Janeway: Oh!
Chakotay: Incredible.
Janeway: Absolutely thrilling.
Neelix: All I can say is, wow! What about you, Mister Vulcan? Isn't that just, wow!
Tuvok: Your inarticulate expression of awe notwithstanding, Mister Neelix, it was a fascinating spectacle.
Kim: That's the edge of the shock wave. The pressure's over ninety kilopascals, thirty percent more than we predicted.
Janeway: Tom, back us off at full impulse. I want to stay ahead of the brunt of that wave.
Paris: Yes, ma'am.
Janeway: Congratulations, everyone. Only two other crews in the history of Starfleet have witnessed a supernova explosion.
Kim: But neither one was this close. Less than ten billion kilometers. Definitely a record.
Janeway: Who brought the champagne?
Neelix: Champagne? Captain, if I thought you wanted champagne.
Janeway: Relax, Neelix. It's a figure of speech.
Kes: Thanks for inviting us to watch with you, Captain. It's really got me interested in learning more about stellar phenomenon.
Emh: Just remember, Kes, anyone can stargaze on the Bridge, even a hologram with a mobile emitter, but the real action will always be in sickbay.
Janeway: How'd those shield modifications hold up, B'Elanna?
Torres: Less than a seven percent power drain.
Janeway: Good job. Chakotay, what do you say we get started analyzing those carbon conversion readings?
Chakotay: Captain, you've been on the Bridge for fourteen straight hours. Don't you think you deserve a little rest? Harry and I will get to work on the astrometric analysis, and we'll give you a full report in the morning.
Janeway: You win. I'll see you at oh seven hundred.
Janeway: Janeway to security. Intruder alert.
Q: There's no need to call room service, Kathy. I've already ordered.
Janeway: Oh, Q.
Q: You did say you wanted champagne?
Janeway: Janeway to security. Intruder alert.
Q: Oh, it's no use. I've taken the proverbial phone off the hook. After all, we don't want any interruptions.
Janeway: What are you doing here?
Q: To us.
Janeway: There is no us, Q.
Q: The night is young, and the sheets are satin.
Janeway: I want you out. But first, get rid of this bed.
Q: I have no intention of getting between those Starfleet issue sheets. They give me a terrible rash.
Janeway: Since you won't be getting in the bed, I wouldn't worry about it.
Q: Oh, Kathy, don't be such a prude. Admit it. It has been a while.
Janeway: And it's going to be a while longer. Now get out.
Q: So tense. Why don't you slip into something more comfortable?
Janeway: If you think this puerile attempt at seduction is going to work, you're even more self-deluded than I thought.
Q: Now I see. You think I'm interested in some tawdry one night stand. That's because I haven't told you why I'm here yet. Out of all the females of all the species in all the galaxies, I have chosen you to be the mother of my child.
Janeway: Oh!
Q: I know that you're probably asking yourself, why would a brilliant, handsome, dashingly omnipotent being like Q want to mate with a scrawny little bipedal specimen like me?
Janeway: Let me guess. No one else in the universe will have you.
Q: Nonsense. I could have chosen a Klingon Targ, the Romulan empress, a Cyrillian microbe.
Janeway: Really? I beat out a single-celled organism? How flattering.
Q: It's an overwhelming honor, isn't it? I can't get you out of my mind. You're confident, passionate, beautiful.
Janeway: And totally uninterested.
Q: Kathy, you can't leave. My cosmic clock is ticking. Besides, you have no idea what you're missing. Foreplay with a Q can last for decades.
Janeway: Sorry, but I'm busy for the next sixty or seventy years.
Q: Oh, I see, this is one of those silly human rituals. You're playing hard to get.
Janeway: As far as you're concerned, Q, I'm impossible to get.
Q: Goody! A challenge. This is going to be fun.
Janeway: Janeway to bridge.
Chakotay: Chakotay here, Captain.
Chakotay: I thought you were going to get some sleep.
Janeway: I've just had a visit from Q. He's gone now.
Janeway: But I want to be notified immediately if he reappears anywhere on the ship or if anything odd starts to happen.
Chakotay: Acknowledged. What did he want?
Janeway: Let's just say he had a personal request.
Chakotay: Captain?
Janeway: I'm not sure what he's really up to, but I have a feeling he'll be back. Janeway out.
Janeway: Come in.
Chakotay: I've got those carbon conversion readings from the supernova.
Janeway: Thank you. Is there something else?
Chakotay: Have you heard anything more from Q?
Janeway: No. I wish I could believe he's gone for good.
Chakotay: I was wondering just what just what you meant when you said he made a personal request.
Janeway: He wants to mate with me.
Chakotay: I see.
Janeway: Obviously, it's out of the question. And I suspect it's a smoke screen. Knowing Q, he's probably got some hidden agenda.
Chakotay: Maybe.
Janeway: Chakotay.
Chakotay: I know I don't have any right to feel this way, but this bothers the hell out of me.
Q: I do believe you're jealous. Why didn't you tell me there was another man?
Janeway: Because there isn't. I'm just not interested in you.
Chakotay: Any more questions?
Q: I was wondering, Kathy. What could anyone possibly see in this big oaf, anyway? Is it the tattoo? Because mine's bigger.
Janeway: Not big enough. Captain's log, stardate 50384.2. Q's unannounced visits continue. Since I suspect he's up to something more than pursuing me, I've instructed the crew to take every opportunity to uncover his true motives.
Paris: Who says crew performance reports have to be a chore?
Kim: Sure beats working on the bridge.
Paris: Now if we could just convince the Captain to start holding morning briefings in here.
Kim: That'll be the day.
Q: Nice program, Tommy. But it's all just so much holo-pleasure, isn't it?
Paris: All right, Q, we'll bite. What do you want?
Q: Guys, I just don't understand your Captain. I've tried everything. Filling the Bridge with roses, writing Drabian love sonnets, serenading her in her bath.
Paris: Oh, I'll bet she loved that one.
Q: But no matter what lengths I go to win her heart, she rejects me. Me! How, I ask you, is that possible?
Kim: Did it ever occur to you that she just doesn't like you?
Q: No.
Paris: Look, Q, we've been told about your appearances on the Enterprise. We know your little visits usually turn out to be more than meet the eye. So save your broken heart routine, and tell us what you're really after.
Q: I just thought that the two of you might be able to give me some advice on how to break through Kathy's icy exterior. You know, man to man.
Paris: My advice would be to give up before you embarrass yourself anymore than you already have. Come on, Harry. We're not going to get a straight answer out of this guy.
Q: You, bar rodent, another one of these fruity concoctions.
Neelix: Not unless you tell me why you're bothering Captain Janeway.
Q: Captain Janeway? Now that's a subject I want to discuss. Tell me, what are some of her favorite things. Chocolate truffles? Stuffed animals? Erotic art?
Neelix: You can't bribe Captain Janeway.
Q: Oh, no? Isn't that what you do?
Neelix: What are you talking about?
Q: I understand that you acquire things for her, create little interesting diversions, prepare little tasty treats. After all, why else would she be so fond of your fur-lined face?
Neelix: Do you want to know what Captain Janeway likes about me? I'll tell you. I am respectful, loyal and most of all, sincere. And those are qualities which someone like you could never hope to possess.
Janeway: This isn't going to work, Q.
Q: How can you ignore that face?
Janeway: He's adorable. But this has to stop.
Q: Please, accept him as a small token of my affection.
Janeway: No.
Q: Suit yourself. May we talk? Just talk.
Q: I'm afraid that I haven't been sincere. When you first asked why I wanted to have a child with you, I made jokes, bragged about my prowess, engaged in sexual innuendo. I was using all that to cover up my true feelings.
Janeway: And I suppose you want to share your true feelings with me now.
Q: I'm lonely.
Janeway: Lonely?
Q: Oh, I know it's hard to believe, but I've been single for billions of years. It was fun at first, gallivanting around the galaxy, using my omnipotence to impress females of every species. The fact of the matter is, it left me empty. I want someone to love me for myself. I guess what I'm saying is, I want a relationship. I just thought if you and I had a child, it would give me that kind of stability and security that I've been missing.
Janeway: Sorry, Q. I'm not buying it.
Q: Oh. All right. Let's see if you buy this. You're stuck out here, thousands of light years from home, and you aren't getting any younger, are you? All your hopes for home, hearth and family grow dimmer every day. Admit it, Kathryn, you're lonely too. And you wonder if you will ever have a child.
Janeway: You're right. I would like to have a child someday. But not with you.
Q: Why not?
Janeway: I'm just not the right kind of woman for you, Q.
Female Q: Truer words were never spoken.
Q: Q! How did you find me?
Female Q: Never mind that. What are you doing with that dog? I'm not talking about the puppy.
Q: Can't you see I'm busy here? Stop stalking me.
Female Q: You should be back in the Continuum.
Janeway: Excuse me, but who are you exactly?
Q: Kathryn Janeway, may I present Q.
Female Q: Not just any Q. His Q.
Q: We were involved for a while.
Female Q: About four billion years. And now you desert me to pollute the Continuum with the DNA of this narrow little being.
Q: I never said it was exclusive.
Female Q: Stay away from him.
Janeway: Look, Miss Q, I'll save you a lot of trouble. I have zero interest in him.
Q: Oh! Now you see what you've done? And I was finally making progress.
Chakotay: Bridge to Janeway. You'd better come in here, Captain.
Janeway: On my way.
Janeway: I'd really appreciate it if you would take this domestic squabble off my ship.
Janeway: Report.
Chakotay: You're not going to believe this, Captain, but another star in this cluster just went supernova. It's point oh two light years from our current position.
Kim: Make that two supernovas, Commander. I just picked up another one at two one seven mark four seven. Estimated time of implosion, sixty seven seconds.
Janeway: Get us out of here, Tom.
Paris: I can't. A subspace shock wave from the star is collapsing the warp field.
Janeway: Red alert. Tuvok, increase power to the shields. Tom, lay in a course away from that shock wave, maximum impulse.
