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THE GIFT

Episode 70
Part G

 

As Janeway helps Kes through the ship's corridors towards the Shuttlebay, parts of the ship explode, impeding their progress.

Janeway encourages her. "Come on." Kes: "Captain-" Janeway: "Don't stop."

Janeway taps her combadge. combadge "Janeway to Chakotay. Beam us directly to the Shuttlebay." Kim reports to Chakotay: "The molecules in Kes' body are destabilising. It's interfering with the transporter."

Chakotay, via comms: "Captain, we can't get a lock." Janeway, via comms: "Acknowledged." Contact ends. "It looks like we're going to have to do this the hard way."

Explosions occur and Voyager's hull ripples as its molecular structure starts to destabilise.

Voyager judders. Chakotay demands: "What's happening?" Kim: "The hull is destabilising. The molecular bonds are breaking down."

Tuvok exits a turbolift to meet Kes and Janeway.

Kes' body is in molecular flux. Kes: "I can't keep going."

Tuvok: "I will attempt a mind-meld, to help you delay the transformation."

He starts the mind-meld. "Our minds are one. Our thoughts are one. Try to regain control for a moment, if only for a moment, only for a moment."

Tuvok battles to calm Kes' turbulent mental forces.

But he is thrown back by their strength. Much weakened, he gasps: "You must hurry." Janeway helps Kes away. She is mentally tired now.

Tuvok looks after them as they go. He is mentally drained.

Bridge. Kim: "Hull breach on Decks 3, 4 and 5." Chakotay orders: "Emergency containment fields." Janeway, via comms: "Janeway to the Bridge. Kes is aboard the shuttle. Initiate launch sequence." Chakotay, via comms: "Acknowledged."

Kes' shuttlecraft launches. (pop-up window)

Janeway comes to the Bridge, desperately hoping for the best, for her dear friend Kes and for Voyager. Paris: "Shuttle distance 100,000 kilometres. Speed one quarter impulse." Janeway: "Can you hail her?" Kim: "I've been trying."

Kes' voice comes through the comm. system. "It's happening to me." Kim reports: "Her atomic structure's completely destabilising."

As Kes transforms.....

....her last words to the Voyager crew are: "My gift to you."

She and the shuttlecraft transform and vanish.

Voyager is suddenly hurled through space, apparently out of control. In engineering Torres has to hold onto the railing and the console to stop herself going flying. Via comms: "Torres to bridge. The warp core just came online. Matter/antimatter reaction at 102 per cent, 110 per cent," she is most surprised, "120!"

Paris: "This can't be right." He looks at his instruments. "Our speed is.....impossible!"

Voyager hurtles through space.

Kim: "We're coming apart!" But Voyager does not come apart.

Suddenly the ship slows right down. Paris: "We've just dropped out of....whatever it was we were in." Chakotay: "Systems coming back online.

Janeway: "On screen." They see deep space around them and a beautiful nebula before them. "Where are we?"

Paris: "9 point 5 thousand light years from where we just were."

Tuvok, recovered from his mind-meld ordeal, looks at the viewscreen.

Janeway: "She's thrown us safely beyond Borg space, ten years closer to home." She is very moved by Kes' gift.

Voyager continues the journey toward home.