LIVING WITNESS
Episode 91 : Part D
The episode's script uses "Revised" for certain characters. I shall do the same.
 | The Doctor and Quarren stand inside the simulation, observing. In the simulation this scenario takes place in the Briefing Room of the Revised Voyager, the Revised senior staff are in the middle of discussing the conduct of the war against the Revised Kyrians. |
 | Revised Paris: "We've already drained two phaser banks and he hasn't hit anything!"
Revised Tuvok: "If you looked at your console once in a while instead of chasing the female ensigns you'd see otherwise." Revised Kim: "Tom's right. This war was supposed to be over in five minutes." |
 | Revised Chakotay: "You have a better idea, Lieutenant?"
Revised Paris: "As a matter of fact, I do: fighter shuttles, a direct assault." |
 | Revised Neelix: "Led by you?" Rudely: "Good luck."
Revised Paris to Revised Neelix: "Watch your mouth, hedgehog." |
 | Revised Chakotay: "I haven't heard a single good idea."
Revised Paris: "Then propose something, First Officer! Earn your rank for once." At this Revised Chakotay punches him. This immediately starts a fight among them. |
 | Revised Janeway, standing at the other end of the table, looks on, unimpressed. The Revised Doctor is standing to one side, not taking part in the brawl.
Revised Janeway: "Gentlemen. Gentlemen!" |
 | She takes out her phaser and fires at the wall-mounted monitor. The sound and bright light of the explosion attract the attention of the brawlers. |  |
 | She tells them: "Save it for the Holodeck. We've got a war to fight. We've only been attacking the Kyrian military installations. A mistake. We should target the general population." |
 | The Revised Doctor turns to Revised Janeway: "Excellent idea, Captain. I've examined the Kyrian genome and they would be vulnerable to any number of biological weapons."
Revised Janeway: "How soon could you have one ready?" Revised Doctor: "Within the hour." Revised Janeway signals acknowledgement and with it her decision - the Revised Doctor's biological weapon will be used. She tells the others: "Dismissed." |
| The Doctor who, with Quarren, is standing in one corner of the re-creation, comments: "Pure fiction. This is absurd."
Quarren to computer: "Halt re-creation." The simulation freezes as the last of the male staff are leaving the Briefing Room. "This is a reasonable extrapolation from historic record but if you'd like to point out any inconsistencies...." Doctor: "Inconsistencies?! I don't know where to begin! Granted this looks like the Briefing Room, but these aren't the people I knew. No one behaved like this, well, aside from Mr Paris. We weren't at each other's throats. We didn't talk about how to destroy planets. We helped people. We were an enlightened crew." Quarren: "Are you denying these events took place?" Doctor: "Yes." Quarren: "Are you saying you never got involved in the conflict between my people and the Vaskans?" Doctor: "Yes, well, no, we did get involved but it was nothing like this." Quarren: "Elaborate." Doctor: "There was a meeting in this room, but it wasn't about battle tactics. It was about a dilemma we were facing. We had negotiated a trade agreement with the Vaskans. We were dealing with a representative, Ambassador..." He tries to recall the name. Quarren: "Ambassador Daleth." Doctor: "Daleth. Exactly. Everything was going according to plan until we were attacked, by your people, the Kyrians. They picked that moment to start a war, and we were caught in the middle." Quarren: "The Kyrians were the aggressors? No, no, that can't be right." Doctor: "Captain Janeway called this meeting to figure out how we could extricate ourselves from the conflict and still maintain the trade agreement with the Vaskans. We weren't on their side, and we certainly never attacked you." Quarren: "Save your objections until you've seen the entire re-creation. Let's continue." |
 | The Doctor is shown the rest of the re-creation, including the moment of Tedran's martyrdom. He watches horrifed as, in the re-creation, Revised Janeway moves to aim the phaser rifle at the back of Revised Tedran's head. With firm resolve, Revised Tedran proclaims: "We will prevail." |
 | Revised Janeway fires, and he falls dead. |
 | She throws the phaser rifle back to the Revised security guard. She tells Revised Daleth: "Don't look so shocked, Ambassador. This is what you wanted, isn't it?" She walks out, followed by her crewmembers. Revised Daleth pauses a moment, stares at the dead bodies, and then stumbles out of the Chamber. |
 | Doctor: "Somewhere, half-way across the galaxy I hope, Captain Janeway is spinning in her grave. You've portrayed us as monsters: the Captain's a cold-blooded killer, the crew's a gang of thugs and I'm a mass murderer!"