Janeway: A star going supernova is an event that occurs once every century in this galaxy. Now we're about to witness our third in less than three days, all in the same sector. Why do I suspect you have something to do with this?
Female Q: She maybe a member of an intellectually challenged species, but she's right. Your irresponsible behavior is continuing to have cosmic consequences.
Q: Will you stop overreacting? Always nagging. Now you see why I left her.
Janeway: Are you causing these supernovas?
Q: Well, not exactly.
Janeway: What's that supposed to mean?
Paris: It's no use, Captain. the shock wave is too fast for us.
Janeway: Try evasive maneuvers.
Tuvok: I'm afraid a course correction will be futile, Captain. There are now three distinct shock waves heading toward us on various trajectories. It will be impossible to avoid them all.
Janeway: Divert auxiliary power to the shields. You have the ability to get us out of here, so do it.
Chakotay: Sixteen seconds to impact. I'm not sure if the shields will hold.
Janeway: Do something, Q.
Q: Well, if you insist.
Female Q: That two-timing toad!
Tuvok: Contact with the first shock wave within three seconds, Commander.
Chakotay: All hands, brace for impact.
Janeway: Q? Where have you taken me? (She tries the doors and they are locked. Then Q enters dressed as a US Civil War Union Army officer.)
Q: Well, I must admit, your gown is very becoming.
Janeway: I don't have time for your little fantasies. Return me to Voyager.
Q: This is no fantasy. You're in the Q Continuum.
Janeway: The Continuum?
Q: That's right. I'm simply allowing you to perceive it in the context your human mind can comprehend.
Janeway: The last time you brought me here, it looked like some sort of way station on a desert road.
Q: It was awfully drab, wasn't it? But this, this is a much more colorful representation for a human of American descent, don't you think? An elegant manor house, a beautiful Southern belle, a dashing Union officer determined to win her affections despite her hatred for Yankee interlopers.
Janeway: Enough. The only thing that interests me right now is the welfare of my ship and crew.
Q: Well, I'm sure your first officer, Chuckles, is it? I'm sure he's got everything under control for the moment.
Janeway: I'd like to make sure of that myself, if you don't mind.
Q: This has gone way beyond your ship. It's even gone beyond you and me. This is about the future of the Continuum itself.
Janeway: Stop speaking in riddles, and tell me what's going on.
Q: I'll do better than that. I'll show you.
Q: The Continuum is burning. The Q are in the middle of a civil war.
Janeway: Start explaining.
Q: Do you remember our friend, Quinn?
Janeway: The Q who committed suicide aboard Voyager?
Q: Do you recall what I said might happen if he were allowed to take his own life?
Janeway: You said it would represent an interruption to the Continuum. That it could have dire consequences.
Q: I'd say a civil war is pretty dire, wouldn't you?
Janeway: His death caused this conflict?
Q: It caused chaos and upheaval. Because even though he was gone, his calls for freedom and individualism continued to echo in the ears of those who believed in his teachings, myself among them. I sounded the trumpet and carried the banner. Naturally, others followed. The forces of the status quo tried to crush us once and for all, but we fought back. And now there's a cosmic struggle for supremacy, and the battle is spreading, causing hazardous repercussions throughout the galaxy.
Janeway: Oh! The supernovas.
Q: You might call them galactic cross fire. It's terrible, isn't it? But it's also a wonderful opportunity.
Janeway: I fail to see anything wonderful about a war.
Q: War can be an engine of change. War can transform a society for the better. Your own Civil War brought about an end to slavery and oppression.
Janeway: But our Civil War came at a time before mankind had learned to resolve disputes without bloodshed. Surely the Q have evolved to a point where you can find a non-violent way to resolve a conflict.
Q: That's where you come in.
Janeway: What do I have to do with any of this, Q?
Q: I want you to help me transform the Continuum in the same way your Civil War transformed a nation.
Janeway: By mating with you?
Q: I know. It's brilliant, isn't it?
Janeway: I don't see how a baby is going to end a war being fought by a race of omnipotent beings.
Q: It's simple. Mating will create a new breed of Q, which will combine my omnipotence and infinite intellect with the best that humanity has to offer.
Janeway: You believe human DNA is going to restore peace?
Q: Precisely. What the Continuum needs right now is an infusion of fresh blood, a new sensibility, a new leader, a new messiah. Think of it, Kathy. Our child will be like a precious stone tossed into the cosmic lake, sending endless ripples of human conscience and compassion to wash up on every distant shore of the universe. What greater contribution could a being of your limited power ever hope to make? What is more important to humanity than peace? I'm offering you the opportunity to be the mother of peace.
Q: Well, what's it going to be? Oh!
Janeway: Q! You're bleeding.
Chakotay: Report.
Tuvok: Shield strength is at twenty percent. Hull damage on decks nine through fourteen. Minor injuries reported on all decks.
Paris: Warp drive is offline.
Kim: Commander, according to these readings, the shock waves have knocked us sixteen billion kilometers from our previous location.
Chakotay: I want to know what's going on here. Where's Captain Janeway?
Female Q: Let me go before I hurl this ship and everyone on it into the Therinian Ice Age.
Chakotay: I don't think you can.
Female Q: Don't be ridiculous.
Chakotay: I don't know how or why, but something's affected your powers. Otherwise, you wouldn't still be here and you wouldn't have a bruise on your forehead. Now start talking before I hurl you into the brig.
Chakotay: And it's the war in the Continuum that's causing the supernovas?
Tuvok: May we presume that this conflict is also responsible for the weakening of your powers and your inability to return to the Continuum?
Female Q: The Vulcan talent for stating the obvious never ceases to amaze me.
Chakotay: How were Q and Captain Janeway able to re-enter the Continuum and you weren't?
Female Q: I tried to return, but I was wounded in the process. Oh, don't try to understand it, it's far beyond your limited capacity to comprehend. What's important is, I'm stuck here with you mortals while Q is probably in the process of irreparably harming the Continuum with that woman. Tossed aside for someone five billion years younger. If it weren't so laughable, I'd cry.
Chakotay: Look, we want our Captain back, and you obviously want to get home. Why don't we help each other?
Female Q: How could you possibly help me?
Chakotay: There's got to be some way to get back to the Continuum besides snapping your fingers.
Female Q: Hmm. Well, there's one possibility. But somehow, I don't think this rickety barge or your half-witted crew members are up to the challenge.
Tuvok: May I remind you, madam, that this rickety barge and its half-witted crew are your only hope at the moment.
Q: Ow! That hurts.
Janeway: Be still. I never thought a Q could be injured.
Q: As I said, this is only a perception of what is happening. I can assure you, those are not mere cannonballs and lead charges being fired at us.
Janeway: So they're some sort of Q weapons?
Q: You'd be surprised what innovative munitions can be created by one immortal being who's set his mind on killing another.
Colonel Q: Hold your fire. Hold your fire! You're surrounded, Q. Surrender now. We'll be merciful.
Janeway: Call a truce. Talk to them. Maybe you can resolve this peacefully.
Colonel Q: What's your answer, Q?
Q: I'll never surrender! You know that!
Colonel Q: Resume fire. Resume fire!
Q: Get the rifle in the corner and take the other window.
Janeway: This is your fight, Q, not mine.
Q: If that's how you feel about it. But if their weapons can make me bleed, what do you think they'll do to you?
Janeway: Q! Come on. Come on. First Officer's log, Stardate 50392.7. While we don't fully understand the astrophysics underlying her plan, the female Q has suggested several modifications which may allow Voyager to enter the Continuum.
Q: Well?
Torres: Well what?
Female Q: Are you finished yet?
Torres: What you've asked us to do requires a complete reconfiguration of the shield array. It takes a while. For us mere morals, that is.
Female Q: Surely there's some way you can speed up the process?
Torres: If you're in such a hurry, why don't you just snap your fingers and do it yourself? Oh, that's right. You've lost your powers and you need our help.
Female Q: I don't think you understand. It's imperative that I get back to the Continuum before Q mates with your Captain.
Torres: I understand perfectly. You aren't the first female who's ever had a man run out on her.
Female Q: I hope you're not comparing some failed romance in your pitiful existence to my eternal association with Q.
Torres: You know, I have really had it with this superiority complex of yours.
Female Q: It's not a complex, dear. It's a fact.
Torres: Well, here's another fact. If you don't stop pestering me, I'm never going to finish. In which case, your association with Q might not be quite as eternal as you think.
Female Q: you know, I've always liked Klingon females. You've got such spunk.
Q: Where are we?
Janeway: One of your faction's encampments.
Q: How?
Janeway: I pulled you out of the mansion and managed to hide you from the enemy patrols. Then I spotted some of your people retreating from the battle. From the look of them, I'd say you're not on the winning side.
Q: You saved my life.
Janeway: And now it's time to end all this.
Q: I knew you'd come around.
Janeway: I've been thinking about what you said, that creating a new Q could bring an era of peace.
Q: Oh, my wild, sweet Kathy. I promise you won't regret it.
Janeway: Oh, you're not going to have a child with me. You're going to mate with that charming lady friend of yours that appeared on my ship.
Q: Mate with another Q? Ridiculous.
Janeway: It sounded to me like you and she had a very long term relationship.
Q: Yes, but it was never physical. I mean, the Q are way beyond sex. It's never been done.
Janeway: Really? Then how exactly did the Q come into existence in the first place?
Q: The Q didn't come into existence. The Q have always existed. Besides, I can only mate with a species capable of copulation, like you.
Janeway: But I don't love you, Q.
Q: Yes, but what does that have to do with it?
Janeway: Everything. It's the foundation of a family. I could never have a child with someone I didn't love, much less give it up to the Continuum.
Q: Dearest Kathy, I would never dream of having you give it up. I mean, who would raise it? Who would look after it? I'm really not cut out to be a wet nurse.
Janeway: Oh, so you're not willing to do the hard work?
Q: I'm an idea man. Hard work isn't my forte.
Janeway: I'd change specialties if I were you, because the kind of trouble you're in needs more than a quick fix. You can't just sprinkle a little human DNA into the Continuum and make everything all right.
