star trek voyager fic

• Submissions

Stories tagged with: Voyager

CHAPTER 5 “Here we go again,” said Tom. He was seated on Chakotay’s left, in the pilot seat of the shuttlecraft. Tuvok, Torres, and Kim filled out the rest of the party. Ahead of the shuttle, the violet eye of the wormhole loomed large. Chakotay found that the experience of having passed through the aperture […]

CHAPTER 4 Lucy tromped her way along a narrow path through an overgrown field, an irrepressible skip in her step and a giddy smile glued on her face. She had to step high and hold her voluminous skirts up with both hands to keep their fringes out of the wet grass and mud, but if […]

Harry’s speculative gaze flicked between the scattering of poker chips on the table and the cards cupped protectively in his hands. Tom’s foot tapped with playful impatience on the Flyer’s floor as he casually leaned back in his chair to dial an adjustment to the autopilot one handed while his gaze remained squarely on his […]

“Ghuy’cha!” B’Elanna snarled as the flicker of life she’d been coaxing from the plasma coolant systems with an engineer’s equivalent of open-heart surgery sputtered and died. Her hand balled into a fist at the end of her heavy arm, thrusting out. “Try a kick next time.” Tom advised from behind her as she brought her […]

  Captain’s Personal Log, U.S.S. Billings, Stardate 48305.3. As I draw near to my retirement I find my choice of successor aboard ship to be a simple matter. Kate Janeway has been an excellent XO and Starfleet would be mad to pass her up to command the old girl. However, I’ve just received a communique […]

NOBODY’S CHILD by Pat McCoy CHAPTER FOUR – Through the Ranks It felt like it was only yesterday that Patricia had been admitted to Star Fleet Medical Academy and began her studies as a cadet. She couldn’t believe how fast the years had flown by! In spite of all the set-backs and hardships, she had […]

Children of the U.S.S. Voyager’s Crew, 26 years after the ship’s return to Earth   Commander Naomi Wildman (31): Captaincy being considered by Starfleet. Married to Icheb, with one child, Sabrina Wildman.   Miral Paris (26):  Daughter of Tom Paris and B’Elanna Torres. Starfleet ensign. Also considered a prophet, by a small sect of Klingons […]

Son of Jetrel Talaxian Colony Rinax II, April 17 2459, Alpha Quadrant The comm system in Neelix’s office booted up. “Ambassador Neelix, we’re being hailed by Starfleet. It’s the U.S.S. Counterpoint. Should I route it through to you?” Neelix was a Talaxian whom Admiral Janeway, or at the time, Captain Kathryn Janeway, met in the […]

  Chapter 1  Science class was so boring. There was no point in it, I didn’t give a flying shit about cells and how they worked. Mural tapped me on my shoulder from her seat next to me. I leaned in closer so she could whisper in my ear. “Hey Lexi, isn’t he cute?” she […]

• The Original Series
• The Next Generation
• Deep Space Nine
• Miscellaneous
• HitFix: Star Trek
• Trek Writer's Guild
• The Early Days of Fan Fiction on Vice.com 8 years ago
• User Registrations are Back Online 10 years ago
• Registration Issues 10 years ago

Latest Stories

• Star Trek: Phoenix-X – STO Unofficial Literary Challenge #17 – What Are You Thankful For? 3 weeks ago
• Star Trek: Phoenix-X – STO Unofficial Literary Challenge #16 – In Session 2 months ago
• Star Trek: Phoenix-X – STO Unofficial Literary Challenge #16 – Aftermath 3 months ago
• Star Trek: Phoenix-X – STO Unofficial Literary Challenge #14 – The Sound of Q-sic 3 months ago
• Star Trek: Phoenix-X – STO Unofficial Literary Challenge #13 – The Arrival 3 months ago

TrekFanFiction.net is not endorsed or sponsered by CBS Studios Inc, Paramount Pictures Corp or it's associated subsidiaries. Star Trek and it's associated marks are trademark CBS Studios Inc. and Paramount Pictures Corp.

Powered by WordPress and Trek Fan Fiction .

Fanfiction @ Trekipedia

Fanfiction Archive

• Department of Temporal Investigations
• To Boldly Go
• Non-Version 2.0 Stories
• K/7 Archive
• Delta Fleet Stories
• Delta Fleet FAQ
• Delta Fleet Cast
• Delta Fleet Chronology
• Delta Fleet Technical Manual
• Voyager Virtual Season Project
• Thoughts by Thomas Lee
• Communications

“…to seek out new life and new civilizations…”

For five years, the Starship Voyager was stranded in the Delta Quadrant, on the other side of the galaxy. The crew traversed the region on a path back to Federation space, meeting new friends, and making new enemies. They discovered new technologies, enabling them to cut the seventy-year voyage short.

Upon their return, the technologies brought forth by the Voyager crew enabled the Federation to once more take an aggressive role in the exploration of the galaxy, and vastly expanded the interstellar nation’s sphere of influence.

