EQUINOX
Episode 120 (Season 5) and Episode 121 (Season 6)
Part D
| Chakotay helps himself to coffee from the flask on the serving counter in the Messhall. He, Kim and Gilmore, all with coffee, sit down together at a table to discuss salvage.
Chakotay: "Before we abandon the Equinox, we should try to salvage any useful components. Let us start with your dilithium crystals." Gilmore: "What we have left of them. I'm afraid we only a few isograms." Kim: "That's barely enough to power the sonic showers." Gilmore: "Can I make a suggestion?" Chakotay: "Please." Gilmore: "Let's forget about the primary systems. They're too badly damaged. Let's focus on supplies. We've picked up a few items that might come in handy. Er, two kilotons of kemacite ore, a dozen canisters of mercurium." Chakotay notes the items on his PADD. He tells Kim: "Tell Neelix to make room in Cargo Bay 1." Kim: "Right." Gilmore: "Could you use a synaptic stimulator?" Chakotay: "Depends. What is it?" Gilmore: "It's a neural interface you wear behind your ear. It taps into your visual cortex and shows you different alien vistas. Just think of it as a poor man's holodeck." Kim: "So that's how you kept yourself entertained. Gilmore: "Beats checkers. The Ponea gave it to us." Chakotay: "Never heard of them." Gilmore: "We called them 'the life of the Delta Quadrant'. They see every first contact as an excuse to throw a party. I wish that we had encountered more species like that. You're the first friendly faces we've seen in months. I'm glad we found you." Chakotay: "The feeling's mutual. Those modified plasma injectors look elaborate. What were you trying to do?" Gilmore: "Er, we were experimenting with ways to enhance our warp drive. It didn't work." Kim: "Maybe we should let B'Elanna take a look." Gilmore: "It won't work. We tried for months." |
 | Naomi Wildman enters the Messhall and comes up to them. "Excuse me."
Gilmore: "Hello there!" Naomi: "Commander, permission to interrupt?" Chakotay: "Granted." |
 | Naomi: "Ensign Gilmore?"
Gilmore: "That's right." Naomi: "Naomi Wilman. Captain's Assistant." |
 | Chakotay and Kim exchange smiles.
Gilmore: "Is that so?" Naomi: "I wanted to officially welcome you aboard the starship Voyager." Gilmore: "I'm glad to be here." Naomi: "If you need anything - replicator rations, a tour of the lower decks - I'm your man." Gilmore: "Thank you, Miss Wildman. I'll keep that in mind." Naomi: "As you were." She leaves the Messhall. |
 | Gilmore: "I didn't realise that you had children on board."
Kim: "Only one. She was born here." Gilmore: "I have a nephew, back on Earth, about the same age. Well, not any more. I guess he's a teenager by now. I probably wouldn't even recognise him." Chakotay: "You'll see him again." |
The comm. signal sounds. 
comms. signal "Ransom to Gilmore."
She taps her combadge. combadge "Yes, Captain."
Ransom: "Report to the Equinox bridge."
Gilmore: "On my way." The communication with Ransom ends. To Chakotay and Kim: "Duty calls." She leaves.
Chakotay: "Assemble a salvage team."
Kim: "Aye, sir."
 | The Equinox's senior officers meet on the Equinox bridge. The schematic and data of the field generator is displayed on the wall monitor.
Burke: "Once we take their field generator we'll part company." Gilmore: "What happens to Voyager?" Burke: "They've got weapons, shields, a full crew. They'll survive." |
 | Lessing: "Maybe we should abandon ship, try to forget everything that's happened here."
Ransom: "A shower and a hot meal. I guess that's all it takes for some of us to forget what's at stake here. We're going home. We can't let Voyager stop us now, not when we're this close." |
 | Ransom: "Now, we're proceeding as planned. Are there any other objections? I need each and every one of you to give me your best, as you always have. Max." |
 | Burke: "This won't be easy. The generator's located on deck 11, next to the warp plasma manifold. We can't get a clean lock without boosting the signal. Marla, we need you to set aside your claustrophobia and crawl through the access port and set up the transport enhancers.