Q: Why not?
Janeway: Those best qualities of humanity you talked about aren't a simple matter of genetics. Love, conscience, compassion.
Q: Ow.
Janeway: They're attributes that mankind has developed over centuries. Values that have passed from one generation to the next, taught by parents to their children. Creating a new kind of Q is a noble idea, but it will take more than impregnating someone and walking away. If you want your offspring to embrace your ideals, you're going to have to teach them yourself.
Q: Yes, but that's exactly why I want you here, to nourish and guide the little tyke. Think of the opportunities here in the Continuum. The entire universe would be our child's playground. Together the two of you could explore dimensions you've never even imagined. Fess up. Isn't it even slightly tempting?
Janeway: I'd be lying if I said no. What explorer wouldn't be intrigued by the idea of seeking out whole new dimensions. But I have other responsibilities, and I won't just abandon them.
Q: Ah, yes. The crew of the intrepid starship Voyager. Perhaps you'd be interested in sending them home.
Janeway: You've tempted me with that prospect before. But frankly, your credibility is more than a little suspect. My crew and I will get home. We're committed to that. But we're going to do it through hard work and determination. We are not looking for a quick fix.
Q: Even if I wanted to mate, I wouldn't know how. It's totally unprecedented.
Janeway: You'll figure something out. You are omnipotent, after all.
Q: I need time to think about it.
Janeway: Time's up, Q. You've got to stop this war before it destroys the Continuum. Now I'm taking this white flag, and I'm going over to the enemy camp, and I'm going to tell them you're ready to talk about terms for a ceasefire.
Q: Kathy, don't be a hero.
Janeway: I'm going, Q. So if I were you, I'd start working on a way to set that precedent. First Officer's log, supplemental. We've laid in a course for the point in space where the female Q says we can enter the Continuum and find the Captain.
Female Q: You, helm boy. Adjust course to heading two three five mark zero eight. Increase speed to maximum impulse.
Paris: Sir?
Kim: Er, Commander?
Chakotay: What is it, Harry?
Kim: She's put us on a direct course for another star about to go supernova.
Female Q: You did say you wanted to get into the Continuum?
Chakotay: Yes, but in one piece.
Female Q: Try to wrap your minuscule mind around this. These supernovas are actually caused by spatial disruptions within the Continuum, the result of the war. Now, each time a star implodes, a negative density false vacuum is created which actually sucks the surrounding matter into the Continuum.
Chakotay: So Voyager will be pulled in too.
Female Q: If we time it perfectly. Otherwise, the subsequent explosion will blow you all into microfragments.
Tuvok: Commander, I needn't remind you that close proximity to a supernova will crush us, whether or not we time it perfectly.
Female Q: You're so negative.
Chakotay: He does have a point.
Female Q: Humanoids. Q to Engineering.
Torres: Go ahead, Q. Female
Q: Take warp drive offline.
Q: Then remodulate the shields to emit a beta-tachyon pulse and prepare to emit a series of focused antiproton beams to the shield bubble.
Chakotay: Does this make any sense to you at all, B'Elanna?
Torres: I'd be lying if I said I understood it completely, but if she's thinking what I think she's thinking, we should increase power to the shields by a factor of ten!
Torres: That's assuming, of course, that the shield bubble doesn't ignite and burn us all to a crisp.
Paris: We'll be reaching the imploding star in thirteen seconds. I still have time to change course.
Chakotay: Maintain your course. B'Elanna, take warp drive offline, remodulate the shields, and get ready to emit the antiprotons.
Torres: Acknowledged.
Paris: Entering the star's corona in three seconds.
Chakotay: Antiprotons now, B'Elanna.
Q: Ah, Captain Janeway, I presume. You're dismissed. I'm sorry to have kept you waiting, madam, but, please sit down. I understand you walked into our camp alone and unarmed?
Janeway: That's right.
Colonel Q: The Continuum's a dangerous place for all of us right now, not to mention a solitary human female. I admire your bravery.
Janeway: I've come with an offer of truce from Q.
Colonel Q: I'm afraid the time for diplomacy has passed, madam. If we don't end this war quickly, the damage to subspace will be irreversible.
Janeway: Then you agree the fighting has to stop.
Colonel Q: Most certainly. That's why we intend to bring this war to a conclusion by the most expedient means possible.
Janeway: I'm relieved to hear you say that. May I ask how?
Colonel Q: Quite simple, really. Since Q is the ringleader of this so-called freedom faction, we shall have to execute him.
Janeway: With all due respect, sir, there are no chapters in the history of my own people more tragic than wars which set neighbor against neighbor. Q has an idea for a non-violent way to bring this conflict to an end. I urge you to listen to what he has to say.
Colonel Q: We are already resolved, madam. I'd be greatly in your debt if you'd tell me where we can find him.
Janeway: I won't do that.
Colonel Q: No, I didn't think you would.
Guard: Excuse me, sir.
Colonel Q: Fortunately, we won't be needing your assistance.
Janeway: I told you, he's willing to negotiate. Let him go.
Q: She's right. I've had a change of heart.
Colonel Q: Grovel all you want, Q. I've been waiting for this moment for an eternity. Put them both in chains.
Janeway: Wait! What are you charging me with?
Colonel Q: Collaborating with the enemy, which in the Continuum is a crime punishable by death.
Private: Captain.
Captain: Private.
Janeway: Why won't you listen to me? I told your Commander last night we can resolve the situation peacefully.
Q: If it's any consolation, there are those in the Continuum who will remember us as martyrs.
Janeway: I'd rather skip that particular honor.
Q: Still, you have to admit, there's something romantic about going to our deaths together.
Colonel Q: Do you have any last words?
Janeway: I won't plead for my own life. From your perspective I know it seems insignificant. But what is not insignificant is the fact that the Q, as an omnipotent race, have an opportunity to be a positive force to set a higher standard for other beings in the galaxy. I implore you all, don't go through with this. Don't allow yourselves to continue using violence to resolve your differences.
Colonel Q: Q, do you have anything to add?
Q: Today I sacrifice my existence for the principles of freedom and individuality that I have fought for so long. But this woman is innocent. What's more, she saved my life, and she tried to save us from each other. Kill me if you must, but let her go.
Colonel Q: A very touching speech, Q. But as usual, your rhetoric fails to compensate for your irresponsibility.
Colonel Q: Ready! Aim!
Q: I'm sorry.
Janeway: I know.
Colonel Q: Fire!
Q: I'm hit! I'm dying! Oh!
Janeway: Q!
Q: What?
Janeway: They're not firing at us.
Q: They're not?
Chakotay: Harry, get to the Captain!
Kim: Captain, are you all right?
Janeway: I'm fine.
Q: Oh, darling, I knew you'd come for me. Aren't you going to untie me?
Female Q: How do I know you wouldn't run off with the next bipedal female that catches your eye?
Q: Well, it just so happens I have a proposal which will reassure you of my devotion.
Paris: Put down the gun.
Q: Think of it, Q. We'd be visionaries, innovators, the parents of peace.
Female Q: Oh, that does have a ring to it.
Paris: Captain, what should I do with him?
Female Q: Q and I have a plan to end the war. Call off your troops.
Janeway: Do as she says and I'll call my people off.
Female Q: They may be humanoids, but they're using our weapons.
Colonel Q: Cease fire! Cease fire!
Janeway: Tell our people to stop shooting.
Paris: Hold your fire!
Kim: Put down your weapons!
Q: So, darling, have you given any thought as to how we might accomplish this historic act of procreation?
Female Q: I've thought of nothing else since you suggested it.
Q: Oh!
Female Q: As a matter of fact, I
Q: Oh. Oh. Oh! I love it when you talk dirty.
Janeway: Why don't I give you two some privacy?
Q: Oh, Kathy, don't you like to watch?
Q: Oh! I was good, wasn't I?
Female Q: Very good.
Janeway: That was it?
Q: You had your chance. Don't go crying about it now.
Janeway: Lieutenant Paris, what's our position?
Paris: We're back on our original course.
Tuvok: All crew are present and accounted for.
Janeway: Ensign Kim, any sign of supernovas?
Kim: No, ma'am. Nothing but calm space ahead. Looks like the war is over.
Janeway: Mister Chakotay, run a series of standard diagnostics. If everything checks out, take us to warp six.
Chakotay: Aye, Captain.
Janeway: I'll be in my ready room.
Q: Yabba dabba doo.
Janeway: Q!
Q: He's got my cheekbones, don't you think?
Janeway: He's adorable. I'd say fatherhood agrees with you.
Q: Well, I'll admit, I look at the universe in an entirely different way now. I mean, I can't go around causing temporal anomalies or subspace inversions without considering the impact it'll have on my son.
Janeway: I'm glad to hear you intend to set a good example.
Q: By the way, did I tell you how smart he is? I've already taught him how to knock small planets out of orbit.
Janeway: And I thought you were going to teach him about love and conscience.
Q: Oh, that's why we want Auntie Kathy to be the godmother now, don't we?
Janeway: I'm honored.
Q: Yeah, well, wait until we ask you to baby-sit. Can't leave the little guy alone for a nanosecond. Well, it's time to be going. The old ball and chain really hates it when we're late. Say bye bye. Bye bye.


Consul: Good health, strong body, clear mind.
Neelix: And you, your hospitality, your generosity, your patience, many thanks. My colleague's behavior, our apologies.
Janeway: Consul, I assure you I meant no
Consul: Please make her quiet.
Neelix: Captain, please.
Janeway: I understand.
Neelix: Good health, strong body, clear mind.
Consul: And you. Your journey home short and safe.
Janeway: Captain's log, stardate 50425.1. Mister Neelix and I have completed our three day trade mission with the Tak Tak, one of the more unusual species we've encountered in the Delta Quadrant. We are en route back to Voyager.
Janeway: Oh. I've always been taught to be tolerant of other cultures and points of view, no matter how alien, but I have to say that the Tak Tak are the most unforgiving people I've ever met.