• Challenger (25 Sep 1998) Stardate 213201.2 (Sun 4 Aug 2374): Voyager finds the last thing they’d expect in the middle of the Delta Quadrant – a Federation starship thought destroyed decades before. Meanwhile, Harry Kim and Seven of Nine begin to bond.
• Liaisons (23 Nov 1998) Stardate 213210.0 (Wed 7 Aug 2374): As the crew of the Challenger is integrated into that of Voyager , Janeway has to deal with a brash young doctor who doesn’t like a certain hologram. Also, Seven is taking her new relationship with Harry Kim much faster than he’d like.
• Quentin (13 Dec 1999) Stardate 213404.8 (Thu 17 Oct 2374): Janeway must deal with five Q aboard Voyager – at the same time.
• Breakdown (5 Mar 2000) Stardate 213657.4 (Fri 17 Jan 2375): Voyager helps a generational ship of Varro repair their warp drive. Based upon the television episode “The Disease.”
• Tempus Fugit (2 Aug 2000) Stardate 213861.2 (Wed 2 April 2375): Voyager ‘s future depends on Seven. Based upon the television episode “Relativity.”
• Survival Instinct (4 Feb 2000) Stardate 213149.2 (Wed 16 July 2375): Seven is confronted with her past. Based upon the television episode.
• Voyager Conspiracy (23 Nov 2008) Stardate 214329.2 (20 Sept 2375): Is someone trying to prevent Voyager from getting home? Based upon the television episode.
• Getting Home (5 Sept 1999) Stardate 214321.3 (Wed 17 Sept 2375): Someone has sabotaged Voyager ‘s attempts to get back home, but trying to find out just who is responsible may tear the crew apart.
• Prodigal Daughter (1 Jan 2000) Stardate 214458.7 (Thurs 6 Nov 2375): After two years, Kes returns to Voyager – just in time for the wedding of Harry Kim and Seven of Nine. But Kes’ powers cast doubt on whether this Voyager is actually the real thing, or just an illusion…
• Homecoming (1 Feb 2000) Stardate 214645.0 (Tue 13 Jan 2376): Voyager finally returns to Earth and must deal with the repercussions of the events of their six-year journey, as well as their long absence. Families are reunited, old wounds reopened, and new bonds forged.
• Passing the Time (unwritten) Stardate 214787.4 (Sat 6 Mar 2376): As the USS Voyager comes into orbit of the Dyson Sphere, the bridge crew passes the time by sharing the stories of how they came to be where they are today: the young man who learned what friendship truly means while the quadrant was poised on the brink of war; the student whose life had lost direction, and sought to find it again in Starfleet; the cadet who was inspired by his instructors to join one of the most unpopular institutions in Starfleet; the young med student who learned that she was the grandchild of a legend; the boy who saw the stars and vowed to return; and the young woman who survived five years of hell before she had a chance to redeem herself.
• Marika’s Journey (21 April 2000) Stardate 214875.5 (7 April 2376): Marika, the former Three of Nine, remembers her last days as she lay dying in a grassy field on Bajor.
• Family Ties (8 Feb 2000) Stardate 214836.4 (Wed 24 Mar 2376): Dr. Marcus discovers evidence that her grandfather may yet be alive. Meanwhile, Harry and Annika Kim give birth to their baby on Earth.
• Shattered Dreams ( ) Stardate 215204.0 (Wed 4 Aug 2376): After suffering their second miscarriage, Tom and B’Elanna must try to keep their world – and their marriage – from falling apart.
• Lineage ( ) Stardate 215452.6 (Wed 3 Nov 2376): Based upon the television episode.
• From the Ashes (19 June 2002) Stardate 215597.3 (Mon 27 Dec 2376): A crewman thought long dead returns to Voyager . Based upon the television episode “Ashes to Ashes.”
• Q2 ( ) Stardate 215704.5 (Fri 4 Feb 2377): Q and his son visit Voyager . Based upon the television episode.
• Author, Author (18 Apr 2001) Stardate 215732.3 (Mon 14 Feb 2377): The Doctor works on his new holo-novel. Based upon the television episode.
• Causality (15 June 2000) Stardate 217872.8 (Fri 6 April 2379): Janeway escapes from prison, bent on changing the past, and only Phillips and Gilmore can stop her.
• Reconnaissance (unwritten) Stardate Unknown (2380): Voyager is tasked with a two-pronged mission: return to the Delta Quadrant to make contact with the humans descended from ‘the 37s,’ and look for any clues to the origin of the new threat to the Federation in that quadrant.
• Vengeance (unwritten) Stardate Unknown (2380): Voyager arrives at the world of ‘the 37s’ and their descendants to find the human population still thriving. Shortly after their arrival, an important clue to the origin of the Federation’s new menace is uncovered.
• The Visitor (13 Dec 2000) Stardate 219534.5 (Thu 4 Dec 2380): Janeway receives a visit from an old friend while imprisoned at the Tantalus V Penal Asylum.

Share this:

One Response

[…] You might be interested in my Voyager alt universe fanfic I wrote, then: http://trekipedia.net/fanfiction/v2/voy in reply to walshcaitlin […]

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

• The Voyager Conspiracy
• Shattered Dreams
• Presence of Mind
• Strange Relations
• Thoughts (20)
• Delta Fleet (19)
• Merrimac (2)
• Parallels (5)
• To Boldly Go (1)
• Version 2.0 (25)
• Entries feed
• Comments feed
• WordPress.org

• Show Spoilers
• Night Vision
• Sticky Header
• Highlight Links

Follow TV Tropes

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/FanficRecs/StarTrekVoyager

Fanfic Recs / Star Trek: Voyager

Edit locked.

Proof that the remaining 10% is worth getting stranded in the Delta Quadrant for here... although you really shouldn't.

These are recommendations made by Tropers for Star Trek: Voyager fanfics, all of which have to be signed to stay on the page. Feel free to add a fanfic of your own to the list, but remember to use the template found here .

You can also add to the current recommendations if you want. Refrain from posting Conversation in the Main Page though; that goes in the discussion page.

An index of all Star Trek Fanfiction Recommendations pages can be found here .

