Captain Janeway forges a shaky alliance with the Borg Collective to defeat Species 8472, leading to a new potential crewmember coming aboard.
Summary
A recap of the events of "Scorpion".
Act One
Janeway tells her crew she has forged an alliance with the Borg
The Borg cube races away from the destruction wrought upon the assimilated system by Species 8472, still with USS Voyager in the grip of its tractor beam.
On the bridge, with Captain Janeway on the cube, Chakotay is in command. Lieutenant Torres, standing in at operations for the incapacitated Ensign Kim, reports that the cube's shields are down; she has a transporter lock on the captain. Chakotay orders her to beam her back and break them free of the tractor beam. To Tuvok, at Tactical, he orders weapons be made ready. However, Torres fails at both her tasks; the cube adapts to the transport attempts. Then Tuvok reports a hail from the cube. Chakotay orders it be put on-screen.
Captain Janeway's dead-serious face appears. She orders Chakotay to cease the transporter attempts. She then announces that she has made the deal with the collective. Lieutenant Paris, at the conn, confirms that the cube has indeed altered course for the Alpha Quadrant. Janeway says this is part of the accord; they will work on the weapon en route. Chakotay dubiously inquires as to how this arrangement is going to begin. Janeway responds that she will work with the Borg on the cube, since they have technology that will make the job progress faster. Chakotay, not caring for this at all, strongly suggests she return to Voyager.
But she is adamant: she will work on the cube, as the accord dictates. Chakotay then suggests that at least the cube can release them; Voyager can keep up with it without a leash. Janeway says she will propose it, and then orders Tuvok to join her. With a final, firm look at Chakotay, she insists to him they will make this work, and the communication ends.
Act Two
In sickbay, The Doctor has finished preparing the treatment for Ensign Kim. He shows Chakotay ten million Borg nanoprobes he has modified to destroy the Species 8472 cells. With Chakotay looking on, he injects them into Kim. They are immediately successful; the area around the injection site turns from the horrid, deformed mass that covers the rest of Kim's face, neck and shoulders to mottled Borg-gray as the nanoprobes spread out, and finally reverts to normal Human skin. Chakotay, Kes and the Doctor are quietly elated.
Chakotay congratulates The Doctor and instructs that he be informed when Kim is fit for duty. As he moves to leave, however, the Doctor stops him and voices his concern about the alliance; a medical treatment is a long way from a weapon of war. Chakotay makes no display of his opinion, simply telling him to "leave it to the Captain", and reminds him to keep all the information about the nanoprobes in his holo-matrix.
Returning to the bridge, Chakotay gets a status report from Torres: Tuvok has transported onto the cube, the cube's tractor beam still has them, and its shields are regenerating. Chakotay orders constant transporter locks on the Captain and Tuvok. Torres begins to respond that she cannot do so, as the Borg will just match their frequencies, but Chakotay angrily cuts her off, snapping at her not to tell him what cannot be done. "Just find a way to get our people out of there if we have to," he orders sharply. She blanches and redoubles her efforts. The ship is suddenly shaken, and Paris reports the cube's tractor beam has been cut. He comments that the Borg, unbelievably, are actually honoring the accord.
Kes tells the Doctor Species 8472 is watching them
In sickbay, Kes is standing at a wall console, working. Suddenly she thinks she sees something. Wheeling round, she stares round at the empty room and takes a few tentative steps forward. Then she sees an 8472 charging directly at her. She screams, a high, keening cry that brings The Doctor running out from his office. He finds her crouched against a wall, shivering in terror. He immediately scrunches at her side, hands protectively on her shoulder, asking her what is wrong. She stares at him wide-eyed. "They're watching us," she gasps.
On the cube, Janeway and Tuvok are lead, rather roughly, to an area at the cube's center. Tuvok shows her information on the 8472 vessel they had encountered back in the carnage of Borg cubes. A cross-reference with the Doctor's research makes it clear that the aliens and their ships are made of the same biological material. They arrive at their destination and a drone blocks them from going any further. The Collective orders them to proceed. Janeway reveals the information given to her by Tuvok, and suggests that this means the alien ships would be susceptible to the Doctor's modified nanoprobes.