Neelix: They are a little impatient.
Janeway: They make the Klingons look sedate. I may never put my hands on my hips again.
Neelix: You had no way of knowing you were making one of the worst insults possible.
Janeway: Obviously they've never heard of forgive and forget. It's a good thing you were there, Mister Neelix. I might have been shot at dawn. I have studied chromolinguistics, American Sign Language, the gestural idioms of the Leyron, but I just couldn't get the hang of the Tak Tak.
Neelix: It seemed like more than just a language to me, Captain. A lot of their gestures, from what I could tell, were ritualistic. You might even say superstitious.
Janeway: You have a genuine flair for diplomacy, Mister Neelix. I may have to promote you from morale officer to Ambassador. With all the species we're bound to meet, I could use a man like you at the front door.
Neelix: Ambassador Neelix. I like the sound of that. We're approaching the rendezvous coordinates.
Janeway: Dropping to one quarter impulse. Voyager's not there, and they're not responding to hails. I'm running a long range scan. There they are. They're holding position in sector thirty eight, coordinates one two one mark six.
Neelix: That's over a light year away from here.
Janeway: The ship appears to be adrift. They could be in trouble. Engaging maximum warp.
Janeway: Janeway to Voyager. Commander Chakotay, respond.
Neelix: The ship looks perfectly fine. There's no sign of any external damage. Any sign of the crew?
Janeway: There's some kind of bioelectrical interference. I can't get clear life sign readings. The escape pods are all in place, and there's no indication of any recent transporter activity. Grab a phaser, Ambassador. We're going to get some answers.
Janeway: Still no sign of the crew, but these sensor readings are highly erratic. A bioelectric field is permeating the ship.
Neelix: Where's it coming from?
Janeway: I can't localize it. Let's try accessing the ships internal sensors, see if we can get a better reading.
Janeway: Same problem. The main computer is offline, so is the comm. system. This is strange. One of the bio-neural gel packs in the mess hall ruptured, but most of the systems in there seem to be functioning normally. Let's get to the bridge.
Janeway: Someone was doing maintenance work on this power relay. All the equipment is still active, but the work hasn't been completed.
Neelix: It's almost as if they dropped what they were doing and ran.
Janeway: Come on.
Neelix: This isn't the welcome home I was expecting.
Janeway: Me neither, but if there was an attack of some kind, why didn't Chakotay try to contact us or send out a warning buoy? I'm picking up a comm. signal about ten meters ahead. It's coming from inside this room.
Neelix: This is Ensign Wildman's quarters. Is she in there?
Janeway: I can't tell. Let's take a look. Stand ready.
Janeway: Here's our comm. signal, your Good Morning Voyager program.
Neelix: Ensign Wildman is one of my most dedicated viewers. According to the time index she activated this program approximately eleven hours ago.
Janeway: Why is it still running?
Neelix: The program is set for automatic playback until it's turned off. The baby's missing too.
Janeway: According to the protein decay, I'd say Ensign Wildman replicated this eleven hours go. When we get to the bridge we'll check the communications logs. They might tell us whether or not
Neelix: There!
Janeway: I can't tell if it's humanoid, but it's emanating a bioelectric field.
Neelix: Whatever it is, it just ran into a dead end.
Janeway: Over here.
Janeway: Something just punched right through this floor panel into the Jefferies tubes.
Neelix: What is it?
Janeway: Some sort of mucilaginous compound. High concentrations of amino acids and proteins, and fragments of non-humanoid DNA. Well, Ambassador, I'd say we've got an unexpected guest.
Neelix: Somehow I don't think he's the diplomatic type.
Janeway: Main power is failing, and the environmental controls are going offline. Systems are starting to shut down one by one. We'd better get to the bridge.
Janeway: Good, we're still got auxiliary power. Deck one.
Neelix: It's getting awfully hot in here.
Janeway: When environmental controls fail, heat from the warp plasma conduits can't be vented. Expect a heat wave before long.
Neelix: No problem, I'm used to it. I grew up near the Rinax marshlands. Our summers were the hottest in the sector. Fifty degrees Celsius, ninety percent humidity, and the most vicious lavaflies you've ever seen.
Janeway: Summers in Indiana were pretty similar when I was growing up.
Neelix: Except that we had three suns and the lavaflies grew to be six centimeters long.
Janeway: Six centimeters?
Neelix: Insect repellant was a booming business.
Janeway: There's a life form in the turboshaft. I'm engaging the manual override.
Neelix: Ah, Captain, it sounds like our guest has bought a few friends.
Janeway: One more second. I can't get the pneumatic conduits to
Neelix: That was no lavafly.
Janeway: There's no lifeform in the tube above us. We're getting out of here.
Janeway: Are you all right?
Neelix: Yes. Disgusting, but I'm all right.
Janeway: It's the same mucilaginous compound we saw in the transporter room. Come on.
Neelix: What is it?
Janeway: Human lifesigns, very faint. Thirty or more.
Neelix: Where are they coming from?
Janeway: Several decks above us. I can't pinpoint the location.
Neelix: Maybe the crew is hiding from the aliens and they set up a defense perimeter.
Janeway: Maybe. One thing's for sure, whoever's up there is still alive. Once we get the main computer online, we'll be able to get a fix on their location.
Neelix: It's so hot. My head is spinning.
Janeway: You've got a high fever, fluid in your lungs.
Neelix: Lung.
Janeway: That alien compound is acting quickly. Try to hang on. Just three more decks.
Neelix: Aye, aye, Captain.
Neelix: Captain, go on without me.
Janeway: I'm not going to leave you here, Neelix.
Neelix: I can't. I'm so dizzy.
Janeway: There should be an emergency medical kit up that tube. I'll bring back something to get you on your feet. Don't go away.
Neelix: Help! Captain!
Janeway: I'm coming, Neelix!
Janeway: Neelix! (Neelix has gone. A trail of mucus leads back down the Jefferies tube.
Janeway: This is Captain Kathryn Janeway of the Federation Starship Voyager to anyone within range. My ship has been seized by unknown lifeforms. Require any and all assistance.
Janeway: Harry. Harry.
Janeway: Oh, Chakotay.
Emh: Captain! Needless to say, I thought you were something else. It won't be long before the other aliens sense you here and start to try to invade sickbay. We don't have much time to treat you.
Janeway: Doctor, what's going on? What are those ow!
Emh: You've ruptured your dorsal extensor muscle and bruised two ribs. I'm going to have to perform minor surgery. Lie on your side and try to remain perfectly still.
Janeway: Tell me what's happened.
Emh: Voyager has been infected by a macrovirus.
Janeway: A macrovirus?
Emh: A form of life I've never encountered, or even imagined.
Janeway: What about the crew?
Emh: Captain, I promise I will tell you exactly what happened if you just lie still. Shortly after you'd left for the Tak Tak homeworld, we received a distress call from a nearby mining colony. A race called the Garans.
Emh: They were experiencing what appeared to be a minor viral outbreak,
Garan Miner: Fever, disorientation. I think it's some kind of virus. Nothing serious, but if we don't stop it now, we'll be forced to shut down the operation.
Chakotay: We may be able to help you. Doctor?
Emh: A synthetic antigen may do the trick. However, it will have to be modified for this specific virus. I'd like to beam down to the mining colony and examine a few of the infected.
Chakotay: An away mission.
Emh: I'm the only member of this crew who can successfully enter a contaminated environment without risk. Besides, I've been looking forward to spreading my wings.
Chakotay: Good enough. It'll take us about three hours to reach you.
Garan Miner: Thank you, Commander. I don't think we'll be going anywhere.
Emh: Prepare to download my program into the autonomous emitter.
Kes: Yes, Doctor.
Tuvok: They're not responding to our hails.
Chakotay: Life signs?
Kim: There's a lot of bioelectrical interference. I can't get a clear reading.
Emh: Perhaps their condition is more serious than they thought. I'd better get down there.
Chakotay: Doctor, don't forget, you're not invulnerable. If anything happens to that portable emitter, your program could be lost.
Emh: Don't worry Commander, I've been studying the Starfleet guidelines for away team members. For this particular scenario, medical emergency on alien terrain, it is recommended that we keep an open comm. channel at all times.
Chakotay: You heard the man.
Tuvok: Channel open.
Emh: Away team to Voyager. Transport was successful and my portable emitter is working perfectly. I am scanning the mine shaft and proceeding on vector one four seven. Ambient temperature is sixteen degrees Celsius. Cavern illumination is minimal but doesn't pose a problem for my optical sensors. The cave walls are comprised of granite with a mixture of pyroclastic infusions
Chakotay: Doctor
Chakotay: I appreciate your attention to detail but we don't need that much information. Let us know when you've found the miners.
Emh: Oh, very well. Stand by then. Voyager, I've found one of the miners. He appears to be suffering from the advanced stages of severe viral infection.
Chakotay: Can you treat him?
Emh: Not without a more specialized immunizing agent. This is curious. The virus has begun to concentrate in a region near his neck, and it's using his glandular tissue to create some sort of orifice. Something is emerging. A lifeform! Commander, I think I've just discovered a completely new form of life. From what I can tell, it appears to be a macroscopic version of the virus.
Chakotay: You mean the virus has grown?
Emh: Yes, by a factor of billions. The virus absorbed the miner's growth hormones into it's protein structure, and used them to increase it's own mass and dimensions. In essence, the virus has found a way to leave the microscopic world and enter the macroscopic world. Our world. It's a remarkable evolutionary development. The virus appears to be attracted to infra-red radiation. It's mistaking my holomatrix for body heat. At the moment, this one's approximately point five millimeters in diameter, but it's continuing to grow at a rate of thirty microns every second! Commander, permission to beam the virus aboard for further analysis.
Chakotay: No.
Chakotay: The virus isn't in our database. The biofilters might not recognize it. You'll have to settle for tricorder data.
Emh: Very well, but I think I should. Stand by, Voyager. Hold on. Stop.
Garan Miner: You, you've got to help us.
Emh: I intend to, but first I must return to my ship and prepare an antidote.