• Recommended by Nate the Great
• Status : Complete
• Synopsis: The Borg have abducted Captain Janeway to discuss the Species 8472 invasion. After Kathryn proposes an alliance they attempt to assimilate her. She notices the power vacuum left by the death of the Borg Queen in Star Trek: First Contact and takes over the whole Borg Collective as the new Queen. And that's just the beginning...
• Comments: The story is complete, so you won't be Left Hanging . Be aware that this was written back in 1999, so more recent developments aren't present. The story won a few awards back in the day, including Best of Trek Fanfic. And since Jim had done so many reviews for Delta Blues he knew how to write the characters. If you pay attention you'll find cameos and Continuity Nods from all over the Trek metaverse.
• Recommended by Across The Stars
• Pairing: Janeway/Chakotay
• Summary: Fifty years after Voyager 's miraculous return, long-hidden truths come to light - about a Captain who risked everything to save her crew, and a love story for the ages that defied all odds.
• Comments: Written in late 2000 and finished in early 2001, this epic story of Voyager 's return concerns Jake Sisko as he looks for the woman behind the Starfleet legend and exposes truths long kept buried. One of the best fics in any genre, ever, about a love story for the ages. Disregards the last half-season of Star Trek: Voyager . A must-read for any fan, especially those dissatisfied with the ending Voyager got.
• Recommended by The Cheshire Cheese
• Status : Dead
• Summary: Short, light chapters, delving into how certain characters live with certain experiences that are never mentioned on screen after the episodes in which they occured. The first chapter focuses on Samantha Wildman's thoughts about her daughter really being a "duplicate." The second focuses on Tom Paris' thoughts about the three offspring he sired with Janeway in "Threshold," and how it may have contributed to B'Elanna's fear of him abandoning her.
• Comments: Sadly, this fic is unfinished, and likely never will be. However, these two chapters are a must-read for any fan who is very interested in the characters of "Voyager." The author manages to take the notoriously absurd ending of "Threshold" and turn it into a serious piece of literature.
• Summary: A short story focusing on Janeway's feelings after "Tuvix." Janeway confides in Chakotay with her moral dilemma, and how she rationalized what she did to Tuvix.
• Comments: A must-read for any fan who was disturbed by the ending of the episode "Tuvix." This story provides a much-needed closure for the episode, that makes Janeway's actions more acceptable to the audience.
• Recommended by Bucco Babe , Tropers/Esteis
• Status: Complete.
• Synopsis: A "braided novel" of eight stories and novellas. Too sprawling (in the grand sense) in scale and reach to reduce to a mere synopsis; let us just say that this is Voyager unfettered and red in tooth and claw, such as Paramount with its nice tidy pander-to-the-demographics mentality could only dream of producing. Faith, community, alienation and belonging, honest conflict between Maquis and Starfleet, and the realities of life far from home and safety.
• Begins during series season two, and events from that point and earlier continue to play a part in the stories. Only moved into an alternate timeline because it was being written as the series aired, and the authors found it too difficult to maintain continuity when a stray televised remark might undo extensive plot developments.
• Both writers are keenly aware of how culture, psychology, and intentions can interact so that every situation means different things to different characters. The series is worth reading for the character writing alone, including the non-point-of-view characters.
• Pairing(s): Janeway/Chakotay, Paris/Torres, Kes/Neelix
• Tags: Alternate Universe
• Recommended by Buran
• Status : Dormant
• Synopsis: In the author's own words: Once upon a time, I had an idea for a little side project. I thought it might be fun to rewrite the pilot episode of Star Trek: Voyager as a novella-length story, keeping the basic plot elements and characters, but taking a totally different approach to it, sort of a "If I had been Voyager's executive producer" project (with a side of "If we had a motion picture budget" and "If we were on a premium cable channel instead of a broadcast network").
• Janeway starts the story as a science lieutenant.
• The Kazon are made into truly interesting and threatening villains while keeping their basic hat as space pirates.
• The Caretaker and the Ocampa are initially far more enigmatic.
• Comments: Sadly unfinished, with no new posts since December 2012. Nonetheless I highly recommend reading it. It grabs you by the throat and doesn't let go. The space battles are easily as good as anything from Ender's Game, while still feeling like they belong in Star Trek; there's real conflict between the Starfleet and Maquis crews; the cast get to be badasses while maintaining excellent characterisation. While there's some foul language that's uncharacteristic of Trek, it works for the story rather than being out of place. This fic is what the show could and should have been had the writing been firing on all cylinders.
• Recommended by ErikModi
• Status : Active
• Synopsis: A series of haiku based on each Voyager episode (thus far up to " Distant Origin "). Some humorous, some heartfelt, all seeking to capture the love of Voyager in haiku form.
• Recommended by raffitz
• Synopsis: A re-telling of Star Trek: Voyager's first season with two major changes: First, the Voyager senior crew who survived the trip to the Delta Quadrant is reversed, leaving Commander Cavit, Lieutenant Stadi, Doctor Fitzgerald, Lieutenant Honigsberg, and the unseen chief science officer (Zandra Taitt, from Star Trek: The Next Generation) alive, but leaving the crew without Captain Janeway, Tom Paris, or Harry Kim. Second, the Maquis ship pulled into the Delta Quadrant wasn't Chakotay's, but rather a newly-"acquired" Maquis ship, captained by the former Lieutenant Ro and a different group of Maquis.
• Comments: It captures the best of Berman-era Star Trek without all the problems associated with it (Berman's hostility towards queer representation, for instance). The changes between alternate Voyager and the canonical ship serve at times to highlight the choices and character of the characters, other times to show what Voyager could have been like without the constraints of a TV budget, and also to explore wholly original concepts. Often all three at once.
• Recommended by Big T
• Status : Dead (last updated March 2016)
• Synopsis: A combination Continuation and Fix Fic , this one picks up halfway through season 7, after the episode "Shattered", in order to override the panned ending of the series. It lasts 3 seasons.
• Synopsis: A pure Continuation of Voyager, resolving what happened to the Borg, Section 31, while allowing a new enemy and explaining the actual purpose of Voyager's mission in the Delta Quadrant. It wraps up the story in a much more compelling way, resolving nearly everything the fans complained about.
• Comments: The best of the virtual seasons, this one is actually completed. It lasts two seasons, as you would expect, and is even "reviewed" on FiveMinute.net . It also really doesn't break continuity, at least with onscreen canon. If you found the ending of Voyager unsatisfying, this will fix you up.
• Pairings: Paris/Torres, Paris/Kes, Kim/Linnis
• Synopsis: Years after "Endgame," an elderly Tom Paris visits the Guardian of Forever, to ask about an alternate timeline. Accompanied by his daughter Miral, and Harry Kim, Tom watches scenes play out from the "Before and After" timeline, and compares his possible future with Kes to his "real" life with Torres and Miral.
• Comments: This is one of the only fics out there that deals with comparing Tom's possible family with Kes to Tom's "real" family with B'Elanna. Paris/Torres shippers may be saddened at the beginning of the story, but will probably feel uplifted by the end. This story is not too long, and can be read in one sitting.
• Recommended by JBC 31187
• Synopsis: After the Borg invade again, the Federation and the Alpha Quadrant declare war. Admiral Janeway leads the united fleet against the Borg juggernaut, no matter what the cost. One Federation commander and his followers begin to question Janeway's judgment after the Borg counter-attack, but there's more at stake than even the Alpha Quadrant.
• Comments: A series of stories that takes place after Janeway successfully waged a one-ship campaign against the Federation's most feared enemy, the Borg. The main focus is on the war and its cost. The stories discuss many things, such as: the Borg agenda, what they mean by "improving the quality of life for all species" (and how some may be attracted to that), daily life for non-Borg in the Delta Quandrant, why the Q are wary of the Borg, and that one time Paris and Janeway turned into lizards.