"I speak for the Borg."
She is suggesting, as a course of action, the development of a delivery system for the nanoprobes against the aliens' ships when, suddenly, two drones force them to their knees and proceed to attach devices to their necks. They demand to know what the drones are doing. The Collective tells them they will receive temporary neural transceivers, so that they can work with it as one mind. Janeway fervently disagrees with the idea. But the collective is not interested in her approval; it calls their "primitive method of communication" (speaking) "inefficient." Janeway suggests it choose a representative to speak for it, as it once chose Jean-Luc Picard to speak for it as Locutus. In fact, she does more than suggest; she demands it accept the idea or she will terminate the accord.
It considers and does accept. A door opens, leading to a short, dimly-lit corridor. At the end, a drone disconnects from its alcove. It walks purposefully to the door and steps out, into the room. It gazes at them coldly.
"I speak for the Borg." it announces.
Act Three
Voyager follows the Borg cube
The drone was obviously, from its facial structure and body shape, a Human female before assimilation. The two officers introduce themselves. It haughtily responds that they are aware of their designations. Janeway asks the drone for its designation. It responds: "Seven of Nine, Tertiary Adjunct of Unimatrix Zero-One." But, it adds, they may call it 'Seven of Nine'. It concurs with her proposal of a large-scale weapon. Tuvok suggests installing the nanoprobes in Voyager's photon torpedoes, essentially creating 'biomolecular warheads', but the drone responds that their torpedoes are inadequate, lacking the necessary range and force. Janeway ask it if it has a better suggestion. It crisply responds, "We are Borg," and turns away to go to a console. The officers look at each other and follow.
At the console, it brings up a schematic of a device, which it presents as the Collective's idea of a more suitable weapon: a multikinetic neutronic mine with a five million isoton yield. Tuvok notes that this would affect an entire star system. Janeway strongly objects; this is a weapon of mass destruction; it would put innocent lives at risk. But such considerations are irrelevant to the Collective. "It would be efficient," Seven of Nine responds, walking away. The officers press their objection; Tuvok states that it would take weeks to produce enough modified nanoprobes for such a weapon; weeks that the Borg cannot afford to spare. Janeway adds that their enemy currently thinks itself invulnerable; a few smaller weapons would show them otherwise and possibly cause them to give up and withdraw.
Seven of Nine's response is to look at them with disdain and scornfully call them individuals; small, thinking in small terms. But then it falls silent as the collective gives it instructions. It immediately walks back to them, saying that the current situation demands consideration of their plan (the Collective's instructions, obviously, were to go along with the idea). Returning to the console, it calls up Voyager's weapons inventory, specifically their photon torpedo specifications. The thunderstruck officers ask it how the Borg acquired this information. Its responds again: "We are Borg." The officers look on silently as it begins to work on modifying their torpedo designs to accommodate the proposed nanoprobe warheads.
On Voyager, The Doctor updates Chakotay on Kes' visions. They are increasing in frequency and intensity, and have become more than simple communications; now it is as if the aliens were in the same room with her. He reports that certain regions of her brain are hyper-stimulated every time she has a vision, specifically those centers dealing with memory and perception. The inference is disturbing: they are accessing her memories, finding out about them and what their intentions are, and using her eyes to see what they are doing. In short, they are learning their plans and using her to mount surveillance on them.
Thus, they may already know about the nanoprobes...
On the cube, Janeway attempts to learn more about Seven of Nine's past; about the Human it had once been. She learns from it that its Human body was assimilated eighteen years prior, ceasing to be Human at that time, becoming a new Borg drone. Janeway attempts to learn more, asking it that Human's name; it is obvious she is trying to contact that Human part of it. But it cuts her off, snapping at her not to attempt to "engage us in further irrelevant discourse."
A hail then comes in from Voyager. Chakotay informs Janeway that the 8472s are accessing Kes' memory. Knowing what that means, Janeway recommends to Seven of Nine that they change course. It silently consults with the collective, which agrees and communicates the course change to the drones on the cube. The cube changes course accordingly. Seven of Nine informs Janeway and Janeway orders Chakotay to adjust Voyager's course to match. She further orders him to keep her abreast of developments regarding Kes. Chakotay acknowledges and the communication ends.
