INFINITE REGRESS
Episode 101
Part E

 

Bridge. Janeway: "Report." Paris: "The alien vessel is coming about."

Kim: "They're charging weapons." Janeway: "Shields."

Tuvok arrives in Sickbay.

Doctor: "As if the meld weren't dangerous enough, the aliens are trying to take the Vinculum by force. Commander Chakotay is at tactical. The Captain wants you here with Seven. This will allow me to monitor your neural activity for the duration of the meld. At the first sign of trouble-" Tuvok: "You will do nothing." Doctor: "I beg your pardon?" Tuvok: "There will undoubtedly be many signs of trouble. You must have faith in my ability to endure them." Doctor: "I'll try. I just hope my faith doesn't leave the two of you brain-damaged." Tuvok: "Your concerns have been noted, Doctor."

Doctor: "With all of these new personalities floating around, it's a shame we can't find one for you."

Tuvok: "Computer, deactivate forcefield."

Seven exhibits different personas in rapid succession, including the Klingon male, DaiMon Torrot and Lorot the Vulcan: "Why am I tied to this bed? Please let me go. Pahtk! I'll rip out your throat, coward! Name your price. Ten bars of latinum? Twenty? This isn't medicine, it's torture! I'll sue for malpractice. I fail to see the logic in this meld, Commander." Tuvok commences the mind-meld. As he initiates it, Seven, in her legion of personas, protests even as he speaks the ritual words. Tuvok: "My mind to your mind." Seven: "You are but one mind, confronting thousands." Tuvok: "My thoughts to your thoughts." Seven: "You will not succeed." Tuvok: "Your mind to my mind." Seven: "Let me go. The Borg are assimilating the ship! We've got to evacuate." Tuvok: "My thoughts to your thoughts." Seven: "Listen to me! They're trying to assimilate the ship." Tuvok: "My mind to your mind." Seven: "Let me go!" Tuvok: "My thoughts to your thoughts." Seven: "Mommy. Mommy." Tuvok: "My mind to your mind." Seven: "Mommy." Tuvok: "My thoughts to your thoughts."

Below 8 pictures: Within the mind-meld, Tuvok finds himself inside Seven's turbulent and chaotic mind. A number of her "voices", or personas, try to stop him as he searches for her. He finds it a struggle just to move through the confusion. He shouts her name continuously (seven times in all) as he tries to find her.

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Then Tuvok 'sees' her. For a moment she is the frightened little human girl he 'met' earlier in a corridor. She calls out: "I'm lost. Somebody help me. Please take me away from here. I want to go home. I can't find my-" But then the multitude of personalities seize him, and seize her, and they are hauled off in different directions.

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Tuvok in the mind-meld.

Next 3 pictures: In the mind-meld, a distressed human girl cries out. "Wait, mommy, wait. I don't want to stay here, I want to go home. I don't like it here. Please help me. I want to go home! Please don't go, please don't leave me here." She screams.

Doctor, via comms: "Sickbay to Engineering. How long until the Vinculum's offline?" Torres, in Engineering, via comms: "Two, maybe three minutes." Voyager is hit by weapons fire. "Provided Voyager can stay in one piece for that long."

Species 6339's vessel attacks Voyager.

Bridge. Kim: "Shields down to 60 per cent."

Janeway: "Evasive maneuvers. Target their weapons array."

Chakotay: "Targetting systems are malfunctioning."

Paris: "We're losing power to main thrusters." Kim: "Shields to 35 per cent." Janeway: "Re-route all available power to shields. Chakotay, initiate manual targetting."

Torres sounds the com. signal sounds. Via comms: "Torres to bridge. The Vinculum's stopped adapting. I think the new dampening field is working. We should have it disabled in the next 60 seconds."

The Vinculum.

Computer: "Warning: neuro-chemical synapses are destabilising." Doctor: "Computer, increase power to the cortical inhibitors!" Computer: "Unable to comply. Power transport systems are offline." Doctor: "Tuvok, if you can hear me, we have to terminate the meld. Tuvok. Tuvok!"