DARKLING
Episode 60
Part A

 

Voyager orbits a planet.

Janeway: "Captain's log stardate 50693.2. We've been in orbit above an outpost of the Mikhal Travellers. This loosely governed race of explorers has extensive knowledge of the territory before us, which they are willing to share."

Inside the lodge, Janeway listens as one of the Mikhal Travellers, Nakahn by name, talks. "I landed my ship on the nearest of those 21 moons, my navigator and I disembarked to star repairs damage was extensive, more than we'd anticiapted, the hours passed, the air grew cold, and with our weapons we started a fire to keep our warm but later in the night we awoke with a shudder, the ground was shaking, a moonquake, what could've been worse? We leapt into the ship hoping tremor would pass but it was no tremor and it did not pass, for it was no moon we had landed on." Janeway: "What was it?" Nakahn: "A creature, a living being so massive it generated its own gravitational field, so immense it supported its own ecosystem. Kes and another Mikhal Traveller, named Zahir, enter and come up to the table. Kes: "Captain." Nakahn continues his story, ignoring the newcomers: "How long had it been lying there dormant, slumbering, until wakened by our fire? Years, centuries-"

Zahir interrupts Nakahn sceptically: "Perhaps even millennia?" Nakahn: "Perhaps." Kes to Janeway: "Zahir is the one I've been working with on the medical supply transfer." Janeway and Zahir shake hands and exchange pleasantries: Janeway: "A pleasure." Zahir: "Returned." To Nakahn: "Curious. I was just visiting the system you spoke of only a few months ago. My ship's sensors picked up no such monster." Nakahn: "Perhaps your sensors were faulty or too busy gazing at your own reflection to look out the window." Zahir: "Our guests are offering supplies we need. In exchange we Travellers are giving them a look at what lies ahead of them. We should keep that view as clear as possible." Nakahn: "This is my lodge. I say what I want and you can go elsewhere." As he speaks he gets out a gun and lays it meaningfully on the table. Zahir bends down and speaks to him quietly but firmly, not intimidated: "I've journeyed to the corners of known space and beyond. I've earned the right to come and go as I please, where and when and how I please. Do you challenge that right?" Nakahn backs down: "No." He gets up and leaves.

Zahir: "Forgive my display, Captain, but my people consider outposts such as this as necessary evils, places to refuel, exchange information and leave as quckly as possible." He puts a chair at the table for Kes and another for himself and they sit down. "If I've observed anything working from Kes, it's her great tolerance, a quality you all seem to share. I regret not being able to demonstrate the same." Janeway: "There's no need to apologise for anything. Our time here has been very well spent, although I could use your help in sifting through that last colourful saga." Zahir: "Moon-size creature or not, the asteroids of that system are rich in vorilium." Janeway: "That might be worth a short detour. Engineering is usually short on vorilium."

Throughout the conversation between Zahir and Janeway, it is clear that Kes and Zahir are much taken with each other. When Zahir looks at Kes she smiles at him.

On the Holodeck, in the Paxau resort program (referred to later in this episode as "tropical resort simultation 3"), two learned figures are engaged in moral discourse. Gandhi: "Men and women should refrain from enjoying each other. By that I mean to say even their mutual glances must be free of all suggestion of carnality." Byron: "Free of passion? One might as well be free of humanity. Do you not agree? Neelix: "I, I think you've both made valid points." Byron: "One can pursue one's creative urges, spiritual urges and physical urges. All have a place in a well-lived life." Doctor: "Thank you, Lord Byron, a classic early 19th century argument." The discourse continues between Byron and Gandhi. The latter gets the last word when he advises taking a cold shower: "It is the finest preventative." Doctor: "I'll keep that in mind."

Kes enters the holoprogram: "Hello, Doctor." Doctor: "Oh, hello, Kes." Kes: "Doctor what's happening in here?"

Doctor: "My personality improvement project. I've been interviewing the historical personality programs in our database - Socrates, da Vinci, Lord Byron, T'pau a Vulcan, Madam Curie, dozens of then greats, then I select the character traits I find most admirable and merge them into my own program." Socrates and the Vulcan T'Pau are playing kal-toh.

In the background, Neelix ends his conversation with Gandhi and Byron. Kes: "What are you hoping to gain?" Doctor: "Improved bedside manner, a fresh prespective on diagnoses, more patience with my patients. I could've used your assistance on this project had you not been otherwise occupied on the planet these last few days." Kes: "I'm sorry, Doctor, but things are going extremely well. The Mikhal Travellers are intriguing. They've been to so many places, done such amazing things." Doctor: "One might make the same observation about you, Kes, or any member of the Voyager crew." Kes: "Maybe it's how they do it that's so impressive. Their ships are small, only a pilot and a navigator. Sometimes they just pick a direction and go. You should come down to the planet, Doctor. I want you to meet Zahir." Doctor: "And who might that be?" Kes: "I've been working with him on the transport of our medical supplies. He's unique." Doctor: "Is he. In my opinion you've become far too infatuated with these Travellers. From the away team reports they seem afflicted with terminal wanderlust, risk-taking thrill-seekers, with no responsibility to the ideals of exploration. In short, bad news." Kes: "Not Zahir. He's more than that." She smiles. Doctor: "I think I'm detecting a reaction to your recent breakup with Mr Neelix. The Mahatma would recommend a cold bath - simplistic, but no doubt effective." Kes looks rather annoyed. Not noticing, the Doctor leaves.

hypospray injection The face of the Doctor and of Torres plus his hand on her knee are not seen simultaneously on tv. I joined two screenshots together.