    Humor/Parody Fics 

• Genre: Humor/Parody
• Synopsis: One of the oldest and greatest "Voyager" parodies out there, "Coronary" spoofs the various plot-holes and cliches used in the show; the idea being that the author wants to give the nitpickers a coronary. This is actually a series of "episodes," that start while Voyager is still in the Delta Quadrant.
• Synopsis: Captain Braxton and Lt. Ducane's adventures aboard the timesihp Relativity, as they travel to various points in "Star Trek's" history. Realizing he and Ducane lack a crew for their time ship, Braxton recruits dead officers from past centuries (by beaming them up seconds before they are killed, so as not to disrupt the timeline), and collects some other wayward misfits as well. The gang ends up including Tasha Yar, Jadzia Dax, Damar, Xaronna (wife of Annorax), Kes, and many more.
• Comments: Inspired by "The Voyager Coronary" and hosted on the same site, one can expect the same cartoonish, raunchy humor. Though this starts primarily as a "Voyager" spoof, "Series ?" ends up spoofing all five "Star Trek" series, and several other sci-fi shows (including "Farscape," "Spaceballs," "Babylon 5," and "Star Wars.")
• Recommended by Terrace
• Pairings: Torres/Paris, Harry/Seven
• Genre: Humor
• Synopsis: It's taken some time, but the Doctor has finally determined why things on Voyager are so weird. Short answer, it's Neelix's fault, but not intentionally. Slightly longer answer, everyone was high as a kite ever since the events of "Caretaker" because Neelix's species gives off pheromones that make other races act irrationally, and they've been exposed to it almost constantly for over six years. Now the crew of the Voyager have to pierce the fog of their drugged-out memories and determine what was only a hallucination, and what actually happened ...
• Comments: HEARTILY seconded—the author turns an inconsistent and sometimes incoherent show into an endless mine of pure comedy. Openly inspired by SF Debris , Talon uses SFDebris staples like Mad Scientist Janeway and original ideas (such as Harry Kim being a walking incarnation of James Bond-esque masculinity when not around Neelix's pheromones ) to ruthlessly yet affectionately parody Voyager's root problems and most cringe-worthy moments. Even "Threshold" is entertaining! Also, the treatment of Kes and the holodoc as the only sane people on the ship for 6+ years makes perfect sense in hindsight.
• Recommended by Unicorndance
• Pairing: Just the canonical Paris/Torres. Janeway/Chakotay gets Ship Tease 'd but it's made explicit that they're not a couple. A bazillion other ships get lampooned.
• Synopsis: Inspired by Zelda 12343 's fic "Dear Fanfiction Writers: TOS Style!". When Voyager makes a connection to the Alpha Quadrant, they find that there's one of those irritating temporal anomalies in the way, and they've connected to something they'd never expected... And they have something to say.
• Comments: A variation on the common fanfic plot "Dear Fanfiction Writers", which have the characters complain to the writers about how they're written. It manages to be hilarious but keep everyone in character, Janeway in particular. Definitely check it out if you're sick of the cliches like improbable shipping and Neelix hate.
• Recommended by Agent_B
• Status : Ongoing
• Genre : Humor/Parody
• Synopsis: A trouble magnet Starfleet Intelligence Agent finds himself on the USS Voyager. Hilarity and complexity ensues.

    Shipping Fics 

• Recommended by N_Dreiling
• Pairing: Seven of Nine/Samantha Wildman
• Synopsis: This 4-parter explores how some events in the show's final 4 seasons may have gone had Seven of Nine entered a romantic relationship with Ensign Samantha Wildman.
• Comments: While the main focus is on the couple, other changes are made to the Voyager canon for the purposes of the story, including but not limited to having the Talaxian/Haakonian War be a war of choice that Neelix objected to rather than simply being a deserter, Harry Kim remembering the "Year of Hell", Jaffen deciding to go with Janeway at the end of the "Workforce" two-parter, and Chakotay dying in "Friendship One" rather than Joe Carey. In addition, the author came up with a creative way to explain the Borg's Villain Decay in the series proper, rather than taking the more common fix fic route of making the Borg threatening again. If anything, he turns the Borg's Cosmic Faceplant (to use an SF Debris term) up to 11 . This also sets up an excellent Precision F Strike for Seven of Nine . Borg Queen: We have lost many of our voices, but they will be replaced. A newer, stronger Collective will rise. The Cybermen failed. You failed. And your crew will be the first of my new drones. But not you yourselves, no. You, Captain Kathryn Janeway, and you, Seven of Nine, will be the last act I take as the emotional, petty, being the Cyberman virus left me. As my last bit of spite before I return to being what I was always meant to be, a creature of logic, a part of a hive mind, will be this; I will decorate my central alcove with your bones! Seven of Nine: Yeah, fuck you too.
• Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
• FanficRecs/Star Trek
• Star Trek: Enterprise
• Star Trek: The Original Series
• Fanfic Recommendations

Important Links

• Action Adventure
• Commercials
• Crime & Punishment
• Professional Wrestling
• Speculative Fiction
• Sports Story
• Animation (Western)
• Music And Sound Effects
• Print Media
• Sequential Art
• Tabletop Games
• Applied Phlebotinum
• Characterization
• Characters As Device
• Narrative Devices
• British Telly
• The Contributors
• Creator Speak
• Derivative Works
• Laws And Formulas
• Show Business
• Split Personality
• Truth And Lies
• Truth In Television
• Fate And Prophecy
• Edit Reasons
• Isolated Pages
• Images List
• Recent Videos
• Crowner Activity
• Un-typed Pages
• Recent Page Type Changes
• Trope Entry
• Character Sheet
• Playing With
• Creating New Redirects
• Cross Wicking
• Tips for Editing
• Text Formatting Rules
• Handling Spoilers
• Administrivia
• Trope Repair Shop
• Image Pickin'

Advertisement:

Voyager Stories

291 Stories

• kathrynjaneway

• startrekvoyager

• thenextgeneration
• deepspacenine

• startrekfanfiction

• reincarnation

• tyesheridan

• sevenofnine

• captainjaneway

• timedisplacement

• fategrandorder

• New threadmarks

Follow along with the video below to see how to install our site as a web app on your home screen.

Note: This feature may not be available in some browsers.

• The tagging system on SpaceBattles has been overhauled to make it more useful for organizing and filtering content. A new age of tags is upon us!
• If you are interested in interactive stories, check out our Quests section! With Quests, readers get to make choices that affect what happens next after every chapter.
• Eiyuden Chronicles, spiritual successor to the legendary Suikoden JRPG series, features a special shout out to SpaceBattles ! The game is out now on PC and consoles.
• We've got some fresh new Awards that you can gift and enjoy: The Artistry Award and Tearjerker Award have arrived !
• Creative Works
• Creative Writing

Inspired Voyage (ST: Voyager / SI)

• Thread starter SIDoragon
• Start date Oct 2, 2019
• Tags star trek star trek voyager self insert

A/N: This started as a simple thought experiment, and just sort of snowballed from there. I've...