Garan Miner: Take me with you.
Emh: I'm afraid that's not possible. We'd risk infecting the crew.
Garan Miner: You can't leave me. Please.
Emh: Commander Chakotay. Perhaps if we established a force field around sickbay and beamed victims directly to
Chakotay: I'm sorry, but I'm afraid we can't take the chance.
Emh: But these people need
Chakotay: Doctor, away team guidelines specifically forbid the transport of unknown infectious
Emh: Of unknown infection agents onto a starship without establishing
Emh: Containment and eradication protocols. I understand. I'll do my best to help you. Away team to Voyager. One to beam up.
Emh: Doctor to Bridge. Checking the biofilters. It appears several viral organisms were beamed up as well. The biofilter
Emh: Has isolated them.
Chakotay: Purge the filters.
Emh: Aye, sir.
Emh: Purging is complete. I'll be in sickbay.
Emh: What I didn't realize was that in the few seconds it took me to purge the filters, some of the virus had already migrated into the transporter buffer.
Chakotay: Any luck?
Emh: I'm creating a synthetic antigen that will inhibit the viruses ability to replicate, but I haven't quite figured out how to restore the infected cells to their original condition. As for the larger versions of the viruses, what I've the macrovirus, I would suggest a fly swatter.
Chakotay: How long before the antigen's ready?
Emh: I'd say another twelve hours.
Chakotay: That gives us time to rendezvous with the Captain. We'll deal with this after she's aboard.
Emh: Commander. I'd like to apologize for my over-zealous behavior on the away mission.
Chakotay: Compassion is nothing to be sorry about, Doctor. It won't be the last time you're faced with a moral dilemma in the field. But if it makes you feel any better, your performance was exemplary.
Emh: Thank you.
Kes: I told you he'd understand.
Emh: Yes, you did.
Emh: We continued working on the antigen. Unfortunately the macrovirus was working faster. It had already moved from the transporter buffer into an adjacent system.
Paris: B'Elanna, thank God you're here. The natives are getting restless.
Torres: What's the emergency?
Paris: I volunteered to help out while Neelix is away on the trade mission. The heating array overloaded, it incinerated a twelve kilo pot roast and all the food replicators went offline.
Torres: Mmm, looks delicious. Maybe there's a problem with the bioneural gel pack in the replicator panel.
Paris: Actually, I'm a pretty good cook when Engineering's doing it's job.
Torres: Oh, so this is my fault?
Paris: Well the gel packs are your department, aren't they? Besides, what was I supposed to tell all these hungry, irritable people?
Torres: You know, I think that there's a plasma relay on deck seven that really needs repair.
Paris: Oh, no. You can't leave me now, Lieutenant.
Torres: Oh, you need me. I'm touched. What's going on here? Looks like this gel pack has an infection. Half the neurodes have been burned out and the pack is filled with some kind of mucilaginous compound. Tom, call the Doctor and tell him
Paris: B'Elanna!
Janeway: Were any other gel packs infected?
Emh: No, just the one in the mess hall. The ship is healthy. It's the crew we have to worry about. Your bones have healed, but the surrounding tissue will be sensitive for a few days.
Janeway: It's getting warmer in here, isn't it.
Emh: I'm afraid it's not just the ship, Captain, it's also you. You've been infected with the macrovirus. You're experiencing a high fever.
Janeway: Yes, on the bridge, I was bitten by one of them.
Emh: Your glandular system is already being affected. If I don't treat you now you'll end up like the rest of the crew. I've spent the past few hours perfecting the antigen, but I haven't tested it on a live subject yet.
Janeway: Looks like I'll have to be your guinea-pig, Doctor. The crew, why are they all in the mess hall and the cargo bays?
Emh: I believe the larger macroviruses are driven by some sort of instinct to assemble their host population.
Janeway: Tell me what happened after B'Elanna was exposed to the infected gel pack.
Emh: I was faced with an imminent epidemic.
Emh: Oh, no. Doctor to the Bridge. The macrovirus is on board Voyager and appears to be airborne. I suggest a level four quarantine of the mess hall
Emh: and all adjoining sections.
Chakotay: Acknowledged. Red Alert. Initiate level four quarantine protocols on deck two.
Tuvok: Aye sir.
Chakotay: All hands, this is Commander Chakotay. We've detected an airborne virus in the mess hall. Deck two is under quarantine. No crewmember, repeat, no crewmember is to enter or leave any section on deck two. Stand by for further instructions.
Tuvok: I've erected the biocontainment fields. The area has been sealed.
Emh: We managed to avoid a ship-wide outbreak, but every crew member on deck two had been contaminated. I collected a single live specimen of the macrovirus and returned to sickbay in hopes of finding a cure.
Kes: Ready, Doctor.
Emh: Optimal magnification.
Kes: The specimen has synthesized B'Elanna's growth hormone into its own structure.
Emh: Excellent! That should give us the information we need to destroy the virus without killing its host cells.
Kes: The virus has grown by one hundred and fifty microns.
Emh: It's rate of growth shouldn't hinder our analysis, as long as it's genetic structure stays the same.
Kes: Doctor!
Emh: Computer, erect a level three forcefield around the microscope station.
Paris: Well, so much for lunch.
Torres: I may never look at food again.
Paris: I thought Klingons didn't get nauseated. You have a redundant stomach.
Torres: Well, right now, they're both unhappy. Oh.
Paris: Paris to sickbay.
Emh: Go ahead, Lieutenant.
Paris: I just saw two macroviruses come out of B'Elanna's neck.
Emh: Stand by, Mister Paris.
Emh: We're close to formulating an antigen.
Kes: The virus has grown to point three meters.
Emh: On the microscopic level, the virus uses that needle-like projection to penetrate a cell membrane. On our level, it probably impales it's victim in much the same way, infusing him with it's own genetic code. The antigen is ready. Kes? Computer, deactivate force field.
Emh: Well. One down, ten billion to go.
Emh: Eager to inoculate those already infected, I quickly headed for the quarantined area. Though their condition had grown worse, it was the least of our problems.
Emh: Lieutenant, if you can hear me, I'm going to give you an injection. It should eliminate the virus.
Paris: What, what is that?
Emh: You don't want to know.
Emh: Doctor to the Bridge. Intruder alert on deck two section thirteen.
Emh: Within minutes, dozens of the larger organisms forced their way beyond deck two and overwhelmed the ship.
Emh: It wasn't long before the crew was incapacitated. Although I've developed an effective vaccine, I can't administer it. Every time I try to get to the crew, I'm attacked. Perhaps with your help?
Janeway: How many of the larger macroviruses are there?
Emh: I have no way of knowing. Dozens, perhaps hundreds. They're replicating at an exponential rate. By this time tomorrow there could be thousands.
Janeway: Speak of the devil.
Emh: You're cured.
Janeway: The question is, how do we cure the rest of the crew? This antigen. Can it be distributed in a gaseous form?
Emh: For absorption by the respiratory system? I've already considered dispensing it through Environmental controls, but they're offline and I have limited engineering expertise.
Janeway: Leave that to me. All we have to do is get to Environmental Control on deck twelve.
Emh: Easier said than done. We'll run into the same problem I face when I try to get to the Mess hall.
Janeway: Not if I can help it. Prepare two canisters of antigen. We'll split up and take two different routes to Environmental Control. It'll double our chances. If you get there first, call me and I'll talk you through the repairs.
Emh: The macroviruses are attracted to infra-red radiation. Set your tricorder to emit a thermal scattering signal. It will make it more difficult to target you. Ready when you are.
Janeway: We'll be right with you.
Janeway: Take Jefferies tube eleven. What's wrong?
Emh: I've been studying the ship's infrastructure, and I'm familiar with most of it, but, how do I get there from here?
Janeway: Jefferies tube eleven. Take a left at Section 31 and straight down past the tractor beam emitter until you hit deck ten. Get out at section three and follow the corridor all the way around until
Emh: Until I hit the shuttlebay. Then I crawl through access port nine, go past three airlocks and then two decks down. Environmental Control's at the end of the hall. Now I remember. Who designed this ship anyway?
Janeway: Good luck.
Emh: Doctor to Captain Janeway.
Janeway: Go ahead.
Emh: I won't be joining you as soon as I'd hoped.
Emh: The macroviruses overwhelmed me on deck ten and my portable emitter was nearly destroyed. I've taken refuge inside the shuttlebay, in a shuttlecraft.
Janeway: Stay put, Doctor. I'm close to Environmental Control.
Janeway: Janeway to Doctor. I've got the Environmental Controls back online.
Emh: Set the dispersal nodes to one part per thousand.
Emh: What's going on?
Janeway: I'm not sure
Janeway: But I think someone's firing at Voyager. Doctor, use the shuttle's sensors to find out what's happening and patch the data to me.
Emh: Aye, Captain.
Janeway: It's the Tak Tak. Doctor, open a channel and hail their Captain.
Emh: Stand by.
Janeway: Consul, this is Captain Janeway. Why are you firing at us?
Consul: The Garan Mining Colony infected. We purified them. Your distress call received. Voyager infected. We are purifying you.
Janeway: Purifying? You're trying to destroy us.
Consul: No choice. No cure for the virus. Voyager's existence a threat. Your illness, our apologies.
Janeway: Wait. We've developed a cure but your torpedoes just stopped us getting it to our crew and putting an end to this.
Consul: A cure?
Janeway: Yes. A synthetic antigen. We've tested it and it works. I can prove it to you, and I'd be willing to share the antigen with your people, but first you've got to stop attacking my ship. Give me a chance to save my crew.
Consul: A chance. One hour.
Janeway: Doctor, we've got a problem. That last torpedo destroyed the secondary power couplings. I can't
Janeway: Get the Environmental Controls back online.
Emh: We appear to be low on options.
Janeway: The only systems we still have access to are the ones with independent power sources. Shuttlecraft, life support, the holodecks. Doctor, you said the macroviruses are attracted to infra-red signatures.
Emh: That's right.
Janeway: Right now you and I are the only targets left on board. What if we gave them something new to sink their teeth into?