The Doctor's bedside manner is almost one of a lover out to seduce and he speaks softly, at times rather patronisingly, to Torres. Doctor: "In my preparatory report to the away team, I recall mentioning to you that Klingons lacked an enzyme to metabolise this planet's vegetation. Have you been.....naughty?" Torres: "I had one small salad." Doctor: "So impetuous. Any sharp pains?" Torres: "No." Doctor: "Heartburn?" Torres: "I guess so." Doctor: "There's nothing like a heart that burns." Torres: "What?!?!" Doctor: "Your pulse is lovely. Aha. Mmmm. Does that feel good?" Torres: "Doctor? Unless you want me to knock you into the middle of the next millennium you'd better back off." Doctor, abruptly ending his new bedside manner: "Forgive me, Lieutenant, I appear to have miscalculated." As he goes to the hypospray loader and vial storage and loads medication: "Computer, isolate the recent additions to my program and hold them for review." Torres: "Doctor, have you been messing around with your program?" Doctor: "I would hardly call my effort to improve my performance as ship's physician "messing around"." Torres: "What exactly have you done to yourself?" Doctor: "I've taken character traits from holo re-creations of the mot accomplished figures in history - scientists, poets, philosophers, saints." Torres: "And incorporated them into your program?!" Doctor: "Precisely." Torres sits up and he injects her. "There, that should compensate for the lack of enzyme in your system. You should be fine." Torres: "That's more than I can say for you." Doctor: "How so?" Torres: "You can't just casually add behavioural subroutines into your program!" Doctor: "There's nothing casual about it. I've put a great deal of research into this project." Torres: "Research is one thing. Putting it into practice is something else. Behavioural subroutines have a way of interacting with each other that isn't always predictable. You've got to be careful....." adding pointedly, "or someone might hurt you." The Doctor looks down where she is looking and discovers his hand is caressing her knee! Quickly the Doctor removes his hand. "I see what you mean." Torres gets up to leave: "I will take a look at your program when I finish my shift in Engineering. Shouldn't be too hard to smooth out the rough spots. I'll make you better than new." Doctor: "Thank you, Lieutenant."

The Doctor de-activates his program The Doctor deactivates himself.

After Torres has left: "Computer, deactivate Emergency Medical Holographic program.

Above 3 pictures: the Doctor goes offline.

It is night on the planet Zahir and Kes are taking a romantic walk. Zahir: "It is said this path was cut more than 10,000 years ago." Kes: "By whom?" Zahir: "No one knows. Spacefarers like ourselves. They left very little behind. A few symbols burned into the rocks. Nothing more." Kes: "And what do you hope to leave behind?" Zahir: "I've never asked myself that question. That's what I like about you, Kes. You make me consider alternatives." Kes: "I could say the same about you." They stop to admire the moonlight along the way.

Zahir: "We have a saying: My course is as elusive as a shadow across the sky. My people are peripatetic by nature. We live for the excitement of facing the challenge of space, alone." Kes: "I can see the attraction." Zahir: "And I can see the value of fellowship in one's life, and now that I've observed the closeness that exists among your crewmates, I find it enviable." Kes: "Some kind of compromise might be possible." Zahir: "Compromise. Doesn't that suggest a loss on both sides?" Kes: "Alright then, how about an understanding, a meeting of the minds?" Zahir: "Only minds?"

	Kes: "Is this what you brought me here to see?" Zahir: "Yes, it is." Kes: "Was this left by the same people who left the path 10,000 years ago?" Zahir: "So it seems." Kes: "Can you read it?" Zahir: "My course is as elusive as a shadow across the sky."
	Kes: "Thank you for this."

	When Kes is beamed back to Voyager late at night, she waves and says "Hi," to the crewmember who operated the transporter. And Kes is clearly feeling very happy and content!
Operation of transporter controls. 499Kb. Opens in a new window. Download for 56K modem approx. 90 seconds. The entire sequence is not shown on the tv screen. All that is shown on tv is in the animation.

Above 4 pictures: stages in the operation of the transporter controls

Voyager orbits the planet.

While walking along a corridor operating a PADD, Tuvok notices Kes. Tuvok stops. "Computer, what is the time?" Computer: "0300 hours."

Kes: "Good evening, Tuvok." Kes continues past him but he calls her back with: "It is 3 o'clock in the morning, Kes." Kes: "Yes, it is." Tuvok: "You have an away team report due at 0800 hours." Kes: "I haven't forgotten." Tuvok: "Very well."

Kes enters Sickbay to find the Doctor there working. Doctor: "Well, how are you, Kes?" Kes: "I didn't think anyone would still be working at this hour." Doctor: "Just finishing up the summary analyses from last week's mission." Kes: "I was supposed to do that." Doctor: "Yes, you were." Kes: "I'm sorry. I'll do it as soon as I can." She reaches for the PADD but the Doctor does not let her take it. Doctor: "Although I'm not designed to act as ship's counsellor, I've been programmed with enough psychological knowledge to be troubled by your behaviour." Kes: "I'm a little late." Doctor: "Gallivanting around after hours is beside the point. The fact is, you're becoming increasingly unpredictable, given to swings of mood and emotion. As your Doctor and your mentior I'd be remiss not calling that to your attention, for your own sake." Kes: "Doctor, I know that you care about me and that have my best interests at heart, but everyone seems to be treating me like I'm still a child. I'm three years old now. If I'm attracted to someone it's my business not the whole ship's." Doctor: "I'm certainly not trying to interfere. You can lead your life any way you please." Kes: "I know that you care what happens to me. I won't forget that." Doctor: "Very well. I believe you have a report to finish." Kes: "I'm going to do it right now."

He lets her have the PADD and she goes into the adjacent medical lab to work.