• Season 1 - Episode 1: Caretaker (part 1)
• Season 1 - Episode 1: Caretaker (part 2)
• Season 2 - Episode 7: Cold Fire (part 1)
• Season 2 - Episode 7: Cold Fire (part 2)
• Season 2 Continues - Episodes 7 thru 14

Recent threadmarks

M. NightShujinlan

• Mar 15, 2020

three strikes is now in effect. Due to the sheer amount of reports and general misbehaving this thread has been generating on a regular basis, we will be adopting a three strikes rule. It is as follows: On your first strike after this mod post, you will be given a 3-7 day threadban. Second strike is two weeks to a month threadban. Third strike you will be removed from the thread permanently. The normal rules of SB apply along with one addition. You should be familiar with this one, it had been pinned previously. Canon complaints including canon!Janeway is still taboo. Don't derail. In case anyone needs reminders. Here is a rule guide for the Creative Writing Subforum. Here are the rules for Spacebattles in general.  

• Reader mode
• Threadmarks

Dragon of Story and Song

• Oct 2, 2019

A/N: This started as a simple thought experiment, and just sort of snowballed from there. I've been passing it back and forth with good buddy PublicLee Speaking who has been a wonderful help in smoothing out the concepts and giving it a direction. If you haven't read any of his stuff yet, please do so now because he is an excellent writer. It has been a good ten years since I last wrote any Trek fiction, so this will hopefully be a good time and fun read. The first two chapters are written and ready to be posted, and more should soon follow. And with nothing left to add, lets get into the story. Inspired Voyage Star Trek: Voyager ​ Season 1 - Episode 1: Caretaker March 2371 I woke up feeling worn down and sore, feeling like my head had been slapped around a few dozen times by a heavy mallet. My eyes could be glued closed for all the effort it was taking in opening them. The last time I'd ever been this out of it was after a third consecutive night terror a year ago, and I could feel that old familiar sinking feeling as 'dread' and 'fear' fought a war against me with their good allies 'hyperventilating' and 'blind panic.' My arms and legs moved, barely, but it was still progress. Experience was telling me that the sleep induced paralysis would eventually fade, it would just be a very unhappy minute of struggling as my various muscles decided to turn back on. Glacially slow, my eyes finally started to open. I squinted against the glare of the overhead lights, fighting to focus…wait, why are there overhead lights? My bedroom has a ceiling fan with three bulbs, not a dome that was backlit! And with that small realization, my mind snapped into total focus. Adrenaline flooded my veins as ice-water traveled down my spine, sweeping aside the mild paralysis as my fight-or-flight instincts began to scream "find a weapon, you asshole!" at me. Wide eyed and awake, I tried to take in my surroundings. I looked to be in some kind of hospital room? I was on one of three beds along the wall, with a quick glance showing me that they were unoccupied and thus no longer important. There are two circular spaces inside this small hospital room; one behind glass and the other open with another bed inside it. The room behind the glass looked to have a desk and chair, so I'm guessing it was a doctors office, but why did it look so familiar? The white walls were offset by a pale blue carpet and the dull pink of the beds, although the oval room with one bed looked to have black walls with yellow lights for some reason. In fact, why did this whole room look so familiar to me? I've never been in it before, but I could almost swear I've seen it before. I noticed an odd beeping sound above and behind me, and glanced back to see a monitor panel that was obviously keeping track of me. It was difficult to read, but also just as familiar as the damn room. I shook my head, fighting to review my recent memories and work out how I got here... ...wherever here was. Looking back down, I noticed for the first time that I was only wearing some very soft pajama-like pants, the blanket on top of me hiding away the rest of me. Granted I'm used to sleeping like this, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised I woke dressed like this, but since this isn't what I was wearing when I went to bed that means someone stripped me... "Mr. Shepard?" a man said, stepping into view as he appeared from the doctor's office. As my eyes dart to him, I blurt out, "Robert Picardo?" as I recognize his face and bald head. The man, nonplussed by my outburst, quickly recovers and walked up to my side while waving a small device over me like this was an episode of Star… ...FUCK...I'm still dreaming aren't I? This is a weird fucking dream. Why would I… "Ouch!" I flinch back from the man as he looks at me dispassionately. "You are, in fact, not dreaming." Blinking, and rubbing the spot he had just pinched, I can only offer, "Oh, sorry. I assume I just said all that out loud?" "You assume correctly," is his prompt reply. "You appear to be a little disconcerted. What is the last thing you remember?" I have to force myself to tear my eyes away from the man who played "The Doctor" on Voyager , but manage to do so by rubbing my eyes and shaking my head slowly. "Last thing I remember, I went to bed last night. Where am I?" The man finishes his 'scan of me' and stands there by the side of my bed. "You 'went to bed' nearly a week ago. You are currently in Voyager 's sickbay. You are the last one to wake from what transpired aboard the Caretaker array." If I felt worried bordering on concerned before, I was now officially on the edge of full-fledged terrified. He went on, "You were displaying some unusual neural activity, likely as the result of whatever it was that the alien did to all you, but seeing as you were in no danger and for all intents seemed to simply be asleep, Captain Janeway and I decided to wait and allow you to wake naturally. Of course, we didn't expect it would take this long to do so." "Now that you are awake, I'm going to inform the Captain. She wished to speak with you before you were discharged. I recommend you lay back and try to relax, it may take some time before she comes to see you." the man finished, looking me over for a moment before walking back into his office and tapping his hand to the shiny badge on his chest. God damn it. **** God damn it all to hell. I'm on Voyager ! After I lay my head back down on the pillow, things started to come to me. Explanations, I think, but in the most roundabout way possible. I started having flashbacks to things I've done, like filling out a certain CYOA that I had been curious about. I had been curious about a week ago and filled out a v1 form for WORM, and now I'm stuck with this shit. I couldn't have picked Endbringer, or chosen to act as an Emperor of Man or a Psychokinetic, no I had to be an idiot and pick Inspired Inventor as my power. I am much more familiar with the v5 CYOA and would have loved to have had some of those builds I had made. My favorite build would have allowed me to turn into an Endbringer at will and use its abilities to pump out technological wonders, but no, I had to end up with this v1 piece of shit. Worse, it had been nerfed to hell and back because whatever had brought me here seemed to think "hard mode" was still too easy. Tinker 12? Forget it, you aren't actually a Tinker. That was removed. Five charges each day? Nope, I start with a total of 10 charges, and earn a charge point for each week I survived. Oh yeah, I can only hold 10 charges at a time as well, so there is another downside. And instead of getting the ability to McGuyver nukes out of a plasma screen television and a microwave oven, I simply gain knowledge. If I wanted to turn into a discount