Message in a Bottle ( episode ) Seven of Nine finds an abandoned subspace relay network that has the ability to send a message , or in this case The Doctor , to a Starfleet ship detected in the Alpha Quadrant . Summary . Teaser . Lieutenant B ' Elanna Torres and Commander Chakotay discuss Torres ' dissatisfaction with the former Borg drone , Seven of Nine . Torres has run out of patience with Seven ' s aloof , arrogant attitude and is furious . Chakotay , on the other hand , doesn ' t want to hear it and advises her to start acting like the senior officer that she is . He orders her to find a way to deal with Seven in a professional manner . While discussing this , Seven hail s Chakotay to the astrometrics lab . Chakotay meets Captain Kathryn Janeway outside astrometrics . She too has been hailed by Seven . They share a bemused expression as they enter . Chakotay asks Seven , who is busy at the console , what this is about . She shows them a ship on the astrometrics viewscreen that is a Starfleet vessel . Act One . Seven informs them that the ship is in the Alpha Quadrant . She informs them that she has been able to detect the ship because of the presence of a huge relay station network . The network is apparently abandoned but it extends all the way to the edge of the Alpha Quadrant . The ship , she tells them , is in range of the network sensors on that far end . The two officers realize that they now have an opportunity to communicate with Starfleet , which they have not been able to do since being brought to the Delta Quadrant , four years earlier . Chakotay asks if a message can be sent to the ship . Seven confirms , though she adds that some modifications to their own transmitter s must be made first . The message must be sent within the next 41 minutes or the ship will move out of range . Janeway orders the modifications be made immediately . However , the signal is too weak to reach the vessel . Lieutenant Tom Paris suggests using a stronger type of signal , one that would not degrade so quickly . Torres suggests a holographic data stream . That is when they remember The Doctor , the ship ' s Emergency Medical Hologram . Torres rushes to sickbay and , before The Doctor can even finish asking what is happening , she transfers him to his mobile emitter and runs with it to astrometrics . Janeway arrives in astrometrics and explains the situation to The Doctor when he is reactivated there . There , he is downloaded and transmitted . The Doctor materializes on the Starfleet vessel ' s sickbay , which seems to be empty . He calls to anyone , but gets no answer . He queries the ship ' s computer and is very pleased to find that his transmission was successful ; he is indeed aboard the target vessel , in the Alpha Quadrant . He further asks the ship ' s computer about the vessel ' s identity , and learns that it is the . Searching sickbay , he finds a crewman dead on the floor . He also finds an ensign , barely alive . Their uniforms are different from those of " Voyager " s crew . The ensign has sustained severe phaser burns . The Doctor manages to revive him and asks him what happened . His response , just before he dies , is that Romulan s have taken over the ship . Act Two . On the " Prometheus " bridge , Romulans man all stations . In sickbay , The Doctor confirms what the dead ensign told him : 27 Romulans are aboard and all Starfleet personnel are dead . He then asks the computer about the ship itself . He learns the ship is a dedicated warship , an experimental deep - space tactical prototype . It is equipped with technologies that Starfleet is experimenting with including regenerative shield ing , ablative armor , and a multi - vector assault mode . The approaching Federation starship arrives and engages the " Prometheus " . On the bridge , the Romulan commander orders the " multi - vector assault mode " engaged . The lighting on the bridge ( and in sickbay , much to The Doctor ' s surprise ) turns blue . The computer counts down from ten to one , the time of what it terms " auto - separation . " The ship separates into three sections : the saucer and two stardrive s , all battle - ready and warp - capable . In effect , the one ship becomes a small squadron . Rekar orders the " Prometheus " to engage the other Federation ship , the . The three sections surround and attack the " Bonchune " , disabling it . During the battle the " Prometheus " bridge takes a hit and a Romulan hijacker is badly injured . As the three sections reform , Rekar orders the injured Romulan taken to sickbay . Nevala enters sickbay with her injured hijacker . The Doctor immediately puts on his best