull integrity,
a charge of half that yield would have been sufficient.
The captain wanted nothing left for the Kazon.
- I calculated a yield to do that. - Something escaped the blast.
- A tetryon reactor. - But we scanned for debris.
The charge you detonated tore an opening in subspace.
- And that's where the reactor went? - Yes.
- How? - It was pushed there by a tractor beam.
Do you have evidence of a tractor beam?
- Perhaps. - Speculation is not evidence.
There was no tractor beam. There was no ship in the vicinity to generate one.
Unless you can prove otherwise.
Thank you, Commander.
Looking for a midnight snack?
I want to determine whether the catapult was derived from the Caretaker's array.
So I heard. A fascinating theory. It's got my mind spinning.
How long were you in the vicinity before Voyager arrived?
About a year. Kes was on a nearby planet and we were getting very close.
Did you encounter the Caretaker directly?
No. In my opinion, any being powerful enough to grab ships
from across the galaxy is best avoided.
According to Voyager's database, he claimed he was searching for a mate.
- Did you believe that? - I had no reason to doubt it.
- It did seem excessive. All those ships. - What happened to them?
After he sampled the crew's DNA, he sent them back where they came from.
Kes always thought something more was going on,
but she had quite an imagination.
Were there any ships in the area after Voyager arrived?
Only the Kazon.
But the Caretaker could have pulled in a cloaked ship.
What are you getting at?
A third ship, hidden from Voyager and the Kazon.
- What was it doing there? - Preventing the reactor's destruction.
Kes was right. Something was going on.
Voyager's sensor logs were damaged in the Kazon attack. I can't be certain.
I can help. My sensor records weren't damaged. I can give them to you.
Tetryon reaction is stable. Graviton field set for a 100 light year jump.
- Catapult locking onto him. - We're being hailed.
On screen.
I'll contact you the moment I re-enter normal space. Thank you, Captain.
- My pleasure. - Catapult is at full power.
Goodbye to you all.
Final launch sequence has been initiated.
- He's gone. - How long before we hear from him?
If his vessel survived, one or two hours.
- Seven of Nine to Chakotay. - Go ahead.
I require your assistance in the astrometrics lab.
On my way.
Seal the doors. Deactivate all sensors within this room.
- Acknowledged. - What's this about?
Voyager's presence in the Delta Quadrant is no accident.
You and the crew have been stranded here intentionally.
- By whom? - Captain Janeway.
The Captain and Tuvok were involved in a conspiracy.
They're in collusion with the Caretaker and possibly the Cardassians.
I see. And the point of this conspiracy?
To establish a military presence in the Delta Quadrant.
Quite a theory. Have you heard of the Jankata Accord?
"No species shall enter another quadrant for territorial expansion.”
The Federation signed it, the Cardassians signed it
and Captain Janeway wouldn't violate it.
Improbable as it may sound, I've found evidence to support my theory.
What kind of evidence?
I've analysed 30 million teraquads of data regarding Voyager's activities.
It's clear that we've been the victim of an elaborate deception.
I don't have the benefit of a cortical processor. Give me an abridged version.
Before Voyager's arrival,
Neelix recorded the appearance of 52 vessels, including this one.
- A Cardassian warship. - A remarkable coincidence.
Before Voyager came, the Cardassians were already in the Delta Quadrant.
The Caretaker was trying to find a mate.
- He took ships from all over the galaxy. - I'm familiar with his actions.
He would examine the crews' DNA.
Failing to find a genetic match, he released the vessel.
In this instance, Neelix's sensors indicated the ship vanished.
It was returned to the Alpha Quadrant.
- Why? - You seem to have all the answers.
The Cardassians delivered information regarding the Delta Quadrant.
- Conjecture. - Extrapolation.
I can believe the Cardassians are involved, but not Starfleet.
There are precedents for unauthorised missions of this type.
According to the Federation database, the Maquis were victims of several.
All right, you've got my attention.
You said that Tuvok and Captain Janeway were involved. Tell me how.
As the Cardassians were meeting with the Caretaker,
your Maquis vessel was infiltrated with a Starfleet agent.
- Tuvok. - Your navigator.
He guided your ship to coordinates in the Badlands,
where the Caretaker locked onto you. Once in the Delta Quadrant,
Tuvok could have transmitted instructions to the Caretaker.