Bakuda, I would have to drop points into explosives and engineering just to build the bombs, then I would need physics, chemistry and whatever else was required to replicate her effects. All that to say, I will need a long, long, long time to do anything. Sure, if my different themes overlap then their knowledge will stack, building off of each other and integrating perfectly. And all fields of knowledge are open to me, so I can learn anything from martial arts to political science, and everything in between, but you have to know what you need to know. And I need resources to build anything. Resources that are going to be rare on a ship stuck out in the middle of nowhere! That is the main power covered. The secondary power of 'Invictus', however, might actually be more useful on this wonderful voyage of the damned. Things like distress, or panic, should mean very little or nearly nothing to me. I'm supposed to be able to undergo any disaster without batting an eye, ignore pain, remain mentally untroubled by even the most terrible trauma, and fearsome odds won't give me pause. The fact that I was having a panic attack when I awoke means I must have been really freaking the fuck out. But the ability to throw off mind control like it was an irritating fly can only be a good thing. Especially in a universe where mind-controlling aliens in a real thing. At least I hope I can throw it off. Only way to know for sure is to be put into that situation, and I'm fairly sure I don't want to risk that. The real question mark is what the hell good 'Blank' is going to be? Protect me from Q? Okay, on second thought 'Blank' might be my most valuable power. Maybe. Well, on that note I decided now was a good time to sit up on this bed and stretch my sore arms and back. I could see the Doctor glance at me from his office, but other than looking to make sure I didn't actually leave the bed, he seemed content to let me proceed with my bed yoga. This is certainly going to take some getting used to. Fuck. I'm a reincarnation. Which means I've lived out an entire life up until this moment. The circumstances were supposed to be entirely under my control, but without being able to make any major changes to the setting. Everything from this point forward is up to me, but what did I do before I got here? I could feel something starting to work its way forward from the back of my skull, but if it is memories or just motion sickness, I'm not sure. Sadly, my introspection is interrupted as Sickbay's door open and the woman who can only be Captain Janeway marches into the room like someone on a mission from God. She doesn't spare a glance at the EMH Doctor, and instead walks right up to me and all my shirtless glory. Why do I not feel self conscious about that? Oh right, Invictus. "Commander Shepard?" are the first words out of her mouth. My mind immediately prompts me the image of a smiling Krogan called "Grunt," and all I can think is that whatever brought me here has a sense of humor. That is quickly followed by roughly twenty five years of memories and experiences flashing into my head so fast and hard that I have to grab my skull to keep it from spinning. Holy shit whatever brought me here was lazy. It basically stole my Mass Effect character creation. I remember growing up in a Starfleet family. My childhood was filled with memories of time spent on ships and stations all across Federation space as they were transferred from one posting to another. We never stayed in one location for more than a few years. Following in their footsteps, I enrolled with the Academy. John Shepard, dad, was killed during the Cardassian War a few years ago. Hannah Shepard, mom, is looking forward to seeing me in San Francisco - she just made Admiral. I spoke with her just before I got on Voyager . We were planning my birthday next month... Rather than join Starfleet, I was recruited to join a different organization. During the War, a mission went wrong and I was trapped behind enemy lines. I managed to overcome and survive physical and psychological stresses that would have broken most, and survived while the rest of my team fell. I was the sole survivor of that mission, and they promoted me for it. I can hear someone calling my name, and when I look up I see the Doctor standing over me waving a medical tricorder. Janeway is standing next to me, concern mixed with curiosity on her face. The Doctor gave a small nod and said, "You seem to have low blood sugar. That would explain the sudden wave of dizziness." He stepped to the side for a moment, grabbing a hypospray and adjusting the dosage for a second, before stepping back and jamming the device to my neck. A soft hiss followed, and he took a step back to add, "Rather than ignoring the symptoms next time, speak up and tell me before you pass out." "Thanks, Doc." I mutter, but he nods and steps away to head back into his office. Janeway takes a step forward and smirks at me before declaring, "Lets try that again. Commander Shepard, I'm Captain Kathryn Janeway. Welcome to Voyager . Now, who are you and why are you on my ship?" I furrowed my brow at that. "You obviously know who I am. You just used my name and rank." "And frankly that is all we could get off the computer." She declared, her eyes narrowing dangerously at me. "We have your name, rank, age and serial number. That is it. No records of your history, background, last deployment, nothing." I thought about that for a moment, and as the answers came to me I frowned in resignation. This was going to get tricky, and I had to play along until they offered up some knowledge that I shouldn't currently have, but I might make my way through this minefield. With a sigh, I offered, "Please, Captain, call me Branden, or just Shepard. I don't like formality very much. And before we continue, I need to know if Lieutenant Tuvok has been recovered along with the Marquis you were ordered to capture." That got her attention. Janeway crossed her arms in front of her chest and shifted weight onto her backfoot. "How do you know about that? Our mission was classified, as is the Lieutenant's mission." I sighed, deep and long, "Please, Captain. It will make things simpler to explain and keep me from repeating myself later." There was a short pause as she seemed to mull things over in her head, before Janeway tapped her comm badge and declared, "Janeway to Lt. Tuvok. Please report to Sickbay at once." "Thank you," I offered, but she didn't respond. Instead the Captain just stood there and waited while I went back to stretching my arms and shoulders. Almost two minutes of silence passed before the doors to Sickbay open and I see Tuvok stroll in and walk towards us. I was wondering why the door hadn't closed yet, before I then see Chakotay quickly step inside move to his Captain's side. I try to keep the groan from escaping, since this will just make things more difficult, but it is difficult. "Reporting as requested, Captain." Tuvok says before standing at ease and waiting to see what this is about. I can see the small quirk of his eyebrows that say he is curious, something I've learned after working alongside Vulcan's for many years… Fuck, this memories are integrating quickly. They will be useful, so I know I shouldn't fight them, but damn is that disconcerting to suddenly have decades of experiences moved to the forefront of my mind. "Now," Janeway begins, bring me back to the moment, "care to explain what this is about?" "Captain," I start, forcing a frown and adding an edge to my voice, "why the hell is a Maquis wearing a Starfleet uniform? And why is he wearing the rank of First Officer? What happened to Cavit?" Chakotay looks surprised, and maybe a little insulted. Tuvok is indifferent as expected. But Janeway looks to the floor for a second and then back at me with what I can only say looks