bedside manner . She is instantly suspicious , demanding to know who activated him . He lies that she did when she walked through the door . She is still suspicious because he is , after all , a Starfleet program . He assures her his primary directive is to treat anyone requiring it , Federation citizen or not , friend or enemy . As soon as she has gone , The Doctor activates the ship ' s EMH – which is a Mark II , as opposed to a Mark I , The Doctor ' s designation . Act Three . The Mark II stands in sickbay regarding The Doctor with contempt , calling him an inferior EMH program , much to The Doctor ' s chagrin , and tries to hail security . The Doctor immediately stops him and explains the situation of the " Prometheus " and of his own ship , " Voyager " . He explains " Voyager " is over 60 , 000 light - years away , and was pulled into the delta quadrant four years ago . With a forceful tone , he convinces his reluctant counterpart to help him take back the ship from the Romulans . He asks if the Federation is at war with the Romulans . The Mark II responds that they are not and the Romulans have had nothing to do with the Federation ' s war with the Dominion . Confused , The Doctor asks who the Dominion is but the Mark II tells him that it is a long story . They begin to treat the injured Romulan together . " Voyager " holds position while the crew awaits The Doctor ' s return . Janeway and Chakotay write letters to their loved ones , though they know that The Doctor ' s return will not necessarily mean establishing a communications link with Starfleet . Paris has been assigned to sickbay until The Doctor ' s return as he is the only other trained medic aboard " Voyager " . The " Prometheus " heads for Romulan space at warp speed . The Mark II informs The Doctor that the ship is capable of a cruising speed of warp 9 . 9 and no other ship in Starfleet can do this . Thus , there is no chance any Starfleet ship can intercept and rescue them meaning that they are on their own . They come up with a plan to take back the ship : release an anesthetic into the ventilation system . Rekar orders a course change . They were previously headed for Romulus , but he has decided that they should instead rendezvous with the Tal Shiar , the intelligence service of the Romulan Star Empire . The others object and begin to argue with Rekar . During the argument The Doctor , pretending to scan them , surreptitiously attempts to access environmental controls . Rekar notices him and accosts him . Rekar then checks his scanner and sees that he has not scanned anything ; his plan has been foiled . On " Voyager " , Seven of Nine enters astrometrics to find Torres there . They get into an argument in which Torres tells Seven that the way she speaks to other crewmembers is unacceptable . As Seven considers these comments , a transmission comes through . A humanoid alien ' s image appears on the lab ' s viewscreen . The alien is wearing an armored helmet and an armored mask that covers his nose and mouth . He gruffly demands their identity . The man angrily tells them that the network is in fact , owned by the Hirogen . Torres apologizes and explains that they thought the network was abandoned . She attempts to explain why they are using it but he is not interested in her explanation and orders them to terminate their link before ending his communication . Act Four . The Doctor is being interrogated by Rekar , who believes that The Doctor is either a spy or saboteur . Rekar does not believe a hologram to be capable of performing such action independently and he demands to know who is operating him . Nevana enters and reports that she has found the transmission log that shows when The Doctor came aboard . She notes that the transmission that brought him on board has a Starfleet signature . The log does not indicate its origin or who sent it so they demand this information from The Doctor . He tells them part of the truth , that he was sent from the Delta Quadrant . Rekar and Nevala do not believe him and decide that stronger action is necessary . They will extract all his algorithm s and analyze his subroutine s individually . This action would severely damage or destroy his holomatrix , killing him . However they do not get beyond talking about it as they suddenly begin to cough and gag before collapsing , unconscious . The Mark II materializes . He has succeeded in releasing the neurozine gas into the ventilation system . Their next step is to get to the bridge and turn the ship around . On the bridge , The Doctor finds a way to make the ship slow from warp speed but his method causes a warp core overload . Fortunately , he manages to stop the overload before a warp core breach occurs . However after one disaster was averted , sensors indicate that three Romulan warbird s are headed straight toward them . Meanwhile on " Voyager " , Seven and Torres work to reestablish the link with the Hirogen communications network in the astrometrics lab . Janeway has joined them to help with their work . Before they can finish , the Hirogen male appears again on the viewscreen . He introduces himself as Idrin and angrily reminds them of his initial warning to leave the network alone . Janeway tries to get him to listen , explaining that they are using it to get a message to their people but he is uninterested . He again proceeds to jam their link . Realizing that reasoning with Idrin won ' t work , Seven shocks him with a feedback surge along the link , knocking him out . Janeway orders them to keep watching for The Doctor ' s return and to alert her if the Hirogen troubles them again . With a stern look at Seven , she leaves the astrometrics lab . After making sure the captain is fully out of earshot , Torres tells Seven that she approved of her action and Seven casually thanks her . Aboard the " Prometheus " , The Doctor and the Mark II try to get the ship moving again but without success . A hail comes from one of the warbirds . Keeping the viewscreen off , The Doctor answers , trying to fool them into thinking that he is the Romulan commander – he fails miserably . The warbirds open fire on the ship . The " Prometheus " regenerative shields rapidly begin to fail as the two hologram s do not have the required expertise to operate them properly . Sensors detect more ships approaching . The holograms are relieved to discover that the new ships are Starfleet vessels . The ships , two vessels and one vessel , are seen approaching at warp speed . They slow and join the fight but the holograms ' relief quickly changes to horror when the Starfleet ships , instead of attacking the warbirds , fire on the " Prometheus " . The attempt to hijack the ship has been discovered by Starfleet Command . Act Five . The Mark II tries to hail the Starfleet ships but the Romulans hijackers scrambled the comm frequencies , making this impossible . The two holograms are left with no choice but to defend themselves and prove that the ship is no longer under enemy control by attacking the . The " Prometheus " separates into its three battle - ready components . The three sections attack a warbird . With the computer in control , the power of the vessel is very effectively demonstrated against the targeted ship . The warbird is quickly destroyed and the other warbirds retreat . The Doctor and the Mark II grandiosely congratulate each other before being interrupted by two heavily - armed Starfleet security officers being beam ed aboard . In " Voyager " s astrometrics lab , Seven of Nine detects a transmission coming through the relay network , from the Alpha quadrant . She informs Torres that the transmission has a holographic subroutine . Torres informed the bridge about the return of The Doctor . Janeway , Chakotay , and Lieutenant Commander Tuvok arrive in sickbay as The Doctor materializes . He explains that he accomplished his mission and then gently informs Janeway that he spoke with Starfleet Command . Apparently , they had declared " Voyager " lost 14 months previously but he corrected that error , telling them that the ship is very much intact , and that the crew is searching for a way to return . The Doctor conveys a message from Starfleet that they will be contacting the crew ' s families to inform them of the news and have immediately begun to seek a way to retrieve them , and will not stop until they succeed in doing so and ends by telling Janeway that Starfleet sent another message . . . the crew are no longer alone . Janeway emotionally remarks that after hearing this , 60 , 000 light year s seems much closer now . Memorable quotes . " " We need to take control of this situation ! " " " " I ' m a doctor , not a commando ! " " " " It ' s time you became a little of both . " " " " Is the Federation at war with the Romulans ? " " " " No . The Romulans haven ' t gotten involved in our fight with the Dominion . " " " " The who . . . ? " " " " ( Takes breath to explain , then pauses and changes his mind ) Long story . " " " " What did you feed them anyway ? " " " " Rodeo Red ' s Red - Hot , Rootin ' - Tootin ' Chili . " " " " I have even had sexual relations " " " " Sex , how ' s that possible ? We ' re not equipped " " " " Let ' s just say I made an addition to my program " " " " I ' m a pilot , Harry , not a doctor ! " " " " We ' re not afraid you ' re going to assimilate us , we ' re just not used to . . . you just . . . " you ' re rude . " " " I am " rude . . . " " " Four " years " ? No wonder you ' re delusional – you ' re program ' s degrading after being active so long ! " " " " I assure you , I am in perfect health ! I was saving Voyager from annihilation when you were only a " gleam " in your programmer ' s eye ! Now are you going to help me take back this ship or not ! ? " " " " ( Pauses , then says with some gusto ) Get me the thrombic modulator . " " " " You are nothing but a computer - generated projection . I find it hard to believe you ' re capable of taking these actions independently . " " " " How flattering . " " " " Tell me who is operating your program . Is it someone on this ship ? A Starfleet crew member we missed ? Or one of my own men ? " " " " Paranoia is a way of life for you , isn ' t it ? " " " " You know , you really should keep a personal log ; why bore others needlessly ? " " " " Mild shock ? Not bad ! " " " " Thank you . " " " " Stop breathing down my neck ! " " " " My breathing is merely a simulation . " " " " So is my neck , stop it anyway ! " " " " Is this a thruster control ? " " " " Don ' t touch it ! We don ' t know what it does ! It could be the self - destruct ! " " " " Beep beep beep , beep beep beep ? I ' ve never heard that one before . " " " " The secondary gyrodyne relays in the propulsion field inter - matrix have depolarized . " " " " In English ! " " " " I ' m just reading what it says here ! " " " " Our viewscreen is non - operational . We ' ve had some trouble with . . . Starfleet commandos . . . " " " " Identify yourself . " " " " ( whispering ) You first . " " " " You first . " " " " What are they doing ? ! " " " " Firing on us ! " " " " They must think Romulans are on board ! " " " " They ' re right ! " " " " You hit the wrong ship ! " " " " It wasn ' t my fault ! " " " " Well , then whose fault was it , the torpedo ' s ? ! You ' re supposed to tell it what to do ! " " " " My brilliant existence cut short . . . no time to explore the universe . . . no time to smell the roses . . . no time for . . . sex . . . " " " " Doctor , we ' ve done it ! Two holograms alone , Romulans on one side , Starfleet on the other , alarms beeping everywhere ! " " " " EMH Mark II ; newborn but filled with courage ! " " " " EMH Mark I ; armed with years of experience ! " " " " Together they emerge triumphant ! " " " " The end . " " " " 60 , 000 light years . . . seems a little bit closer today . " " Links and references . References . 47 Tucanae ; ablative armor ; ; algorithm ; algorithm extraction ; Alpha Quadrant ; American cuisine ; analytical subroutine ; anesthetic ; anesthazine ; animal ; antacid ; assimilation ; Astrometrics ; attack pattern ; axonol ; bedside manner ; biofilter ; biohazard ; ; brig ; carrier wave ; Cat ' s Eye Nebula ; ; cell coil ; Chakotay ' s cousin ; chicken salad ; " Comparative Alien Physiology " ; compression phaser rifle ; coordinates ; couch ; cousin ; cramps ; cytoplasm ; dedication plaque ; deep space mission ; ; delirium ; Delta Quadrant ; distress signal ; Dominion ; Dominion War ; Eagle Nebula ; Earth ; Emergency Medical Hologram ; Emergency Medical Hologram Replacement Program ; English language ; exoscalpel ; Federation ; feedback surge ; gas ; " Gray ' s Anatomy " ; gyrodyne relay ; hair ; heartburn ; hijacking ; Hirogen ; Hirogen communications network ; holodeck ; holoemitter ; holo - engineer ; holographic subroutine ; holomatrix ; holotechnology ; intercept course ; interlink frequency ; intruder alert ; jalapeño ; jamming signal ; Janeway family ; Jefferies tube ; ; leech ; lie ; life support ; maneuvering thruster ; ; medical library ; medical tricorder ; membrane ; mobile emitter ; multi - vector assault mode ; nacelle power control ; navigational log ; ; neurozine ; nuclei ; Ohio ; optronic data stream ; osteogenic stimulator ; ovum ; paranoia ; personality profile ; personal log ; prisoner ; programmer ; ; ; propulsion field intermatrix ; psychotropic agent ; rash ; referee ; regenerative shield ; Rodeo Red ' s Red - Hot , Rootin ' - Tootin ' Chili ; Romulan ; Romulan space ; Romulan Warbird ; Romulus ; rose ; schematic ; sex ; sickbay ; speech recognition protocol ; Starfleet ; Starfleet Headquarters ; Starfleet uniform ( 2370s ) ; ; Tal Shiar ; Terothka virus ; Terrellian plague ; thrombic modulator ; thrust initiator ; thruster control ; tissue ; " T ' Met " ; Veil Nebula ; ventilation system ; viewscreen ; vocal subroutine ; " Voyager " s chief medical officer ; warp core ; warp field ; warp signature ; warp trail