Emh: What are you suggesting?
Janeway: Doctor, it seems to be working. I've programmed the holo-characters to react to the viruses. We don't have much time. Grab your hypospray and get to the crew. You've got a clear path to the Mess hall and both cargo bays.
Emh: Acknowledged. What about you, Captain?
Janeway: I've put together what you might call an antigen bomb. Now all I have to do is drop it.
Emh: Doctor to Captain Janeway. Captain, please respond.
Janeway: Go ahead.
Emh: It worked. The macroviruses have been destroyed.
Janeway: And the ship?
Emh: There was heavy damage suffered on Holodeck two, but there are no hull breaches in evidence.
Consul: Astonishment. Your vessel, purified.
Janeway: And we'd be willing to share the cure with you, if you'd be kind enough to forego destroying our ship.
Consul: Of course, of course. Purification will cease. My word. Many thanks to Captain of Voyager. Good health.
Janeway: Good health.
Janeway: Come in.
Chakotay: Good morning, Captain. Here's an update on repairs.
Janeway: How's the crew holding up?
Chakotay: They're fine, although the Doctor tells me a few people are still reporting post-viral queasiness.
Janeway: I'm not surprised. Inform the crew that I'm granting extended R&R for all personnel, and work out the shift rotations.
Chakotay: Aye Captain. Speaking of R&R, a few of us are going skiing on the holodeck. The Ktarian glaciers. Fresh air, good work out. Care to join us?
Janeway: No, thank you, but have fun.
Chakotay: Not your cup of tea?
Janeway: Oh, on the contrary, I love to ski. Let's just say I've had enough of a workout for the time being.
Chakotay: Understood.


Neelix: Mister Tuvok! Mister Tuvok! I was supposed to accompany you on security rounds this morning. Did you forget?
Tuvok: I was not aware that we had a definite appointment.
Neelix: I'm sure it was definite. Well, maybe not completely definite. That is, I, I'd expressed my desire to learn the ropes as it were, and I have completed my study of starship security protocols. I think you'll find that I'm fully qualified to serve in the capacity of a Starfleet security officer. Junior grade, of course.
Tuvok: If you recall, Mister Neelix, I did not guarantee you a position.
Neelix: But Captain Janeway is always saying that Voyager is a ship of opportunity.
Tuvok: That is true, but opportunities for promotion on a starship must be earned.
Neelix: I've been working hard at this. I really do feel I have a great deal to contribute to Voyager beyond my current role.
Tuvok: Your dedication is duly noted, Mister Neelix. Now if you'll excuse me, I am due on the bridge.
Neelix: I'll see you first thing tomorrow morning for security rounds!
Torres: Ensign Vorik. Get me a duotronic probe, I'm having trouble regulating the plasma flow.
Vorik: May I suggest a gravitic caliper instead? You might find it a more precise instrument.
Torres: Good idea, but bring me both.
Neelix: Good morning, B'Elanna. You missed my special Klingon Breakfast Buffet.
Torres: I'm sorry Neelix, but a bowl of cold gagh is not my idea of how to start a morning.
Neelix: Well, you're not alone. None of the crew seemed especially enthusiastic about it. What's the problem with er, the plasma injectors? I've been getting myself up to speed on Federation warp propulsion.
Torres: The plasma flow in the manifold seems to be constricted.
Neelix: Ah. Have you thought of phase locking them to the dilithium matrix?
Torres: That was the first thing I did.
Neelix: Oh. I really am interested in learning more about engineering systems, maybe even volunteering for a few duty shifts. In fact, I have a couple of questions about the impulse response filters.
Torres: Neelix, Neelix, this really isn't a good time.
Neelix: Oh. I understand, Lieutenant. Sorry. I'll just watch for a while, if you don't mind.
Vorik: Here are the tools, sir.
Neelix: I also had a question about the transporter buffers.
Janeway: Mister Neelix, please report to the bridge.
Neelix: On my way, Captain.
Janeway: Neelix, we seem to be approaching some kind of interstellar dust clouds. Can you tell us anything about them? They look rather ominous to me.
Neelix: I believe this is a region of space known as the Nekrit Expanse.
Janeway: What can you tell us about this Expanse, Mister Neelix?
Neelix: It's a vast territory. No one knows much about it.
Janeway: Those plasma storms might be a problem for navigation. Full sensor scan, Tuvok.
Tuvok: Aye, Captain.
Chakotay: Can we plot a course around it?
Neelix: That might be advisable.
Tuvok: I don't believe so. It's thousands of light years wide.
Janeway: Then we'll have to go through it. Looks like we'll be counting on your knowledge of the Delta quadrant even more than usual, Neelix.
Neelix: Yes, ma'am. I'm at your command, as always.
Janeway: Will there be any planets where we can take on supplies?
Neelix: There is a station near the border, a kind of supply depot for mining and trading ships. I suggest we stop there for provisions before we go into the Nekrit Expanse.
Janeway: What are the coordinates?
Neelix: Er, let's see. It's actually been a while.
Chakotay: I have the station on sensors, Captain. Three point four light years away, heading oh seven one mark one seven.
Janeway: You heard him, Tom.
Paris: On our way.
Tuvok: We're being hailed, Captain.
Janeway: On screen. I'm Captain Kathryn Janeway of the Federation Starship Voyager.
Bahrat: Bahrat, manager of this station. What can I do for you?
Janeway: Your station is a trading outpost, isn't it? I'd like permission to come aboard to negotiate for supplies.
Bahrat: Granted. But understand that any transaction you negotiate on this station is subject to my approval. I receive a twenty percent commission on all trade. Your whereabouts will be closely monitored. Communications with your ship may also be monitored, at my diskretion. Do you agree to these conditions?
Janeway: Evidently I have no choice
Bahrat: Excellent. Meet me in my office in one hour and we'll discuss your needs.
Paris: Pleasant fellow.
Janeway: Neelix, Chakotay, Tom. You're with me.
Janeway: Mister Bahrat?
Bahrat: What is it?
Janeway: I'm Kathryn Janeway. I've brought a list of the supplies we'll need.
Bahrat: Forgive me, but it's demanding work watching over this station. We get all kinds of troublemakers here.
Janeway: I understand.
Bahrat: All right, let's see it. Hmm. Hmm mmm. Hmm! Pergium.
Janeway: To regenerate the filters on our environmental control system.
Bahrat: That might be a little difficult. It's a rare commodity. Give me a few moments and I'll put together a list of potential suppliers. But I'll warn you, they won't strike easy bargains.
Janeway: I'm prepared to deal fairly.
Bahrat: Hmm.
Sutok: Good day, gentlemen, good day. Anything in particular you're looking for? Anything I can help you with?
Chakotay: We were hoping to find some magnetic spindle bearings for our reaction control assembly.
Sutok: Spindle bearing, spindle bearings. No, can't help you with that. No. Long voyage ahead?
Paris: Er, you could say that.
Sutok: I might have something that could ease your journey. Ease it considerably. Rhuludian crystals. Ingesting just one of these will make days of tedious travel seem like moments of exquisite rapture.
Paris: No, thank you.
Sutok: The price is surprisingly
Chakotay: No.
Paris: Nice place.
Neelix: I see you're a map dealer.
Map Dealer: I have coordinate charts for all the local mining colonies.
Neelix: Actually, I'm interested in maps of the Nekrit Expanse.
Map Dealer: You must be a stranger here or you'd know. There aren't any maps of that region.
Neelix: Surely there's an astrometric chart or a database that would help me plot a safe course?
Map Dealer: The Nekrit Expanse is too unstable to chart.
Wixiban: No matter. He never could plot a straight course anyway.
Neelix: Wixiban? Wix, is that you? I can't believe it!
Wixiban: What are you doing here? I've never seen another Talaxian this far from home.
Neelix: It's a long story. I'm one of the crew of a highly advanced starship.
Wixiban: Ah! I want to hear all about it. Come on, the tavern here serves the best toffa ale I've had in years.
Neelix: I do a little of everything. Cook, guide, advisor to the Captain, possibly even an unofficial Ambassador.
Wixiban: Oh ho, ho. Life's been good to you.
Neelix: Yes, I'm very, I'm very lucky. But what about you? What are you doing on this station?
Wixiban: A little of this, a little of that. To tell you the truth, things haven't gone quite so well for me.
Neelix: I'm sorry.
Wixiban: Ever since that nasty business with the Ubeans, things have been difficult. But, you know me, can't keep Wix down long. I'm working on a trade deal now that should put me right back in the thick of things again.
Neelix: I hope it works out. Er, Wix, about the Ubeans. I don't think I ever told you how much I valued what you did.
Wixiban: You'd have done the same for me.
Neelix: Yes, I would have. But you were the one who got caught. I owe you a great deal. If there's anything I can do to help.
Wixiban: I'm fine, honestly. Maybe not on the crew of a magnificent starship, but I'll get by.
Neelix: To tell you the truth, it's not quite what I told you. In fact I may not be on Voyager much longer.
Wixiban: Why?
Neelix: The main reason Captain Janeway needed me was as a guide, to give her information about this quadrant. But I've never been beyond the Nekrit Expanse. I can't tell her anything about what's ahead.
Wixiban: But, your other jobs. Cook, Ambassador.
Neelix: They don't really need a cook, and I don't think our Captain really requires an Ambassador. I've tried to find some other area where I might be useful, but, the truth is, I'm not needed. I'm hoping you can help me. I can't let Voyager go into that dangerous without some idea of what's there. I have to find a map.
Vorik: Can I be of help, Mister Neelix?
Neelix: Dinner isn't for an hour, Ensign Vorik, and I don't have time to prepare a snack.
Vorik: I don't require food at the moment. Lieutenant Torres sent me to adjust the control interface on your food replicators. You said you were experiencing difficulties with them.
Neelix: Oh, of course. Go ahead.
Chakotay: Neelix. I thought you'd like to say hello to your old friend.
Neelix: Well, er, yes. Yes, of course.