like sympathy. "Shepard, you obvious know about our mission to the Badlands so I'm not going to get into that right now. Just listen carefully." At my nod of agreement she continues, "Seven days ago, this ship was pulled from the Badlands into Delta Quadrant. Several members of my crew were killed during that violent hurtle across space, including my first officer, helmsman, chief engineer, and the entire medical staff. Furthermore, crew of both this ship as well as the Marquis vessel were abducted upon our arrival and subjected to a painful three-day medical examination conducted by the being who brought us all here, the 'Caretaker.'" "After he was done with us, he returned most of us to our ships. Two of our crew, B'Elanna Torres and Ensign Harry Kim became ill after the experiments and the Caretaker sent them to the Ocampa homeworld for care and medical treatment. To get our crew back, Chakotay and I put aside our differences to locate them and find a way home." Janeway sighed, frustrated, and continued, "Turns out the Caretaker was dying, and he didn't have the energy to send us back home while he was also sending a massive stockpile of power to the Ocampa. After the Caretaker died, we planned to use his technology aboard the Array that brought us here to send us back, but a hostile species known as the Kazon made that impossible by attacking us. Rather than allowing the Kazon to seize the Caretaker's technology and upset the balance of power in the sector, I made the decision to destroy the Array." Chakotay spoke up then, his voice clear but a little shaky. "My ship, the Val Jean , was destroyed in the battle with the Kazon. My surviving crew was transferred to Voyager , filling vacant positions and pulling our resources. We've sworn to serve under the Captain, and run this ship like a Starfleet vessel." "At maximum speed," Janeway picked the story back up, "it will take 70 years to get back to Federation space. Of course, no starship can maintain that speed for so long. Nevermind we have only so much fuel. More likely the journey would take a hundred years, maybe more. So we will keep an eye out for advanced technology and other methods of getting home faster." There was a long silence that followed that revelation. And I have to admit, even knowing all of this already, intellectually, hearing it spoken with such reverence and somber attention made it so much more poignant. I could hear the years spoken in such a way that it felt like a hammer was beating on my chest. I looked at the floor, nodded slowly, and took a moment to pretend to be internalizing the information. "Captain," I slowly started, bringing the three Starfleet officers out of their own thoughts, "pull up my service record and enter my real serial number, 19-Espsilon-099. The record you can see is just a placeholder." Janeway nodded to Tuvok, who walked over to a monitor near the door and began tapping commands into it. A few moments later, the Vulcan's hand came to a sudden stop as he read my record. After a minute of silence he stepped into the Doctor's office, grabbed a pad, and brought it back to the monitor to copy the information down, and then cleared the screen. As he handed the pad to Janeway, an impatient Chakotay blurted out, "Well? Who is he?" Rather than answer him, Tuvok remained quiet and simply looked at his Captain who was reading over the data with a growing look of concern even as her eyes widened. After another minute of skimming, Janeway pried her eyes from the pad and looked at me to ask, "Is this true?" I knew what she was referring to, it was the same question asked each time that mission report was read. I just nodded and said, "Every word. I don't know if your computer has the full report or just the summary, but it happened." Chakotay finally had enough and raised his voice to demand, "Who the hell is he?" Tuvok turned to the First Officer and calmly declared, "A superior officer." "This is Commander Branden Shepard," Janeway answered, "of Section 31." Funny how things work. Section 31 has always been somewhat comparable to the Romulan Tal Shiar or the Cardassian Obsidian Order. We are effectively the Black Ops branch of Starfleet Intelligence. A secret buried so deeply that only Admirals and Captains even knew of our existence. Starfleet's dirty little secret. Old ingrained habits from years of command snapped the Maquis into a perfect rod-straight attention. It was a shame Starfleet didn't do salutes, his would have been textbook. I sighed, both a little over dramatic for show as well as a little genuine, and then spoke up, "Don't do that. I'm the equivalent of a Starfleet Captain, but this is Janeway's ship. I'm just a passenger." Tuvok looked pointedly at me then. "Which begs the question, why are you on Voyager ?" "Because by now I was supposed to be back on Earth," I answered. "I was on DS9 when Starfleet Intelligence got some new intel for you. Since Voyager was supposed to be retrieving you and heading back to Earth, I was going to just be a passenger after passing on my message. The only person who was going to know I was here was you, Lieutenant." "Intriguing. What information could have been so important that it needed to be delivered as soon as I had been retrieved?" the Vulcan asked. I pointedly looked at Chakotay, waiting a moment for someone to realize and tell him to leave, but when they didn't I accepted it as their decision and declared, "We received confirmation that the Maquis agent known as Seska isn't Bajoran. She is in fact a Cardiassian agent." That got everyone's attention, so I added, "I suppose it is too much to hope that she died on the Val Jean ?" Next thing I know, I'm feeling a fist impact my jaw and I'm falling off the medical bed. When the stars clear, I see Tuvok holding Chakotay against the Sickbay wall, and the Doctor is standing over me with his scanner running over my head again. Chakotay is yelling, "You lying son of a bitch! I've known Seska for more than a year and she hates the Cardassians! Hell, her knowledge of Bajorian tactics is how we managed to survive all this time!" The Doctor helped me sit up, so I replied, "Seska has been an intelligence operative for the Obsidian Order since 2361. In 2367 she underwent surgical operations to transform her physiology into that of a Bajoran so she could infiltrate their resistance. After the Occupation ended in 2369, Seska was reassigned to spy on the Maquis. And like any member of the Order, she is trained to play the long game. Tell me, Chakotay, how soon after she joined your group did you begin sleeping with the enemy?" The First Officer began a new round of swearing but was swiftly cut off by Janeway yelling, "Enough! While I'm inclined to believe my First Officer, I also know the reputation of Section 31. And if Starfleet Intelligence says she is Cardassian, I have to at least entertain that possibility." The Doctor stopped his scanning for a moment to helpfully add; "Seska is one of the few former-Marquis crewmembers to have not come to me for a physical as requested. If she is a Cardassian, a simple blood test would be more than enough evidence." Chakotay stopped his struggling and declared, "Fine, bring her in and test her blood. Then we'll have the truth-" "I recommend," I interrupted the Marquis, "catching her off-guard. If we call her to sickbay, she could try to run. Send a security team to escort her." "Run where?" Janeway asked, eyes raised at me. "We are 70,000 light years from home." Tuvok answered for me. "Most species react badly to having their secrets uncovered. They do not react rationally." "Plus," I added, " Voyager has two shuttles and a Runabout. She has had several days to establish her own plans for evac. Personally, I would order your security officers to simply stun her and use the teleporter to bring her directly here." "I