"Do you think you could offer sufficient resistance?"
Seven of Nine then demands one of Voyager's torpedoes, as well as some of the modified nanoprobes. Janeway flatly refuses. The drone presses her, stating that the situation has changed; the risk of attack has increased, and therefore a prototype must be tested immediately. But Janeway does not budge, responding that the nanoprobes are their only guarantee against assimilation. Seven of Nine attempts to force her with threats. In a soft, dangerous voice, it asks her if they are willing to risk a direct confrontation with them, and if she thought the crew could resist a contingent of 500 drones if they were to board their vessel. Janeway simply responds that she, and her crew, would die trying.
"We'd die trying."
Seven of Nine goes silent again as the collective instructs it (its obvious instructions: "Stop pushing!"). "That won't be necessary," it relents, and returns to work on the torpedo designs.
On Voyager, Ensign Kim, fully recovered, returns to duty at the bridge's operations station, happily greeted by Chakotay and the other bridge officers. Torres teases him by saying, "You've still got a tendril up your nose." The moment of levity ends quickly, however, when Lt. Paris reports a singularity opening nearby. Chakotay immediately orders shields raised and a transporter lock on Tuvok and Janeway. An 8472 vessel emerges and makes straight for the cube and Voyager. But this time the target is not the cube, but Voyager. The aliens indeed have learned of the nanoprobes from their probes of Kes' memory, and are bent on destroying them and their creators.
The ship opens fire on Voyager. The cube attempts to protect Voyager, firing on the alien ship, but, unsurprisingly, its weapons are completely ineffective. On the cube, Tuvok, Janeway and Seven of Nine monitor Voyager's condition, the two officers noting tensely that it is taking heavy damage, and is unlikely to survive the assault. The cube moves between Voyager and the 8472 vessel, shielding Voyager and taking the 8472 ship's fire, as Voyager dashes clear.
Explosions rock the cube; within, drones are blown from their alcoves that explode from energy discharges and overloads, One such explosion catches Janeway, knocking her unconscious and severely injuring her. On Voyager, Chakotay and the bridge officers watch the viewscreen in horror as the cube suddenly slows, causing the 8472 ship to crash into it. A massive explosion ensues.
Seven of Nine's cube sacrifices itself to save Voyager
Chakotay demands a report of the cube's condition. Paris bleakly reports the horrific truth: it was destroyed, along with the 8472 ship, and, it seems, Captain Janeway and Tuvok. But them a hail comes from Cargo Bay 2. It is Tuvok, barely conscious. He reports that the Borg beamed him, the Captain and a small number of drones over, just before the cube's destruction. He asks for medical assistance before going silent. Chakotay gives Paris the bridge, orders the entire deck on which Cargo Bay 2 is located sealed and Security to meet him outside the cargo bay, as he heads for the turbolift.
Chakotay and two security officers enter the cargo bay, armed with phaser rifles. They find Janeway and Tuvok, unconscious. The Captain has a deep, bloody gash along her face. Chakotay and the officers search for the drones. Suddenly an exo-plating-armored arm extends and the index finger of the hand attached to that arm points at them. A commanding voice tells them to lower their weapons, and Seven of Nine steps forward. It tells Chakotay they are here with the Captain's consent, further stating that the cube sacrificed itself to protect Voyager. Chakotay and the security officers stare at it, making no move to lower their weapons. It walks slowly up to Chakotay and reminds him of the alliance. Their weapons drop.
Very slowly.
Act Four
Janeway and Tuvok are treated in sickbay; The Doctor attends to Janeway and Kes treats Tuvok. Tuvok, despite his appearance when found, has suffered no serious injuries, and has quickly recovered. Janeway, however, is in extremely serious condition. The Doctor informs Tuvok and Chakotay that her neural pathways are disrupted; he will have to induce coma in her to facilitate her recovery, but he has no idea if she will recover. He tells Chakotay that she wants to speak with him, but warns him to be brief.
