FUTURE'S END
Episodes 50 and 51

 

SUMMARY: USS Voyager and its crew are hurled back in time, and must somehow stop a 20th-century computer mogul from causing a 29th-century disaster. hippy Henry Starling, in 1967 In the High Sierras on Earth in 1967 a hippy named Henry Starling is on a camping expedition, but is disturbed by a loud commotion in the sky and investigates. He is astonished at what he finds. A small 29th century Federation timeship named Aeon, commanded by Captain Braxton, travels through a spatial rift and tries to destroy Voyager in order, so Braxton claims, to avert a temporal explosion that will obliterate Earth's solar system in his era caused by Voyager whose hull debris was found there. Janeway refuses to allow ship and crew to be destroyed on the basis of such a short conversation. the Aeon flies toward Voyager from a spatial rift Braxton demands Janeway not resist so that he can destroy Voyager The Voyager crew try to deflect Braxton's attacks, and their effort damage the Aeon, and he is sucked through the rift along with Voyager. they see Earth on the Bridge's main viewscreen Voyager ends up in orbit around Earth in 1996 having sustained damage to systems including the long-range transporters although short-range transporters are still operational. They trace subspace readings that are out of place in the 20th century to in a city called Los Angeles. Knowing Braxton's ship holds the key to returning to their own era, Janeway decides to lead Chakotay, Tuvok and Paris on an away mission to the city. She asks Paris, who is an aficionado of the period, for advice on suitable native costume so that they can blend in with this pre-warp society. She leaves Kim in full command for the first time. At Griffith Observatory, astronomer Rain Robinson detects Voyager's warp emission on her instruments. A while ago she was given that specific signature to look for Henry Starling, owner of the computer conglomerate Chronowerx, who funds the the lab. Accordingly she telephones him and reports her discovery, but he instructs her to do nothing, and is against making a public move such as informing NASA. Rain Robinson rings Starling from her laboratory Henry Starling (screenshot from just after his conversation with Rain) Against Starling's instructions, Rain transmits the SETI greeting to Voyager, thereby allowing the away team to track her to the Observatory. Janeway orders Paris and Tuvok to investigate. They will have to travel there using a Los Angeles vehicle as they cannot be beamed because Voyager would have to approach low in the atmosphere to use its short-range transporters, and they do not wish to attract attention to themselves and risk contaminating the timeline. As Paris and Tuvok head for the Observatory, Chakotay and Janeway track the subspace emissions to a homeless man puting up makeshift 'the end of the world is nigh' posters in the park. They follow him and identify him as Captain Braxton - it was the Aeon crashing that Starling saw. Through paranoid ramblings Braxton explains that the time rift dropped him on Earth in 1967. His ship crashed in a remote mountain range after he escaped in an emergency beam-out. He was unable to retrieve the Aeon or anything from it because Henry Starling found Aeon before him, and utilised its technology to build his hugely successfully computer corporation. But while Starling thrived, Braxton did not and eventually ended up as a tramp and was once institutionalised by the non-understanding authorities. Braxton has spent his decade on Earth deducing that if Starling used the Aeon to travel to the future but did not precisely calibrate the temporal matrix it would cause the catastrophic exlosion in the 29th century. Braxton recognises Janeway and Chakotay, and they confirm his identity from tricorder readings and his Starfleet combadge Braxton shows them a picture of Henry Starling from a newspaper clip When the Los Angeles police arrive to remonstrate with Braxton about his posters, Braxton, terrified of the authorities, flees, leaving Janeway and Chakotay free to take his data. Starling learns that Rain has told people about her discovery. Fearing that Rain is a security risk, Starling sends a henchman named Dunbar to gather her data and kill her. He authorises Dunbar to use the 29th century weapon he acquired from the Aeon. Paris and Tuvok, however, reach the Observatory before Dunbar does. Paris charms Rain while Tuvok secretly downloads her computer's database and erases the hard disk to remove all record of Voyager. Rain surmises these two intruders are responsible for the damage to her computer and she catches up with them as they try to leave in their vehicle. this computer is now completely useless Rain runs after Tuvok and Paris and catch them as they are about to drive off At that moment Dunbar catches up with her, but Paris and Tuvok manage to save her and the three hastily drive off in Rain's camper van. When Rain questions what they are up to, Paris concocts a flawed cover story explaining that they are secret agents tracking a Soviet UFO spy operation, although Rain does not believe him because the USSR as a nation broke up