Captain Janeway guided Voyager to the same coordinates
and was also pulled into the Delta Quadrant.
These events took place within a matter of days. I find that suspicious.
I'll admit the timing seems a little convenient,
but that doesn't mean there was a master plan.
- Why did the captain destroy the array? - So the Kazon couldn't use it.
She told the crew that, but she intended to remain in the Delta Quadrant.
If the array was intact, you'd have insisted on using it to return home.
She was keeping it from the Kazon.
The captain ordered Tuvok to destroy the array.
He fired two tricobalt devices.
Are those weapons carried on Federation starships?
- No. - They were in Voyager's arsenal. Why?
- I can't explain that. - I can.
Neither phasers nor torpedoes can create a tear in subspace.
A tricobalt device can.
As Tuvok detonated it, a cloaked ship locked onto a tetryon reactor
and pushed it through the tear into subspace,
protecting it from the blast and hiding it from Voyager's sensors.
But the captain and Tuvok knew where it was going.
Once Voyager left the area, the reactor was retrieved,
carried by a series of vessels until it was finally delivered to Mr Tash.
Who used it to build the catapult.
He was waiting here for Voyager and the final phase of the mission.
Which is what exactly?
I don't think Janeway is planning to use the catapult to get Voyager home.
She's going to use it to bring in vessels from the Alpha Quadrant.
If I'm correct, this region will be occupied by a Federation-Cardassian force.
You've uncovered interesting facts, but your interpretation is far-fetched.
These are random incidents.
Granted, some are hard to explain, but there's no conspiracy.
Stardate 51008. Captain Janeway allows Kes to leave Voyager.
Neelix said Kes was suspicious of the Caretaker.
Was the captain trying to silence her?
Stardate 51462. The Doctor's program
is transmitted to a Starfleet vessel in the Alpha Quadrant,
an attempt to contact Earth or a secret communique about her progress.
Stardate 50984. Janeway forges an alliance with the Borg.
Stardate 51762. A ceasefire with the Hirogen.
Stardate 52861. A non-aggression pact with the Terkellian.
She called each incident diplomacy.
She was establishing a tactical infrastructure in the Delta Quadrant.
In five years, she has altered course 263 times in the name of exploration.
She was mapping the region and collecting data...
I get the point.
You still doubt my suspicions, but can you be certain I'm wrong?
Absolutely certain?
No.
Until you are, you mustn't allow Janeway to retain control of the catapult.
I am picking up a transmission, distorted.
- He made it. - Can you clear it up?
- Success, Captain. 5,000 light years. - Are you all right?
A few systems overloaded, nothing serious. I readjusted my shields.
I almost lost my outer hull. I'm sending you the modifications.
My catapult is yours, Captain. Good luck.
Get that data to B'Elanna. Tell her to enhance our shields.
- So we're going ahead with the jump? - I want to run tests, launch probes.
- If it checks out, I see no reason not to. - I've received the telemetry.
I'll take it to engineering.
I want you to add a 0.03 variance to these shield modifications.
That'll disrupt the emitters.
You'll need six hours to get them back on-line. I know.
- Have you run this by the captain? - No and I'm not going to.
Not yet.
She's pulling your leg. It's got to be some kind of Borg practical joke.
- She wasn't joking. - A secret mission?
Starfleet in league with the Caretaker? It's ridiculous.
Ridiculous? Seven has compelling evidence.
Let's go to the captain, get a straight answer.
"Good morning. Systems operational. The crew's in good health.
"By the way, is it true you've been lying to us for five years?"
I'm not prepared to make that accusation,
but I can't ignore what I've heard either.
So what do you suggest?
Delay the shield modifications. It gives me time to check Seven's database.
Take a look at the evidence myself.
The captain asked me to work with you on the shields.
- That won't be necessary. - I don't mind.
- She's eager to make that jump. - We're fine.
Too many cooks. You know how it is. We'll let you know when we're done.
Download complete.
- Seven of Nine to Captain Janeway. - Go ahead.
- I need to speak with you. - I'm on my way.
Computer, seal the door and deactivate internal sensors to this room.
Chakotay is involved in a conspiracy to resurrect the Maquis rebellion.
- Did Chakotay put you up to this? - Voyager is in grave danger.
