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SUMMARY: On Earth, Starfleet's project to establish contact with USS Voyager is making no progress until Lt. Reg Barclay comes up with a theory.
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Lieutenant Reg Barclay welcomes to his San Francisco apartment Deanna Troi, friend and ship's Counsellor of USS Enterprise NCC-1701-E on which Barclay also once served. He explains to her how come he has been removed from Starfleet's project to try and establish contact with USS Voyager. |
Recalling events for Troi, Barclay explains how his immediate superior, Commander Pete Harkins, rejected his theory that the new communications array called MIDAS (a loose acronym for Mutara Interdimensional Deep Space Transponder Array) could emit tachyon beam at a class B itinerant pulsar and produce enough gravimetric energy to create an artificial singularity (or wormhole) to act as a conduit for messages between Earth and Voyager.
Cmdr. Harkins |
Lt. Barclay |
The overall head of the project is Admiral Owen Paris, father of Tom Paris Voyager's conn officer. He visited the project for a progress briefing. Against Harkins' orders, Barclay interrupted to propose his theory, but accidentally offended the Admiral, and Harkins orders Barclay to go home.
Admiral Paris with Harkins |
diagram of MIDAS on the viewscreen of the project's lab |
| above and below: briefing Admiral Paris |
Later Harkins discovered that Barclay has been running his own holoprogram in the project's Voyager holoprogram. Barclay has created holographic representations of everyone in the Voyager crew, including Tom Paris. In reality Barclay is diffident and socially-inept, but in his holoprogram he is well-liked and all the holo-crew openly recognise his outstanding and invaluable talents in all areas, not just running the ship but in social activities too. He goes there to relax e.g. playing poker with the crew and even sleeping in quarters there. As a result, Barclay feels confident when within the holoprogram, feeling the holographic crew are his family.
Barclay receives a massage and assurance that he is a valued member of the crew |
Barclay sleeps well in his holographic quarters |
in the holo-simulation of USS Voyager's engine room |
Despite Barclay's protest that he uses his holoprogram to help him solve problems, Harkins was concerned about the excessive length of time that Barclay had spent in the holodeck and feared Barclay had suffered a relapse of past holo-addiction. Harkins did not want to hear Barclay's amended suggestion of a using a smaller wormhole to contact Voyager. He removed Barclay from the project and banned him from the lab. |
picture of Tom Paris (as a Starfleet cadet) which is kept on the desk of his father, Admiral Paris |
Barclay visited Admiral Paris and handed him details of his theory. Barclay needs access to the project's lab for just one more day to prove or disprove his theory. The Admiral promised he will order a review of Barclay's findings and if considered valid would order Harkins to pursue it. |
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| Barclay's meeting with Admiral Paris |
But Barclay tells Troi he does not believe the Admiral will review or pursue his data and said he would just to get rid of him. He asks her to certify him as psychologically fit so that he can return to work and try out his theory, but she refuses to do so - he is suffering acute anxiety, sleeplessness and paranoia, and intends to take time off to spend more time with him.
That night, obsessed with his theory and unable to sleep, Barclay breaks into the project's lab, activates MIDAS and transmits a hail hoping it will reach Voyager.
Barclay interferes with the lab's computer security controls so that it accepts his de-authorised access code, and thus he is able to enter the lab |
MIDAS transmits |
While he waits for results, Harkins arrives with a security team but he flees into the Voyager holo-simulation.
Barclay turns to find Harkins arriving with a security team |
the security guards are isolated and contained by forcefields set up on holo-Voyager |
Meanwhile on the real USS Voyager, sensors detect an artificial micro-wormhole originating in the Alpha Quadrant. Janeway orders a course toward it. They receive Barclay's hail and work to clear up the interference so they can understand it.
Harkins brings the chase to an end by entering the holoprogram and initiating an imminent breach in the holographic warp core. As holo-Janeway orders her crew to abandon ship, Barclay realises he is cornered and ends the program.
Harkins phasers holo-Torres as she tries to prevent him initiating a warp core breach |
holo-Janeway is startled to see intruders in Starfleet uniform entering her Bridge to confront Barclay |
As Harkins and security guards lead Barclay from the holodeck, Admiral Paris arrives with news that he thinks Barclay's findings are viable and should be tried out. Harkins reports Barclay's actions and failure to contact Voyager.
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| the Voyager holoprogram - active and closed down |
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| Admiral Paris faces Barclay, the latter about to see his career ruined |
Before the Admiral can pronounce appropriate disciplinary measures that would end Barclay's career, Janeway's voice is picked up - Barclay has succeeded in establishing audio contact with Voyager!
There follows the first live two-way contact between Starfleet and USS Voyager since the latter's disappearance into the Delta Quadrant. Janeway converses briefly with Barclay and Admiral Paris. The latter promises that Starfleet is doing everything in their power to bring Voyager back, and sends his son a brief but moving message. Barclay transmits data to on how to re-create the hypersubspace technology, so that they can be in regular contact in the future, along with suggested modifications to Voyager's com system, and Voyager transmits ship's logs, crew reports and navigational records.
Janeway: "They're an exemplary crew, your son included." |
Admiral Paris: "Tell him, tell him I miss him and I'm proud of him." |
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Although contact was brief, it is an historic milestone, and both Admiral Paris and Harkins readily give credit where it is due - to Barclay. |
Meanwhile, on Voyager, the crew, their morale hugely boosted by the contact with Earth, celebrates with a champagne toast to Barclay whom Paris designates an honorary member of the crew.
Meanwhile, in Barclay's apartment, Troi congratulates Barclay whose success has boosted his confidence. He is now socialising with at least one member of the project's team, as he reveals that he is dating Harkins' sister-in-law.
 | | BARCLAY TO TROI: I've lost myself, in Voyager. I have become obsessed with Voyager. |
| | ADMIRAL PARIS: I want you to know we're doing all we can to bring you home.
JANEWAY: We appreciate it. Keep a docking bay open for us. |
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