several years earlier. Dunbar fires a 29th century phaser at Rain Rain, Tuvok and Paris in Rain's van Chakotay and Janeway break into Starling's office, where they discover how Starling achieved his success. They note that Starling is responsible for releasing revolutionary computer breakthroughs every few years and that otherwise the computer revolution and the internet would not have happened as it did. They also locate the Aeon and its storage location (next to his office) just as Starling and the armed Dunbar walk in and confront them. Starling says he has been expecting them. Janeway warns Starling not to launch the ship, explaining that it will unleash disaster but Starling ignores her. When Kim contacts Janeway and starts downloading Starling's computer database, Starling threatens to kill Chakotay and Janeway if they do not stop. Realising that he is dealing with a hostage situation, Kim decides to risk Voyager's detection by Earth's authorities and brings the ship in low enough for an emergency transport. They are transported to Voyager before Starling can make good his threat, and Janeway compliments Kim on his command decision. The Voyager crew try to beam up the timeship, but Starling uses his stolen technology to adjust the transporter beam to block them and also to access Voyager's computer and study its systems. He is surprised to learn that Voyager is from the 24th century, not the 29th as he had thought, and therefore, as he sees it, cannot possibly have claim to the timeship. Indeed, he now believes they have come to steal it for their own profit, believing that everyone is greedy and motivated like himself. the rescue Starling steals part of Voyager's database A moment later, Janeway learns that the Doctor's program is missing, and that Voyager's presence is being reported on the evening news. Starling steals the Doctor's program UFO Voyager is broadcast on the evening news This is where, as aired on television, Part 1 ends and Part 2 begins. Paris' and Tuvok's priority is to send a locator signal to Voyager. To this end Paris tries, and fails, to construct a suitable signaller by cannibalising the stereo system from Rain's van. Tuvok then realises that they can utilise the radio dish at the Observatory, with Rain's help. There they contact Voyager. Janeway is in the middle of a staff meeting, where Kim reports that analysis of Braxton's data confirms the conclusion that it is Starling who will cause the 29th century catastrophe. Janeway asks Tuvok if Rain can be trusted. Seeing Paris and Rain becoming good friends moment by moment, and at that precise moment bonding over early 20th century sci-fi comic books, Tuvok says yes. Shortly afterwards, Rain Robinson then telephones Starling and, pretending to be scared of someone who shot at her, demands that he comes to take her to safety. He agrees to come and collect her from a public place, the Metro Plaza. In fact, it is a lure to capture Starling and then somehow to retrieve the Doctor. However, Starling has realised where Rain's loyalties really lie, and he brings Dunbar to the meeting. Starling also brings the Doctor, whom he has equipped with a 29th century mobile emitter which renders the use of holo-emitters unnecessary. The Doctor has already experienced Starling's unscrupulousness and displeasure after Starling, wanting to know more about his enemy, reconfigured his tactile response sensors in order to torture him for Janeway's psychological profile. Starling tortures the Doctor Rain rings Starling and asks him to meet her Having reconfigured the shields on a shuttlecraft to disguise it from 20th century radar, Chakotay and Torres try to beam Starling from the rendezvous to their shuttlecraft. But Starling uses a 29th century tricorder to interfere with the attempt. At the same time, Rain and the Doctor flee, and Dunbar leaves. Voyager is able to redirect the transporter signal to beam him out of the shuttlecraft's transporter buffers and directly to the starship. As he is materialised aboard Voyager, he loses consciousness. Starling tries to prevent his transportation but eventually is beamed to Voyager Starling's attempt to disrupt the beam-out damages the shuttlecraft's controls, sending it plummeting to the surface in the desert where an paramilitary anti-government group takes Chakotay and Torres hostage, thinking they come from the enemy namely the U.S. federal government. the shuttlecraft in difficulties, and plunging toward the ground Porter, the paramilitary leader, with prisoners Chakotay and Tuvok On Voyager, Janeway confronts Starling who is detained behind a forcefield in Sickbay. She realises that he wants to travel in Aeon to steal more future technology, and he refuses to be dissuaded. At Chronowerx headquarters, Dunbar gets into the Aeon and uses a Chronowerx satellite as a channel to beam Starling off Voyager and back to his headquarters. With Janeway still out to stop him, Starling decides that he must travel to the 29th century in the Aeon as soon as possible and instructs Dunbar accordingly. Janeway accuses Starling Dunbar beams Starling off Voyager under the gaze of surprised security guards the Doctor