Goon.
Chakotay will use the catapult to launch attacks against Federation starships.
Chakotay gave up his allegiance to the Maquis.
- What you're saying makes no sense. - I found evidence to support my theory.
In the months before Voyager's arrival,
Neelix recorded the sudden appearance of 52 vessels including this one.
A Cardassian warship.
I analysed the hull geometry and warp signature.
It was one of the ships that were pursuing Chakotay in the Badlands
and was pulled into the Delta Quadrant by the Caretaker.
According to Federation records, that warship was destroyed in the Badlands.
The investigation revealed it was a Maquis attack.
For an unknown reason the Caretaker sent this ship to the Alpha Quadrant.
Chakotay attacked the vessel before it reached its destination.
He downloaded its computer core and discovered the array.
He realised that the array could be used as a weapon
to launch surprise attacks against Cardassian and Starfleet vessels.
I commend you for your imagination, but Tuvok was a spy on Chakotay's ship.
If that was true, he would have known.
He does. Tuvok has been collaborating with the Maquis resistance.
That's not possible.
Tuvok and Chakotay plotted a course toward the next displacement wave.
His vessel was bait.
His ploy almost succeeded, but the Caretaker was powerful.
His crew was taken captive. Voyager arrived and facilitated their escape.
Chakotay made one last attempt to gain control of the array.
But then you gave the order to destroy it.
Circumstantial evidence, not proof.
Who carried out your order to destroy the array?
- Using what type of technology? - Tricobalt devices.
He set the yield to 20,000 teracochranes.
Enough to tear an opening in subspace. A cloaked ship locked onto a reactor,
protecting it from the blast and hiding it from Voyager.
The reactor was carried by a series of vessels and delivered to Mr Tash,
who was compensated by Chakotay to build the catapult.
He was waiting here for Voyager,
so Chakotay could complete the mission he was forced to abandon years ago.
I'd be willing to consider this theory of yours
if I didn't know Chakotay as well as I do.
There is no one on this ship I trust more.
What you've done here is build what we call a house of cards.
Stardate 48658. Commander Seska is revealed to be a Cardassian spy,
defects to the Kazon and impregnates herself with Chakotay's DNA.
Was he unaware, or were they working together
to create a new Kazon sect to capture Voyager?
Stardate 49522. Chakotay recommends trade relations with the Kolhari.
Their technology uses tetryon power cells.
A diplomatic overture, or was he seeking a source of energy for the catapult?
Stardate 495...
- Seven. - Naomi Wildman.
- Where are you going? - That's not your concern.
What's wrong?
- Your father was Ktarian. - So?
Ktarians were with the Federation, but sympathised with the Maquis.
- What are you talking about? - Who do you work for?
- Chakotay or the captain? - Seven?
Tell them it's too late. Go!
I picked up a power surge coming from the cargo bay.
I detected the same thing. Do you think it's the enhanced alcove?
- Could be. - Let's take a look.
Are phasers standard equipment on board now?
Must be.
The data buffer's been activated.
I wanted to make sure it wasn't malfunctioning.
You should be careful. Somebody might think you were trying to delete files.
Why would they think that?
Some of those files could contain sensitive information.
If that's true, somebody might think you were trying to do the same thing.
That catapult out there, it's a powerful piece of technology.
If the Maquis ever had access to something like it,
they might have been successful.
If we had, your mission to the Delta Quadrant
never would have got off the drawing board.
- What are you talking about? - The mission you've been on.
My only mission is trying to get Voyager home.
Seven showed me the records. I saw the tractor beam.
She showed me the same thing, but she implicated you in a Maquis plot.
Same evidence, two different theories.
It all started with those photonic fleas. She was downloading the database...
- Bridge to Captain Janeway. - Go ahead, Harry.
I picked up an unauthorised launch of the Delta Flyer. Seven's at the helm.
- Set a pursuit course. - Chakotay to the Doctor.
Get down to cargo bay 2. Run a diagnostic on Seven's alcove.
- On my way. - I'm glad we got that settled.
- Likewise. - Let's keep this one out of our logs.
Gladly.
She's altering course, heading for the catapult.
Maintain pursuit. Open a channel.
- No response. - Try to beam her out.
She's altered her bio-signature. I can't get a lock.
