MEDICAL LOGS

FLESH AND BLOOD, Parts 1 and 2
Season 7 : Episodes 155 and 156

 

MEDICAL REPORT:

Voyager discovers a Hirogen holodeck facility littered with the bodies of forty-three Hirogen killed by a variety of weapons wielded by a corresponding variety of holographic prey programmed as different species. A lone Hirogen survivor named Donik is beamed to Sickbay. Donik explains that he is a technician who maintained the vessel as a training facility for the Hirogen until the holograms malfunctioned, took control and deactivated the safety protocols. The Hirogen have made alterations to the holographic programming technology given to them by Janeway at the end of  [#87 The Killing Game, Part 2]. The holograms have enhanced memory, comprehensive tactical algorithms, and expendable data processing giving them the ability to learn and adapt - they are sentient. Donik explains to Hirogen from another vessel that arrives that the holograms transferred their programs to a vessel equipped with holo-emitters and are on the loose.

The Starfleet and Hirogen crews work together to locate the fugitive holograms but learn, too late, that it is a trap set to destroy the Hirogen ship. While the Hirogen survivors are tended to by the Doctor, with overflow facilities placed in the Messhall, the holograms' ship drops out of warp and starts firing. They tap into the holoemitters in Sickbay and transfer the Doctor's program to their own ship and flee. The Doctor finds himself surrounded by simulations of various Alpha and Beta Quadrant species, led by Iden, a messianic liberator with Bajoran visual parameters. The Doctor demands to be returned to Voyager, but Iden insists he repair malfunctions in the hologram crew.

Iden (shown far left) persuades the Doctor to help in repairing the malfunctions suffered by individuals among the hologram crew. Doctor: "I'm a doctor, not an engineer. You've abducted the wrong man." Iden: "You must have experience repairing your matrix." Doctor: "Some." Iden: "Then there has to be something you can do."

To impress upon the Doctor their situation they deactivate him and transfer the memory files from one of their holograms into him so that he better understands their experience as Hirogen prey being constantly recycled (killed then restarted to be hunted and killed again and again). The Doctor accordingly experiences being hunted, tormented by the Hirogen hunter and in agony from being stabbed.

the Doctor experiences being the victim of a tortured kill

Iden wants the holograms to settle on a planet whose environment is impossible for organics. Their holographic programs would need to be sustained by a field generator.

The Doctor returns to Voyager to discuss a proposal for helping the holograms. Considering the situation they are in, Janeway is hesitant to share holotechnology again. This leads to an argument with the Doctor over holographic rights.

Doctor, about the suggestion of restoring the holograms to their original parameters or extracting their violent subroutines: "You wouldn't even be considering this if they were flesh and blood." Janeway: "I'm not going to let you turn this into an argument about holographic rights." Doctor: "Why not? That's exactly what it is."

Their at times heated discussion is interrupted when the Hirogen in the Messhall start a fight and manage to send a distress call to other Hirogen ships. With less than an hour to intercept, Janeway orders Torres and Donik to prepare the deflector to take the holograms offline so there will be no more bloodshed. The Doctor objects to having them deactivated, but Janeway proceeds and contacts Iden, telling him to prepare his people to be transferred to Voyager's database. Iden responds by firing on Voyager. Dismissed from the Bridge by Janeway, the Doctor returns to Sickbay where he secretly contacts Iden, transmitting data about the deflector pulse and Voyager's shield frequencies so that they can beam him off the ship. The Doctor transports over, while Voyager and the hologram's ship exchange fire.

Doctor: "They're counting on you to help them, not deactivate them." Iden does not trust that Janeway, an organic, would ever reactivate the holograms' programs. Dismissed from the Bridge, the Doctor secretly contacts Iden: "I have data on the pulse they intend to use to deactivate you. I think I can help you come up with a defence. I'm transmitting our shield frequencies. You'll need them to beam me off the ship but you have to promise me you won't use them to attack Voyager." Iden agrees, the Doctor beams to Iden's ship, and when Voyager attacks them the holograms create a feedback surge which overloads Voyager's main deflector.

(Events in this and following paragraphs occur in Part 2 of the story.) Thanks to the Doctor's information, when Voyager emits the deflector pulse Iden sends a feedback surge through the beam which overloads the ship's deflector, nearly causing a warp core breach. Then Iden beams Torres over to his ship and escapes, leaving Voyager adrift. Having transferred his program to the ship as well, the Doctor is furious with Iden for the kidnapping, but Iden promises to let Torres go once she has a chance to decide for herself whether or not to help the holograms by working on the holographic generator.

Iden, who is already violently anti-organic beings, becomes increasingly unstable mentally, and destroys a Nuu'bari freighter crew to rescue its holograms who turn out to have only 40 basic subroutines.

the Doctor is horrified when Iden destroys the freighter and the two organic people aboard: "What you can't see is that you've become no better than the hunters."

When Iden's chosen planet is located, a Class-Y planet (known to Starfleet personnel by the nickname "Demon-class") which he calls Ha'Dara, Bajoran for "Home of Light", he and his followers transport down and set about their revenge by hunting the Hirogen just as they themselves were hunted. The Doctor saves the life of a Hirogen by destroying Iden.

Iden insists on killing the downed Hirogen so the Doctor is forced to destroy him. The Doctor then beams to Voyager with the Hirogen.

Back aboard Voyager, the Doctor offers to surrender his mobile emitter, but Janeway refuses to punish him for being as fallible as those who are made of flesh and blood.

Doctor: "I never intended to put Voyager in danger. If nothing else, you have to believe that." Janeway: "I believe it. But if there's one thing I'm sure of, it's that things don't always happen the way we intend."

This is not the first time the Doctor has offered to limit his programming as punishment for his behaviour - in  [#85 Retrospect] he asked to delete the counsellor algorithms following his poor advice to Seven; that request was also refused.

DOCTOR'S LOG:

The Doctor requests a temporary leave of absence because the Ovions (a race of hexapods) have asked him to speak at a symposium on spaceborne pathogens: "There are going to be physicians from all over the quadrant." but Chakotay denies the request as the Ovion system is two weeks in the opposite direction of Voyager's present heading.

DOCTOR'S QUOTE:

Part 1 of the story: Retort to Iden who says killing the Hirogen at the facility could not be avoided: "Really. You'd be surprised how easy it is not to kill someone."

Part 2 of the story: To Iden: "First you kill in self-defence, then you murder in cold blood, now you're going to stage a massacre. So much for evolving beyond your subroutines."