unties Chakotay and Torres Voyager traces the shuttlecraft crash site to Arizona, and Janeway sends the Doctor and Tuvok there to find them, while Paris is sent to Chronowerx headquarters. In Arizona, as government forces surround the extremists, Tuvok, and the Doctor (as a hologram he is impervious to bullets), rescues Chakotay and Torres. Torres sets to work to repair the shuttlecraft. Meanwhile, outside Chronowerx headquarters, Paris and Rain notice a large lorry leaving the premises. The lorry is giving off tachyon emissions - it seems that Starling is moving the timeship to the launch site. They follow the lorry onto an empty desert road. Dunbar uses the 29th century to try to kill them. as Rain and Paris follow the lorry, the driver, Dunbar, shoots at them Paris fires at the lorry and it seems that he has forced it off the road. But when Rain tries to re-start her van after it stops and stalls in the road, they notice Dunbar in the lorry heading straight for them on a deliberate collision course. Paris and Rain hurl themselves from the van just in time. At that moment Chakotay, Torres and Tuvok arrive in the repaired shuttlecraft and destroy the lorry. They then discover that the lorry was giving off fake tachyon emissions and was a decoy. In fact, Starling is at that moment in the Aeon and launching it from an upper storey of his headquarters. Paris fires a phaser at and hits the lorry the lorry careers toward them on collision course Rain leaps from the van the shuttlecraft arrives in the nick of time and destroys the lorry Paris and Rain bid each other a fond farewell. Retrieving him, the shuttlecraft returns to Voyager, where Janeway hails Starling, who refuses to abort his mission. She has no choice but to destroy the timeship. But Voyager's weapons are down. Janeway realises that she has no choice but to arm photon torpedoes manually from within torpedo bay 1, despite the severeinjury to herself that she will inevitably incur. Chakotay arrives on board and takes command from Kim, who quickly briefs him on Janeway's plan. Chakotay sends the Doctor, who has made his first real appearance on the Bridge, to torpedo bay 1 so as to render medical treatment. Chakotay hails Starling, giving him one last chance to abort his journey to the 29th century but Starling refuses. Chakotay gives the order to fire, and Janeway's torpedo burst destroys the Aeon. Starling: "See you....sometime." Chakotay: "Fire!" Janeway fires torpedoes the Aeon is destroyed Janeway, injured but refusing to go to Sickbay just yet, hurries back to the Bridge and asks if there is any way they can re-open the time rift in order to travel back to the 24th century. At that moment a time rift opens and Braxton appears in the Aeon, only this time he is as young as when they first met him. However, with his previous timeline altered by the destruction of Starling, this Braxton says he has been sent by the Temporal Integrity Commission which detected Voyager temporal displacement. He has come from the future to lead Voyager back to the 24th century, where it belongs. Janeway implores Braxton to place them at Earth in the 24th century, but Braxton cites the Temporal Prime Directive which Janeway cannot argue with. She is forced to comply with Braxton's orders. The crew's hopes, having been briefly raised of reaching home, and in the right century, are dashed. Braxton in the restored (or mostly restored) timeline Janeway resigns herself to the fact that Voyager must return to the Delta Quadrant Back in the 24th century in the Delta Quadrant, and once more en route for the Alpha Quadrant, Janeway calls a champagne celebration in the Messhall. The crew finds that they have gained one particular advantage from their their adventures, namely the Doctor has retained the 29th century portable holo-emitter and is no longer confined to Sickbay, and he envisions a greater role for himself in future. at the champagne celebration, the Doctor shows off his newly acquired mobile emitter      CAPTAIN BRAXTON: That's the paradox my dear. A leads to B leads to C leads to A. Juvenile minds. Oh, how can I make you understand, huh? A: there's an explosion in the 29th century. Debris from Voyager's hull is found in evidence. I go back in time to destroy you. B: you try to stop me, disabling my weapon which causes me to crashland back here in the 20th century. C: someone in this century steals my timeship and launches it. They go into the future, and once there they make one critical mistake which causes a temporal explosion that takes us all the way back to A, there's an explosion in the 29th century - the cycle of causality is complete!    RAIN ROBINSON: All this running around you do, your mission, you're so dedicated, you know, like you care about something more than just your own little life.    JANEWAY: You don't care about the future. You don't care about the present. Does anything matter to you, Mr Starling?    STARLING: Captain, the future you're talking about, that's 900 years from now. I can't be concerned about that right now. I have a company to run, and a whole world full of people waiting for me to make their lives a little bit better.