Quarren: "Calm yourself." |
 | Doctor: "Why should I? I'm about to be hanged for crimes I didn't commit!"
Quarren: "Tell me your version of events." |
 | The Doctor approaches the re-creation's Revised Tedran. The Doctor looks down at the simulation's corpse. "I remember this man."
Quarren: "Tedran. He was a martyr to our people." Doctor: "Some martyr. He led the Kyrian attack against Voyager." Quarren: "You're lying." Doctor: "I was there." |
Quarren: "You're trying to protect yourself."
Doctor: "And so are you, from the truth. Isn't it a coincidence that the Kyrians are being portrayed in the best possible light? - martyrs, heroes, saviours? Obviously events have been reinterpreted to make your people feel better about themselves. Revisionist history - it's such a comfort."
Quarren is upset and indignant. "We were not the aggressors in the Great War. We were the victims! The proof can be found anywhere on this world. The Kyrian people are being oppressed to this day."
Doctor: "The problems in your society are none of my business. I'm just telling you what I saw 700 years ago."
Quarren: "I don't believe you, and neither will anyone else." He starts pressing controls on the data storage device.
Doctor: "What are you doing?"
Quarren: "Shutting down your program."
 | Doctor: "Wait, please, I, I can prove to you I'm right. The medical tricorder, the artefact you have on display, if you just let me-" |
 | But, now most upset and angry, Quarren closes down his program and the Doctor dematerialises. Quarren states firmly, most indignant: "Lies." |
 | The city during the day. |
 | Quarren is in his office. He moves around restlessly for a moment, troubled. |
 | Then he takes up his work again. "Begin dictation. I've re-examined the data module. From what I can tell the Doctor was telling the truth at least about one thing: he is a hologram, a back-up program. We always knew he was an artificial lifeform. We thought he was an android. If we were mistaken about that, I wonder if we might also have been wrong about Voyager itself. Another question: why would a hologram designed for medical purposes be programmed to lie so readily? From the moment I activated him, this Doctor has insisted that he's innocent. At first I didn't believe him. End dictation." |
 | As he enters the Museum, which again has a number of visitors looking at the exhibits, Quarren is still thinking about the Doctor and his protestations of innocence which, if true, would shake all that Quarren has thought of as fact. |
 | Quarren, carrying the data storage device which contains the Doctor's program, picks up the medical tricorder artefact thoughtfully. He recalls the Doctor's last words about it before he was shut down. |
 | Suddenly Quarren comes to a decision. He puts down the medical tricorder and moves to the control console.
Quarren: "Activate re-creation: the Voyager Encounter. Display medical chamber." The computer does so and Quarren enters. |
 | He activates the Doctor. |  |
| Doctor: "Please state the nature of the medical-" He notices where he is and remembers what has happened. "Oh," says the Doctor with displeasure, seeing Quarren: "It's you."
Quarren: "You've given me a lot to think about." Doctor: "Really? I thought you'd heard enough of my "lies". Quarren: "I judged you too quickly. I'm sorry." Doctor: "What changed your mind?" Quarren: "Time to think." Doctor: "For your information, I don't appreciate being deactivated in the middle of a sentence. It brings back unpleasant memories." Quarren: "It won't happen again." Doctor: "Good. Because if you don't stop treating me like a second-class hologram, I won't co-operate with your investigation. I'm perfectly happy to lie dormant in that data module for a few aeons." Quarren: "I didn't come here to argue!" Doctor: "Then what do you want?!" Quarren: "I don't know. To talk, I guess, about what really happened 700 years ago." Doctor: "Are you sure you're willing to listen to a 'mass murderer' like me?" Quarren: "I'm willing to keep an open mind, that's the most I can promise. Try to understand my point of view. All my life I thought I knew the truth. There was never any doubt." Doctor: "I never meant to throw your beliefs into doubt, but I can't deny what I know to be true." Quarren: "I realise that now, and I want to know the truth, and I want the Arbiters to know it too." Doctor: "Well, the stage is certainly set, but I'll have to rewrite the characters and revise the plot a little. I'm quite adept in the art of holographic programming. If you'll give me access to your technology maybe I can create a simulation of my own - show you what happened." |
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