Chakotay orders Tuvok to supervise security regarding the drones; an extremely severe security risk, they are not to be allowed out of cargo bay 2. He goes to Janeway's side. Weakly, but very determinedly, she hands command to him. She tells him the Borg will push and threaten him, but have no choice but to honor the accord; their survival depends on it. She exhorts him to make the alliance work and get the crew home, as if these are her last words, before The Doctor comes and says he needs to induce the coma now. Chakotay clasps her hand and lays it at her side as she loses consciousness.
Accompanied by two armed security officers, Chakotay goes to cargo bay 2. The bay has been assimilated by the drones. Seven of Nine meets him and demands to speak with Janeway. Chakotay responds that she is recovering from her injuries; it will now be dealing with him. The drone tells him the loss of their vessel requires a change in the accord. Chakotay responds that he is willing to let the accord stand: they will work on the weapon, and, once Voyager is safely past Borg space, the nanoprobes will be given to them and they will depart.
Seven of Nine calls this insufficient; projections show they will have lost the war by then. It accesses a Borg console and shows him the position of another cube, forty light years from Voyager. "You will reverse course and take us to it," it commands. Chakotay refuses; the cube is five days away and, more importantly, in the wrong direction, further into Borg space. He insists that he will honor the original agreement but they will not go back; it is too dangerous. Seven of Nine responds, in a threatening tone, that denying their request is also dangerous. Chakotay promises to "think about it". "Think quickly," it responds dangerously, and walks away.
Chakotay tells the senior staff he is ending the alliance with the Borg
Chakotay calls a meeting of all senior staff. Kes attends for the Doctor, who is fully occupied treating Captain Janeway. Chakotay explains the situation to them: the Borg want them to rendezvous with another cube, but doing so is far too risky, as the 8472s are now after Voyager specifically. Therefore, he intends to end the alliance.
The officers are surprised; as unlikely as it has been, the Borg have kept their end of the bargain. Chakotay explains that he plans to drop the drones off on an uninhabited planet with the nanoprobes and they will continue on their way; he is in command and must do what he believes is best for the ship and crew. He orders Lt. Paris to find such a planet. Tuvok warns him that the Borg will not go quietly. He orders that "that female drone" be brought to him.
"You lack harmony. Cohesion. Greatness. It will be your undoing."
Seven of Nine is brought by armed security to Chakotay in the Captain's ready room. He outlines his plan to it to drop it and the other drones off with the nanoprobes, suggesting they "part ways amicably". Seven of Nine begins to object, but Chakotay cuts it off; his decision is final. Seven of Nine threatens assimilation of Voyager. Chakotay responds that if a single drone leaves the cargo bay he will have the whole deck decompressed; they will not be much of a threat floating in space.
Seven of Nine fixes him with a cold stare and responds that they had suspected an agreement with Humans could not be maintained. "You are erratic," it tells him. "Conflicted; disorganized. Every decision is debated, every action questioned. Every individual entitled to their own small opinion. You lack harmony; cohesion; greatness. It will be your undoing." Chakotay has no answer. He orders it taken back to the cargo bay.
In sickbay, Chakotay quietly speaks to the comatose Captain Janeway. Though she cannot hear him, he tells her the action he has taken, and fervently hopes for her understanding and forgiveness.
As Seven of Nine and the other drones work in cargo bay 2, the Collective updates them on the status of the war. The Borg are steadily being moved further and further toward extermination. It lists the casualties of the last battle, occurring in an area of their space designated as Matrix 010, Grid 19. Eight planets destroyed. 312 vessels disabled. Four million, six hundred and twenty one drones killed. Time is fast running out. It instructs them to force the Humans' hand by seizing control of their vessel and take it into the alien realm. Seven of Nine acknowledges. Two drones open a Jefferies tube hatch, and Seven of Nine crawls in.
Voyager arrives at an uninhabited moon. Chakotay orders Lt. Paris to move the ship into orbit, and orders Tuvok to prepare to beam the drones directly to the surface. Then Ensign Kim reports that the drones have accessed their deflector controls. Chakotay orders him to shut them out. Kim tries, but to no avail. Lt. Torres reports that a quantum singularity is forming; the drones are using the deflector to open it. Chakotay hails the cargo bay and warns them that if they do not stop he will have the bay decompressed. They do not respond. He gives the order to Tuvok.