Gilmore: "Understood." |
 | Burke: "We'll have to take the internal sensors in that section offline. Noah, you're elected."
Lessing: "You can count on me, sir." Burke: "I'll disengage the power couplings from engineering." Ransom: "You'll all have time for one last shower. Make the most of it." |
 | Astrometrics Lab.
Seven: "There's a minor power fluctuation in the security grid." Tuvok: "It's within tolerance." Seven: "I believe I can correct it. The discrepancy is in the Equinox research lab. If I can determine the exact frequency of their multiphasic shield I can modify our shield generator to match it." Tuvok: "There are times when perfection hinders efficiency." |
 | Seven: "This is odd. The lab is still permeated with high levels of thermionic radiation."
Tuvok: "It should've dissipated by now." |
 | Seven: "I believe I have an explanation. Three EPS conduits have been re-routed to the lab. It appears they are emitting the radiation." |
 | Captain's Ready Room.
Tuvok: "The lab was contaminated intentionally." |
 | Janeway: "Any theories?"
Tuvok: "Only one: Ransom doesn't want us to enter the research lab." |
 | Janeway: "He has been adamant about protecting his ship. I thought it was simply a captain's pride. I want to take a closer look at that lab. If we close off those EPS conduits how long will it take to vent the radiation?"
Seven: "Several hours." Janeway: "I don't want to wait that long. Send the Doctor. He'll be immune to its effects. Tell him to look for anything out of the ordinary. Monitor his progress from Astrometrics." |
 | Tuvok: "Shall I notify Captain Ransom?"
Janeway: "Not yet. I want to wait until we test your theory." |
 | The Doctor beams into the Equinox's research lab. transporter |  |
 | His communication is being monitored by Tuvok and Seven from the Astrometrics Lab.
Doctor, via comms: "I'm in." |
 | The Doctor looks around. |
 | "I've found the multiphasic chamber. There's some kind of organic mass inside. It appears to be a member of the alien species but its cell structures have vitrified." |
 | Doctor, via comms: "This is more than just a stasis chamber. It's some kind of matter-conversion technology. Hold on. There's a control port here. Hmmmm." |
 | Tuvok, via comms: "Doctor?" |
 | Doctor, via comms: "The chamber contains a polaron grid and a submolecular re-sequencer. It looks like it was designed to convert the alien cell structures into some kind of crystalline compound."
Seven, via comms: "That function was not specified in their schematics." Doctor, via comms: "I've a feeling there's a lot here they didn't specify. I've accessed their research logs. They're encrypted, but judging by the file headings they've performed this procedure dozens of times." |
 | The Doctor finds another piece of equipment. Via comms: "More of the alien compound, but it's been biochemically altered. They've extracted the base proteins. Its molecular structure is most unusual."
Tuvok, via comms: "Can you be more specific?" |
 | The Doctor examines the datafiles. Via comms: "I'm no engineer, but I'd say they were trying to convert this material into a source of power." |  |
| USS Voyager and USS Equinox.
Ransom and Burke discuss their scheme as they walk down a Voyager corridor. A female crewmember passes by. Burke comments to Ransom on the crewmember appreciatively: "I'm going to miss this ship." Ransom: "Once we get back to Earth there'll be plenty of women. Status?" Burke: "Ready on all fronts. The transport enhancers are in place. And Noah's created the subroutine to mask Voyager's internal sensors." Ransom: "Power couplings?" Burke: "Bypass controls have been routed to our bridge. All you need to do is say 'energise'." Ransom: "Janeway wants to bring the security grid online at 1900 hours. We'll have to act before then. Tell the others to be prepared to-" |
 | But as they approach a turbolift, two security guards exit from them and make for them, drawing their phasers. |  |
 | Ransom: "Max." He calmly steers Burke back down the corridor. "The transporter room's not far from here. Keep moving."
But Tuvok and another security guard block their way. Tuvok: "Captain Janeway wishes to speak with you." |
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