Wixiban: So, this is where you prepare your legendary feasts. You know, Commander, Neelix has more varied talents than anyone I've ever known. You're lucky to have him on board.
Chakotay: Mister Wix was able to find those magnetic spindle bearings we were looking for. I don't know what we'd have done if he hadn't come up them.
Neelix: Well, yes, Wix has always had a knack for finding those hard to locate items.
Chakotay: I'll let you two reminisce for a while. Thanks again, Wix.
Wixiban: You're more than welcome.
Neelix: Yes, this is the Mess room. On any given day I must be prepared to feed over a hundred people. About done, Ensign?
Vorik: Not quite.
Neelix: Well I really don't need the replicators today, so you can finish later.
Vorik: As you wish.
Neelix: Oh, and remind Lieutenant Torres. When she has a moment, I'd still like to go over a few things with her.
Vorik: I'll relay the message.
Neelix: Thank you.
Neelix: Wix, please tell me those spindle bearings weren't stolen property.
Wixiban: Of course not. I wouldn't do that to you. Neelix, I need the work. I don't live on a comfortable starship. No one looks out for me except me. Maybe you've forgotten what that feels like.
Neelix: I haven't forgotten.
Wixiban: I've been stuck on that trash heap of a space station for three years. My ship's been impounded. I can't afford to give Bahrat what he wants to get it back. Do you begrudge me an opportunity to make a fair trade?
Neelix: Of course not.
Wixiban: I have news for you. I've located some pergium for your ship.
Neelix: That's great news. Captain Janeway hasn't had any luck.
Wixiban: And I've found someone with a map.
Neelix: Wonderful! How do we get it?
Wixiban: It'll involve several bartering sessions. I have the opportunity to sell medical supplies to an outpost whose people are dying of a lung disease. It's a good cause, and it will make me enough to pay Bahrat and get my ship back.
Neelix: Where does the map come in?
Wixiban: When I deliver the medical supplies, one of the physicians will give me an astrometric chart.
Neelix: I can't thank you enough.
Wixiban: I'll have to ask your help though. We'll need a shuttle. First, we have to get to a nearby freighter to pick up the medical supplies. Then we return to the space station and meet with one of the physicians from the outpost. With your transporter technology we could be in and out of the station within minutes. Then I could finally get away from here and get back to a Talaxian colony.
Neelix: I don't think that would be a problem.
Wixiban: Just one thing. Don't tell anyone that we're delivering medical supplies to the station. Not even one person. If Bahrat finds out he'll take twenty percent, and I can't afford that.
Neelix: I suppose there's no need to mention it.
Wixiban: Thanks, Neelix. I knew I could count on you.
Wixiban: Didn't I tell you this would be easy? I got the medical supplies and you got the pergium your ship needs so badly.
Neelix: Only twenty kilograms. I told Commander Chakotay it would be forty five.
Wixiban: You're lucky to get what you did. Come on, Neelix, A few minutes more and we'll be done. And you'll have a map to help you through the Nekrit Expanse. What is the matter with you?
Neelix: I don't like keeping the whole truth from Commander Chakotay. It's not honest.
Wixiban: I don't remember you ever being so squeamish about twisting the truth.
Neelix: Wix, I'm not what I used to be.
Wixiban: Neither am I. We've both tried to change our lives. You've done it. Now I have the same chance. We're almost there. We should have your transporter take us to corridor fourteen L, near the outer docking ports. It's hardly ever used. Our contact will meet us there.
Neelix: We're within transporter range. I've entered the coordinates.
Neelix: What are you doing?
Wixiban: This station is a dangerous place, and these supplies are valuable. We have to be able to defend ourselves.
Neelix: You said this would be easy.
Wixiban: It's just a precaution. Let's go.
Neelix: Computer, energize.
Neelix: Where's your contact?
Wixiban: He'll be here, don't worry.
Neelix: I don't like this, meeting in dark passages late at night.
Sutok: Wix.
Wixiban: Sutok. This is my associate.
Sutok: You have the supplies?
Wixiban: As promised.
Neelix: What's he doing?
Wixiban: Satisfied?
Sutok: Completely.
Neelix: What kind of medical supplies are those?
Wixiban: If you give me my payment, we'll be on our way.
Sutok: Yes. I have it right here.
Man: Stop them! Get his weapon!
Neelix: Wix!
Man: Someone's coming!
Wixiban: Neelix! Get us out of here.
Neelix: Computer, two to beam up.
Neelix: You lied to me from the beginning and I was foolish enough to believe you!
Wixiban: It should have been as easy as I said. I didn't know Sutok would try to steal the tubes.
Neelix: Those aren't ordinary medical supplies. You failed to mention that.
Wixiban: They do have a medicinal application, but no one would pay what I was supposed to get if they were just simple medications.
Neelix: They're narcotics, aren't they. Oh, you're up to your same old tricks. We have to talk to Captain Janeway as soon as we get back.
Wixiban: Do you really want to do that? How is it going to look to your shipmates when they find out you were once a contraband smuggler, and that you were involved in this ugly business tonight? You think your position on Voyager is precarious now? Wait till they discover the whole truth about you.
Neelix: I can't just forget about this.
Wixiban: So you'd let Bahrat put me in cryostatic suspension? I guess you would. You did let me spend a year in that Ubean prison.
Neelix: Wix.
Wixiban: I never told you what it was like in there, did I? About eating worms to stay alive. Sleeping in a cell where the vermin chew on you all night. Being punished in ways you couldn't imagine.
Neelix: All right! I won't say anything. But I don't want to have anything more to do with you. The debt is paid.
Janeway: Captain's log, supplemental. I have called a meeting of the senior staff to inform them of some very disturbing news I have just received
Janeway: There's been a murder aboard the station.
Chakotay: Murder?
Janeway: I've been told that's not an uncommon occurrence here. The man who dies has been suspected of criminal activity. Mister Bahrat, however, discovered something at the scene of the killing that greatly concerns me.
Bahrat: During my investigation I discovered some energy readings I couldn't identify, so I ran a spectral analysis.
Janeway: He showed me the analysis just a few minutes ago. It's a Federation phaser signature. Tuvok will be assisting Mister Bahrat in his investigation. I want to know how a weapon from Voyager could have been involved in this incident.
Bahrat: The shooting took place in an abandoned section of the station. Security scanners were disabled. I'm reviewing other surveillance records, looking for anything that might help me apprehend whoever did this.
Janeway: I've promised Mister Bahrat the full cooperation of every member of this crew during his investigation. Dismissed.
Neelix: You wanted to see me, Mister Tuvok?
Tuvok: Please, sit down. I examined the scene of the shooting and confirmed the Federation weapon signature. A type two phaser blast. Fourteen Voyager crewmembers were off the ship at the time of the incident.
Neelix: I see.
Tuvok: Several traders from the station were aboard Voyager on the day of the incident. We can't rule out the possibility that one of them managed to steal a phaser.
Neelix: I suppose not.
Tuvok: What can you tell me about your friend Wixiban?
Neelix: Wix?
Tuvok: Mister Chakotay reported that he was aboard Voyager.
Neelix: Ah, yes. He delivered some magnetic bearings. We're more like acquaintances, not friends really. I haven't seen him in years.
Tuvok: Has he ever been involved in criminal activity?
Neelix: I wouldn't know. I certainly don't think so.
Tuvok: I must question him, and I would appreciate your accompanying me.
Neelix: Me? What could I do?
Tuvok: You may be able to help me evaluate the verisimilitude of his answers.
Neelix: I see.
Tuvok: Please meet me in transporter room two at eighteen hundred hours.
Tuvok: How much time did you spend aboard Voyager?
Wixiban: Probably less than an hour altogether.
Tuvok: Were you ever alone on the ship?
Wixiban: No. I was met by Mister Chakotay in your transporter room. Extraordinary experience, that transporter of yours. We delivered bearings to Lieutenant Torres, then Mister Chakotay and I paid a visit to my old friend Neelix in your mess hall.
Tuvok: Where were you at the time of the shooting?
Wixiban: In bed, asleep.
Tuvok: Can anyone corroborate that?
Wixiban: Alas, Mister Tuvok, I sleep alone.
Tuvok: That will be all for now, Mister Wix.
Neelix: I'd like to stay for a glass of toffa ale.
Tuvok: As you wish, but please see me as soon as you return to the ship.
Neelix: Yeah.
Neelix: I'd forgotten how easy it is for you to lie.
Wixiban: You're not suggesting I tell him the truth?
Neelix: Vulcan's aren't as easily fooled as you might think.
Wixiban: If you want to worry, I'll give you something to worry about.
Neelix: What?
Wixiban: The people I was conducting that transaction for aren't happy that they didn't get paid.
Neelix: I thought this was your scheme?
Wixiban: Do you think I could have afforded those tubes? I was acting as an agent for some Kolaati traders. Do you know anything about the Kolaati? They're mean as fire snakes. They will kill us, and it won't be quick.
Neelix: I can't believe this is happening. Why did I ever listen to you!
Wixiban: Neelix, it's all right. I've convinced them to take something else in payment. Something easily come by. They know about Voyager. They want a sample of your ship's warp plasma. They'll be able to use it to increase the efficiency of their engines.
Neelix: No. It's wrong. I won't do it. This has to stop.
Wixiban: You should have thought of that in the beginning. You're in too deeply now.
Neelix: The people on Voyager are my friends. I can't steal from them.
Wixiban: Friends? You've already told me they're ready to put you off the ship. You're living in a dream world. It's time to wake up. You're on your own, just as I am, and you're going to die a horrible death at the hands of the Kolaati unless you bring them three grams of warp plasma. Do you understand that? I've already told them you'll do it. Meet me here tomorrow morning at nine hundred hours.
Paris: Hey, Neelix, what's up?
Neelix: Oh, nothing. Just thought I might give you a hand with whatever it is you're doing.
Paris: Oh, you may regret that. Chakotay and I have to pick up a supply of biomimetic gel tomorrow morning, and I am trying to find to find the container that is listed as the proper transport device. Starfleet standard issue L647X7.