The drones aboard Voyager are removed... all but one
Tuvok opens the outer doors to the bay, after deactivating the force field that normally contains the atmosphere when the outer doors are open. The atmosphere within rushes out in a powerful blast, taking the drones with it. However, Seven of Nine holds on tenaciously to the ridges in the Jefferies tube it has entered, anchoring itself firmly. It remains there until the doors close.
On the bridge, Tuvok reports that the cargo bay has been completely decompressed, but one drone is still aboard. Then the pull of the singularity seizes the ship. There is nothing they can do; they are drawn in as a vacuum draws in draws in debris. They find themselves in an environment unlike anything they have ever experienced, or imagined. There are no stars or planets; in fact, there is no space; just, as Torres reports, fluidic matter. Seven of Nine, having emerged from the Jefferies tube, and able to survive in a vacuum for a limited time as Borg drones are capable of doing, hails Chakotay and informs him of where they are: in the fluidic realm of Species 8472. Chakotay orders the re-pressurization of the bay. He then gives the bridge to Paris and heads for the turbolift, taking Tuvok with him.
Voyager flies through the fluidic realm of Species 8472
Chakotay and Tuvok arrive at the cargo bay. Seven of Nine tells them that their arrival has been noted, and that 8472 vessels will be at their position in three hours, seventeen minutes. The exact time frame the drone states, down to the minute, strikes Chakotay as odd; he comments that it seems to know a lot about this place, as if it has been here previously.
He asks it if this is so. It ignores him, insisting that they must prepare for the aliens' arrival by building the nanoprobe-warhead torpedoes. Chakotay, however, presses the matter. And then the epiphany hits him; it has been here previously. In fact, the Borg have been here previously; they invaded the aliens' realm and attempted to assimilate them, thus starting the war. They never considered that this species may be more powerful than they; that it could resist them; that they could fight back.
Chakotay accusingly tells this to Seven of Nine. The drone does not deny it, responding that the species was "more resistant than we had anticipated", and that their technology is superior to anything they had previously encountered. Tuvok adds to the accusation, telling it that this is precisely why the Borg wanted them. It explains that the species is the apex of biological evolution; their assimilation would have greatly added to Borg 'perfection'.
"So instead of assimilating these aliens," Tuvok responds, "You opened a door for them into our galaxy." His inference is clear: all life in the galaxy is now poised to pay for Borg aggression. Seven of Nine insists that the only course of action is therefore to destroy the aliens first. It tells them its link to the collective is not strong enough for communication there. It thus cannot call for help; they are alone. It again presses for immediate construction of the nanoprobe torpedoes. Just then, the Doctor hails Chakotay. He acknowledges and heads for the Sickbay.
He arrives to find Captain Janeway fully recovered and on her feet, but intensely angry. She asks the Doctor to excuse them for a moment. The Doctor acquiesces and turns himself off. Janeway sharply tells Chakotay the Doctor has informed her of all that has happened, and demands his explanation for why he disobeyed her. Chakotay defensively responds that the Borg wanted him to go further back into Borg space. He asks her what she would have done. She responds that she would have changed course and maintained the accord for as long as possible. She cuttingly accuses him of waiting for a chance to circumvent her orders, never trusting her to make the alliance work.
He protests that he made a tactical decision, and tells her his newly acquired information that the Borg are simply using them to save their skins from the consequences of their aggression, having started the war with Species 8472. This mollifies Janeway, somewhat. He informs her that there is only one drone left, and urges her to attempt to disable it and use the deflector to open another singularity to return to the Delta Quadrant. But she flatly refuses; she intends to reinstate the accord and fight the aliens alongside the Borg. Chakotay heatedly responds that the Borg cannot be trusted. He knows them, he insists, having been part of a mini-collective of former drones once (VOY: "Unity").