Target her propulsion and weapons. Fire.
- Our scanners are out of alignment. - She did it before she took off.
- Charging weapons. - Keep trying.
- Doctor to Janeway. - Report.
Seven downloaded too much data into her cortical implant.
She tried to make sense of too much information.
- Understood. Beam me onto the Flyer. - I'm going with you.
I have a better chance alone.
- Is this part of your mission? - Is it part of yours?
- Good luck. - Energise.
Captain.
You came here hoping to stop me. You'll fail.
Turn this ship around. That's an order.
Your orders are irrelevant. I'm no longer under your command. You deceived me.
There is no conspiracy. There is no Maquis rebellion.
The Federation won't invade the Delta Quadrant.
I realised that. I've finally uncovered your true objective.
- And what's that? - Me. Stardate 32611.
The Federation sends my parents to study the collective.
They know my family will be assimilated.
Stardate 48317. Voyager is sent to the Delta Quadrant to retrieve me.
When they reach Borg space, you negotiate an alliance with the collective
in exchange for information regarding species 8472.
They agree to give her Seven of Nine.
Stardate 51030. Janeway extracts the implants from my body
to remove any knowledge I have of her agreement. Stardate 53329.
Janeway will use the catapult to deliver Seven of Nine to the Alpha Quadrant,
where Starfleet will dissect and analyse her to gather data to fight the Borg.
I won't allow you to complete your mission.
If necessary, I'll destroy the catapult and myself.
You're right, Seven.
There is a conspiracy here. But I believe it's a conspiracy of one.
I've got a theory of my own.
Your modified alcove threw your synaptic patterns into chaos
and your mind can't make sense of all the information.
You're generating theory after theory in an attempt to bring order to chaos.
Your reasoning is flawed. My alcove is functioning.
What about you? You're not a drone any more.
You can't always predict how Borg technology will affect you.
You should be in sickbay, not behind that force field.
- Let me help you. - No. I don't believe you.
Of course you don't. Anything I say gets woven into your paranoid conspiracies.
But you should believe me, because I've never lied to you
and I'm not lying to you now.
You'll have to put your doubts aside and trust me.
Stardate 51030. Seven of Nine is severed from the hive mind.
The captain tells her not to resist, that she'll learn to accept her humanity.
Seven complies... and slowly begins to embrace her individuality.
Does she regret that decision?
Stardate 51652.
The captain encourages Seven to develop her social skills.
Seven insists it's a waste of time, but after further requests, she pursues it
and begins to develop her first human friendships.
Did Janeway lead her astray?
Stardate 52840.
The captain orders Seven to study her parents' journals.
Seven claims they are irrelevant, but she reads them
and rediscovers part of her own past. Stardate 52841.
For the first time, Seven tells the captain "thank you".
It was stardate 52842.
0600 hours in the mess hall.
- We had just finished breakfast. - My mistake.
Stardate today. Janeway beams aboard the Delta Flyer.
She reminds Seven of the bond that's grown between them.
Seven lowers the force field and she decides to come home.
All I'm asking is that you trust me again.
Delta Flyer to Voyager, two to beam out.
Captain's log, supplemental. After further testing, we activated the catapult
and were hurtled across 30 sectors of space.
In less than an hour, we cut three years off our journey.
The Doctor repaired Seven of Nine's cortical processor
and she's returned to duty.
Guess who assimilated three books and ten reports in two days.
- Naomi Wildman. - That's correct.
- Are you taking your new alcove apart? - Yes.
Why?
My attempt to download the database failed.
Maybe you can fix it.
The alcove functioned within expected parameters.
Unfortunately, I did not.
Three books and ten reports is impressive,
but quantity is less relevant than quality.
You must be able to interpret the data and enjoy the process.
Regardless, you require activities other than assimilating books and reports.
- A game of Kadis-Kot, for example. - When?
Go to the mess hall and set up the board. I'll join you when I'm finished.
I heard the strangest rumour today.
Apparently the captain and first officer almost came to blows.
Mutiny?
First officer walked the plank, so I heard.
- I don't believe a word of it. - Me neither.
Seven was malfunctioning. We don't have that excuse.
You're right. We've been through too much to stop trusting each other.
- You didn't poison the coffee? - Not any more than I usually do.