Neelix: Well, sounds like another set of eyes won't hurt. M34, no not that one. L647. No, it's Y6. Tom, if it's not too bold of me, I wonder if I could ask you something?
Paris: Sure, anything.
Neelix: I've heard you were in some trouble in the past. Spent time in prison.
Paris: That's right.
Neelix: Do you, would you, tell me how you got in trouble?
Paris: I've thought a lot about that, and it comes down to one simple fact. I didn't tell the truth. I made a mistake, which happens to people, but if I'd admitted that mistake it would have been a lot better. But I lied about it, and it nearly ruined my life. Why do you ask?
Neelix: Oh, no reason. Just wondered. Here's your container.
Paris: After I've done here, a bunch of us are going to go down to the resort. Why don't you come along?
Neelix: Thanks, but I'm going to turn in early. Maybe another time.
Paris: Okay.
Neelix: Good evening, Ensign.
Vorik: Mister Neelix.
Neelix: I thought I'd log a little time in the Jefferies tubes, if that's all right.
Vorik: I was unaware you were officially on an engineering work detail.
Neelix: Oh, it's not official, not at all, but Lieutenant Torres has been good enough to allow me to poke around here and there. As time permits, of course.
Vorik: She has mentioned your desire to become familiar with Starfleet engineering protocols. I see no reason why you can't proceed.
Neelix: Thank you. Ensign Vorik.
Vorik: Yes, Mister Neelix?
Neelix: You're quite young. Is it difficult for you being so far away from everything that's familiar?
Vorik: Had I been given the choice, I might not have chosen to explore the Delta Quadrant. However, since we are here, I must say the challenges are intriguing.
Neelix: Voyager is a wonderful place to be. People here are very fortunate.
Vorik: I would concur.
Wixiban: Did you get it? Where is it?
Neelix: I have to talk to you.
Wixiban: Give it to me.
Neelix: I didn't get the warp plasma.
Wixiban: What?
Neelix: I couldn't do it. I just couldn't. We have to tell the truth. It's the only way to make things right.
Wixiban: We're dead men, Neelix.
Neelix: No. I have a plan.
Bahrat: You two! Stay where you are!
Wixiban: Don't panic, stay calm.
Bahrat: I said, stay where you are!
Paris: What is this?
Bahrat: You two are under arrest.
Paris: Arrest?
Chakotay: What's the charge?
Bahrat: Conspiring with known drug traffickers. And murder. Let's go!
Bahrat: This is the criminal who was killed, and these are the two men we arrested.
Janeway: You can't seriously regard this as viable evidence.
Bahrat: I realize it's circumstantial, but it is compelling.
Janeway: It proves absolutely nothing.
Bahrat: It proves your two men had a conversation with a narcotics dealer only hours before he was killed.
Tuvok: As the Captain said, that proves nothing.
Bahrat: I'm holding them for questioning. They are prime suspects.
Janeway: I want my security officer present during all interrogations.
Bahrat: I'll take that into consideration. But make no mistake about this. Someone will serve fifty years of cryostatic suspension for that murder. If I were to let this go unpunished, it would be anarchy on this station within days.
Janeway: You make no mistake about this. I won't allow members of my crew to be condemned for a crime they did not commit.
Neelix: This has gone too far. We have to go to Bahrat.
Wixiban: We'll end up in his cryostatic prison for decades.
Neelix: Not if he agrees to my plan.
Wixiban: Your plan is crazy. It's worse than prison, it's a death sentence.
Neelix: That would be better than living a lie. I'm going whether you do or not.
Wixiban: Neelix! We've been through too much together. I can't let you do this alone.
Neelix: It was a type two Federation phaser that was used. It's on one of our shuttles. You can get it from our security officer to verify the energy signature.
Bahrat: Which of you fired the weapon?
Neelix: We were both involved in all aspects of the crime.
Wixiban: I was the one with the weapon, but I fired in self-defense.
Neelix: So you see, Commander Chakotay and Lieutenant Paris are innocent.
Bahrat: The punishment for trafficking in illicit substances is fifty years of cryostatic imprisonment.
Neelix: Your cryostatic prison isn't a particularly effective deterrent, is it?
Bahrat: It certainly is. There's very little narcotics trafficking that goes on here.
Wixiban: That's what you think. The Kolaati have made a fortune trading drugs here.
Bahrat: I know everything that happens on this station.
Neelix: Apparently not, since we were able to deliver narcotics to known criminals right under your nose.
Wixiban: They have ways of disabling your surveillance systems, masking your sensors, creating false visual signals. It happens almost every night.
Bahrat: I'll put a stop to that.
Neelix: Since you don't know how they do it, that might prove difficult. But we have a plan. The Kolaati want a sample of warp plasma from Voyager.
Wixiban: I'll arrange a meeting with them to deliver the plasma. When they arrive, we'll take them into custody.
Bahrat: How do you plan to do that? You won't be able to carry weapons, and if they thought my men and I were near, they'd be gone in a second.
Neelix: We have some ideas. If we are able to turn them over to you, will you agree not to charge us with a crime?
Bahrat: It's no risk to me. You'll undoubtedly perish in this ridiculous scheme.
Neelix: You'll have to provide us with a sample of warp plasma. I won't take any from Voyager.
Bahrat: What I can give you won't be of the same quality.
Neelix: Doesn't matter. We'll make do.
Bahrat: All right, we'll try it. But I don't hold any hopes that you will survive.
Neelix: It's been over twenty minutes. Where are they?
Wixiban: I confirmed the time and place. They should be here. Maybe they've realized it's a trap? Maybe they're not going to show up?
Neelix: Let's hope they do, or we will end up in Bahrat's prison.
Bahrat: It looks like someone's begun transmitting a false visual signal. My guess is they're about to come aboard. We'll give them five minutes, and then move in.
Wixiban: It's Tosin.
Neelix: Who?
Wixiban: He's one of the most powerful Kolaati.
Neelix: Good evening, gentlemen. My name is Neelix and I
Tosin: The warp plasma, where is it?
Wixiban: It's right in here, Tosin, but first you must guarantee us
Tosin: You'll live for today. No guarantees about tomorrow. Give me the plasma. Slowly.
Tosin: Twenty parts per million isonucleic residue? This is contaminated. You promised me a pure sample.
Neelix: It doesn't matter, because you're under arrest.
Tosin: What?
Neelix: I said, you're being taken into custody for smuggling contraband and narcotic substances. Very serious offenses aboard this station, Mister Tosin. It's time you faced up to that.
Tosin: Little man, your days have ended.
Neelix: I wouldn't fire that weapon if I were you. That plasma canister you're holding. I disengaged the safety nodes just as you came in. Even as we speak, warp plasma is leaking from it. This section of the station is filling with plasma particles. Fire your weapon and you'll set off an explosion that would undoubtedly kill us all.
Wixiban: He's telling the truth, Tosin. Don't do it.
Neelix: And I wouldn't activate your transporter system, if I were you. The beam would also destabilize the plasma. Same effect. Boom.
Tosin: Then you will die with me, little man.
Neelix: No problem at all, if it means getting rid of an Orillian lung maggot like you. Go ahead. You'd be doing me a favor. I have nothing to lose. Fire away!
Wixiban: Neelix.
Neelix: Shoot. What are you waiting for? Fire!
Tosin: Re-engage the safety nodes.
Bahrat: Don't bother. Put down your weapons. You're under arrest for violating station code four two seven nine, subsection beta three two five.
Tosin: No! Don't!
Neelix: I'm in sickbay?
Emh: Yes, Mister Neelix. You sustained third degree plasma burns and a moderate concussion, but my skills have prevented you from suffering permanent damage.
Neelix: Thank you, Doctor.
Tuvok: One of the criminals was killed in the plasma explosion. The others have been taken into custody by Mister Bahrat.
Kes: Chakotay and Tom were released.
Neelix: Oh, good. And Wix?
Tuvok: Mister Wixiban was given his shuttle. He sent you his thanks before making a hasty departure.
Janeway: Would all of you excuse us, please? I'd like to talk to Neelix alone.
Janeway: Well, do you have anything to say for yourself?
Neelix: Only that I'm terribly sorry.
Janeway: Oh. You're sorry. Is that supposed to make everything better? I don't really care whether you're sorry or not, Neelix. At this point it doesn't matter. I can't imagine what made you behave the way you did, lying to us, sneaking around behind our backs, covering up criminal activity. Did you have some misguided reason to think this was acceptable behavior?
Neelix: No, ma'am.
Janeway: You've been one of my most trusted advisors since we began this journey. How can I ever trust you again? How can I ever listen to you without wondering whether you're telling the truth or not?
Neelix: I've never been dishonest to you before, I swear, Captain. I just took one step. A step that seemed perfectly reasonable. And that step lead to another and another, and before I knew what I was involved in something I didn't know how to handle.
Janeway: What was it? What was so important that you were willing to throw away your principles?
Neelix: I needed a map.
Janeway: A map?
Neelix: Captain, my usefulness to you was at an end. I don't know anything about space beyond this point. I couldn't let you go into the Nekrit Expanse without knowing what you faced.
Janeway: You've been on this ship for two years. I'd think by now you'd have learned that the first duty of any Starfleet officer is the truth. You violated that duty, Neelix, and there will be consequences.
Neelix: I'm prepared to leave the ship, Captain.
Janeway: Oh no, it's not that easy. You can't just walk away from your responsibilities just because you made a mistake. You're part of a family now. and you have obligations.
Neelix: But, I can't guide you. I can't advise you. I don't know what's coming.
Janeway: Well, that's not the point, is it? None of us knows what's coming. That's what Starfleet is all about. We are all in this together, Neelix, and we have to be able to count on each other no matter how hard it gets. Do you understand?
Neelix: Yes. Yes, I do.
Janeway: Well, that's good. Report to deuterium maintenance at oh four hundred tomorrow morning. You're going to spend the next two weeks scrubbing the exhaust manifolds. That should give you time to think about what I've said. Dismissed.