They pace up and down silently, frustrated. It is clear to them that they can continue the argument ad infinitum and never reach a consensus. They see how little use their continued squabbling is. It is Janeway who makes the first step toward reconciliation, telling him that they need to stop fighting each other in order to get though this. Chakotay agrees, telling her what Seven of Nine said about their lack of cohesion being their undoing. They agree to put their difference of opinion aside, and work together, as they should be doing.
Janeway steps out from the turbolift onto the bridge, meeting Seven of Nine there. She tells the drone that Chakotay is confined to the brig for disobeying her, and orders Tuvok to give it the nanoprobes and work with it to modify the torpedoes to deliver them. She then addresses the bridge officers: they are going to engage the enemy right there in their own realm. If the nanoprobes work, and the aliens have any sense of self-preservation, they will withdraw from the Delta Quadrant. They have less than two hours to arm and ready themselves before 8472 ships arrive. She strides to her seat and takes her position, her face tight with grim determination.
Act Five
Two hours later, Voyager is ready. Kes is present on the bridge, sitting in the first officer's seat next to Janeway's. Seven of Nine stands close to Ensign Kim's operations station. Kim reports that modifications the Borg have made to Voyager to give them a better fighting chance are complete. Janeway orders them activated. Voyager's hull, seen from the outside, begins to glow Borg-green in several places. Tuvok reports the nanoprobe weapons are ready: thirteen standard torpedoes and one class 10 high yield torpedo. Janeway informs the crew to stand by. Paris reports four 8472 ships coming in. Janeway orders battle stations. Kim reports that the alien ships are in visual range. Janeway orders an on-screen view. On the viewscreen, the squid-like vessels are seen, closing fast.
Then Kes begins getting telepathic messages from the aliens. "I can hear them," she tells Janeway. "They say we've contaminated their realm," Janeway, seeking to avoid hostilities if possible, even at this stage, tells Kes to tell them they had no choice; they were only trying to defend themselves. But the aliens retort that Voyager's galaxy is a threat to their genetic integrity. Janeway tells Kes to tell them of the nanoprobe weapons and warn them that these weapons will be used if they do not stop their attacks. The aliens are not intimidated. "Your galaxy will be purged," they insist.
The 8472 ships open fire, strafing Voyager. The ship rocks under their attack. Lt. Paris reports that they are coming around for another run. Janeway orders Tuvok to fire. He does, letting fly four of the modified standard torpedoes, which glow green instead of the usual bright yellow-orange. They strike their targets dead-on.
But they seemingly have no effect. Janeway stares at the viewscreen in horror. Kim tensely reports that the ships are charging weapons. It seems like the end…
The modified nanoprobes work
And then the ships suddenly stall, crystallize, becoming the same shade of green as the torpedoes, and explode. Tuvok comments that the torpedoes were indeed effective…if not prompt. Janeway, relieved, says that they have made their point, showing the aliens they are no longer invincible. She tells Seven of Nine to open another singularity, allowing them to leave. The drone goes to a console, shoving the bridge officer there out of the way, and proceeds to do so. Janeway eyes it coldly. She now has no illusions about what is going to happen when they get back. It is fortunate that they are prepared…
Voyager emerges back into the Delta Quadrant. It is immediately set upon from aft by several more 8472 vessels. Janeway tells Kes to tell them that if they do not back off, they will deploy the weapon again. Kes does so, but the aliens do not respond. Janeway orders Tuvok to ready the high-yield torpedo, launching it from aft. The aliens start firing on them. Janeway orders Tuvok to fire, which he does. The torpedo, glowing the same green as the four standard ones but much larger, flies straight into the midst of the alien ships and detonates. Voyager is rocked by the shock wave, but is otherwise unharmed, while the alien ships caught in the blast, like the four before them, stall, crystallize green, and explode.
Tuvok reports that thirteen of the ships were destroyed, and the others are retreating. Seven of Nine tells them it is again in contact with the Collective. It inclines its head slightly as the the collective communicates with it. It relays what it has said: all 8472 vessels are retreating back into their realm. "The Borg have prevailed," it announces. Janeway rises and, facing the drone, calls upon it to fulfill the Collective's end of the deal, offering it a shuttle to leave for the nearest cube.
Paris tries to stop Seven of Nine and fails
The double-cross then happens. "Unacceptable," Seven of Nine responds. "This alliance is terminated. Your ship and its crew will adapt to service us." It strides toward the helm console. Paris fires a phaser at it. Its personal shield glows green, protecting it completely. Unhindered, it continues to the console, batting Paris aside on arrival. "Resistance is futile," it states coldly.
It stands before the console and plunges its assimilation tubules into it. Kim reports that it is commandeering helm control and accessing their coordinates; its intent is to transmit that information to the Collective, while preventing them from fleeing. They will then have only a short, agonizing wait before one or more cubes descend on them like wolves. Janeway orders him to block its access; he fails of course.
But, as was said, they are prepared. With an icy stare at the drone, Janeway hails Chakotay. She tells him a single word;
"Scorpion."
In cargo bay 2, Chakotay is standing in one of the alcoves that had been beamed over from the borg ship. The Doctor attaches a neural transceiver to his neck. Chakotay then links with Seven of Nine and begins an attempt to reach the Human within the drone, while Lt. Torres works feverishly at a Borg console. The Doctor urges Torres to hurry, telling her the link will not last long. Chakotay continues his attempt, telling the drone he can see its memories; memories of being Human. A happy little Human girl is seen, running through a green, lush field. On the bridge, Seven of Nine distractedly mutters: "We are Borg." Chakotay continues to pull up its pre-assimilation memories, this time of the little girl frolicking happily with her parents in the same lush field.
"Irrelevant," Seven of Nine retorts tightly. "Your appeal to my (it uses the singular, a very significant point) Humanity is pointless." Torres urges him to keep it up just a bit longer; she is almost ready. He makes one final, impassioned appeal, calling the drone by its Human name: Annika. The Doctor frantically tells Torres the link is dropping.
Scorpion
But Torres is ready. She initiates the power surge she has set up. On the bridge, Seven of Nine suddenly stands ramrod-straight, a vacant, paralysed expression on its face. The look is replaced by one of sheer agony as it cries out in excruciating pain. It raises a hand to the back of its head as an implant located there there sparks with a bright light, overloaded and destroyed by Torres' power surge. It finally sinks down and slumps over the helm console, unconscious. In cargo bay 2, the neural transceiver on Chakotay's neck also sparks, as he gives a short, strangled scream and falls into the same state.
Janeway stares down at the disabled drone. Tuvok reports that its link to the Collective is severed. Janeway orders him to take it to sickbay. He lifts it and heads for the turbolift. Janeway hails The Doctor and orders a report on Chakotay's condition. He responds that Chakotay will be fine, though he may wake up with a bit of a headache. Relieved, Janeway orders Paris to remove them from Borg space at maximum warp. Paris is happy to obey.
Epilogue
Janeway is once again in her Leonardo Da Vinci holodeck simulation, writing with a quill pen on paper. Chakotay enters. She tells him she is writing her log, the old-fashioned way. He gives her a report on the ship's condition, telling her it will take at least two weeks to remove all of the Borg modifications. She asks about their passenger. Chakotay responds that the Doctor says it is stabilizing and its Human cells are regenerating. Janeway wonders if the Human female can be recovered from beneath the Borg technology.
A drone no longer;
Seven of Nine, severed from the Borg Collective
Realizing that she plans to keep it aboard, Chakotay cautions her on the wisdom of that; she was assimilated at a young age, he tells her. The collective is all she knows; she may want return to it. Janeway believes she might not; they can offer her friendship, something the Borg could never do. Chakotay moves to another, more difficult subject. He tells her disobeying her was one of the hardest choices he has ever had to make. She assures him she understands and respects his decision, though she does not agree with it. What is important, she stresses, is that they got through it together in the end. She does not want that to change, ever. He agrees. Together they leave the holodeck to return to the bridge.
In the Sickbay, on a bio-bed, the now-former Borg drone Seven of Nine lies unconscious, her link to the collective permanently severed. Already a tinge of normal Caucasian skin tone can be seen beneath the usual drone's mottled Borg-gray as the physiology of the Human, Annika, begins to reassert itself. Only time will tell how much Annika's Humanity can emerge from the living death that was her existence for the last 18 years.
Memorable Quotes
"Don't worry. I'll delete myself at the first sign of trouble. Well, maybe not the first sign."
- - The Doctor, about his knowledge of the modified nanoprobes
"You still have a tendril up your nose."
- - Torres to Kim, after he returned from sickbay
"I speak for the Borg."
- - Seven of Nine to Janeway and Tuvok
"Species 8472 has penetrated matrix 010 grid 19; eight planets destroyed, 312 vessels disabled, four million 621 Borg eliminated. We must seize control of the Alpha Quadrant vessel and take it into the alien realm."
- - The Borg Collective, to Seven of Nine and the other drones aboard Voyager
"What's wrong? Our galaxy wasn't big enough for you?"
- - Chakotay to Seven of Nine
"Bridge to Chakotay. Scorpion."
- - Captain Janeway
"When your captain first approached us, we suspected that an agreement with Humans would prove impossible to maintain. You are erratic, conflicted, disorganized. Every decision is debated, every action questioned, every individual entitled to their own small opinion. You lack harmony; cohesion; greatness. It will be your undoing."
- - Seven of Nine to Chakotay
"It will be your undoing."
"What?"
"Our conflictive nature, our individuality. Seven of Nine said that we lack the cohesion of a collective mind. That one day it would divide us and destroy us. And here we are proving her point."
"I'll tell you when we lost control of the situation, when we made our mistake. It was the moment we turned away of each other. We don't have to stop being individuals to get through this. We just have to stop fighting each other."
- - Chakotay and Janeway
"There are two wars going on, the one out there and the one in here and we're losing both of them."
- - Janeway
"They'll push you. They'll threaten you but they need you. They need this alliance"
- - Janeway
"This is the plan. We engage the enemy here, in their space. We show them what they're up against. If they have any sense of self-preservation they'll back off. Pull their ships out of the Delta Quadrant."
- - Janeway
"We're going to war."
- - Janeway
Background
- This episode marks the first appearance of Jeri Ryan as Seven of Nine.
- From this episode onward, the screen-credits for the cast were modified to remove their ranks, apart from the Captain.
- Jennifer Lien's name has been removed from the opening credits, to be replaced by Jeri Ryan's. In this episode and the following one ("The Gift"), Lien receives billing under "Also Starring" after the episode title.
- This time period is referenced in "Shattered", when the ship is fractured through various points in its history; the cargo bay where Seven and the Borg drones were located regresses to this point in history, and it is Seven's suggestion that allows the ship to be brought back into temporal sync.
- The neural link Chakotay uses to distract Seven first appeared in the third season episode "Unity".
Video and DVD releases
- UK VHS release (two-episode tapes, CIC Video): Volume 4.1, 2 February 1998.
- The video sleeve design changes from this volume on. As with the Deep Space Nine releases at this point (Season 6), the stardates are omitted; the Voyager releases also drop the tag line "From the makers of The Next Generation".
- In feature-length form, as part of the UK VHS collection Star Trek: Voyager - Movies: Volume 2 (with "Year of Hell"), catalogue number VHR 5072, 18 September 2000.
- As part of the VOY Season 4 DVD collection.
- As part of the Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg collection.
Links and references
Main cast
- Kate Mulgrew as Captain Kathryn Janeway
- Robert Beltran as Commander Chakotay
- Roxann Dawson as Lieutenant B'Elanna Torres
- Robert Duncan McNeill as Lieutenant Tom Paris
- Ethan Phillips as Neelix
- Robert Picardo as The Doctor
- Tim Russ as Lieutenant Tuvok
- Jeri Ryan as Seven of Nine
- Garrett Wang as Ensign Harry Kim
Also Starring
- Jennifer Lien as Kes
References
bio-molecular warhead; Borg; Borg Collective; Borg cube; Borg drone; cargo bay; deflector dish; The Doctor; fluidic space; Larson; multi-kinetic neutronic mine; nanoprobes; phaser rifle; singularity; Seven of Nine; Species 8472; Species 8472 bioship; Unimatrix 01
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Star Trek: Voyager Season 4 |
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