refuse to treat someone as guilty until they are proven so," the Captain snarked. She tapped her badge and called, "Janeway to security, please send a team to escort Seska to Sickbay." **** I had originally decided to hold off on putting any Inspired Inventor charges into anything just yet, and at first I was glad to have shown that restraint. Thanks to my Reincarnation and life up to this point, I had more than six years of Starfleet Academy training working its way through my mind, as well as an additional six years of combat experience and field command running operations against the Cardassians, Romulans and most recently intelligence gathering runs on the Dominion. And isn't that weird as fuck. All this knowledge and experience that I have gathered over my life, and at the same time it is all just so new and interesting. Add on top of that the bacon bits of knowing in broad strokes what is going to happen in the next few years in the Alpha Quadrant. Kind of glad I'm not on Earth, to be frank. I remember the first time I saw Earth from space. I was just six years old and had followed my parents to Earth to visit some extended family. Like a pilgrimage of sorts, most humans on the transport gathered around the port-side messhall window and pushed their children to the front so they could get a good look. Me and a dozen other kids saw Earth for the first time, the home of humanity and birthplace of the Federation, and we're left with a feeling that could only be called a religious experience. Hannah, mom, told me that her parents had done the same thing to her, and they went through the same thing at my age. At the same time I also remember watching the live feeds from the International Space Station on youtube. Taking a moment to shake the disconnected memories out, I went over and over what I now know once more. From the Academy I learned how a warp drive works, from experience with 31 I learned how to kill a dozen men with an overloaded phaser buried in the dirt like a landmine. On starships I hung around the gold shirts in engineering, learning how to build warp coils for fun, and on a classified mission in the neutral zone I learned that Romulan warbirds can't come to a full stop nearly as quickly as they may need to. With a deep sigh, I sit up from my new bed and swing my legs over the side, looking out the window of my quarters. We weren't currently at warp, so I took a moment to simply enjoy the view of strange, alien stars that would have been impossible to see on Earth. The ship was currently undergoing some minor repairs that occurred during the apprehension of Seska. As soon as security had found her and asked for Seska to follow them to Sickbay, she had known her cover was blown. So she called out a simple command to the computer, a simple script command she had thrown together as soon as she was on board, that caused most of the ship to freak out. Warp Core began to overheat, and that threw all of Engineering into a tissy. Propulsion and navigation soon followed, and that was an exciting time to be in Sickbay when all of the gravity plating shut down on the entire deck at once. Thankfully, none of this was too dangerous as people were in place to handle it. All Seska was doing was attempting to escape, and hadn't managed to make it more than a dozen yards before a second security team that Tuvok had insisted on cornered her. Rather than risk capture, her Cardassian training kicked in. Seska took the easy way out, rather than risk giving up her secrets or being marooned on a M-class planet as I was going to propose to Janeway. I knew the captains morals wouldn't allow for summary execution of a spy. So, eventually her corpse arrived in Sickbay. A quick blood test proved that Seska had been Cardassian all along, and I got to enjoy watching Chakotay turn nearly green before he rushed out of the room. Last I heard, he was calling a meeting of all the Maquis on board to let them know. Brave of him, not entirely smart, but brave. That left me alone with Janeway and Tuvok. Both of them seemed at odds with how to proceed with me, in their own way. Tuvok, for example, seemed to be perfectly fine with the situation. I was Starfleet Intelligence, I just brought him vital information that could have saved the ship in the long run, and more than that I was a trained soldier who can help protect the crew. Janeway, on the other hand, I suspect was more pensive about allowing someone on board who found it easy to take the violent route first. This is post-Borg pre-Dominion War Starfleet I'm dealing with, which means military minded operations are one of those things you do "over there" somewhere where no one can see what is happening. Starfleet is about exploration and science, but 31 is all about doing whatever is necessary to protect the Federation. That means removing people, theft, and blowing up things. And in my opinion, that is exactly what is going to be needed in the Delta Quadrant. Since they had no idea what to do with me for the moment, and the immediate concern has passed, the security team escorted me back to my quarters on Deck 4. For some reason, I don't think they liked me, judging from their stiff expressions and unwillingness to talk to me, but I'll try to not let that get to me. It has been a long week for everyone here, and I'm not exactly making things any easier. Okay, so, since I have a charge cap and I don't want to go to sleep and miss out on gaining a skill point back, I might as well use one or two now before turning in. Then again, I suppose there is no reason why I can't do that while I'm taking a bath? Ten minutes later I was immersed in a tub of hot water, safe in the security of knowing that every drop of water will eventually be sterilized and consumed as drinking water. Under normal situations the water would be replicated, and then returned to the replicator after I was done. From energy, turned into matter, and then back into energy. But every starship had a water reclaimer system built into the life support systems, to be used when energy resources were scarce. Such as now, when we are 70 years from a known trade port. It just made recycling easy and convenient. So, relaxing in the water, I leaned my head back and decided it was time for a test run. Only question was, what should I try to learn? Most things that I would immediately need were already "programmed" into me from my life. I could go down to engineering right now and calibrate the warp core. There were even a handful of things I knew that would be useful to ship security that is already in use on Section 31 vessels. Which left the question of what do I want to know, that could be useful, that this ship of the damned can't learn? What would Shepard do? Huh, now that is an idea. Why focus on Star Trek technology when I can learn anything? So how about something from Mass Effect instead? I mean, my first name is still my own at least but whatever the hell brought me here chose to name me Shepard. Maybe that was a hint? Mass Effect: Omni-tools, 1 charge. Son of a… My brain went into overdrive as it began to literally download information from an endless sea of data. In a single, infinite, moment I was intimately familiar and aware of concepts that would have been foreign to me just a moment ago. And since the amount of useful information given to you by Inspired Inventor does deeper as the concept you spent the charge on gets narrower, and I chose a very specific thing, I could literally walk into a workshop and begin building these damn things. And on my god would Omni-tools been useful in this universe. Multipurpose diagnostic and manufacturing tools, as well as computers used for a variety of civilian and battlefield tasks as complicated as hacking, decryption, or repair. Higher-end omni-tools can even be used as straight up weapons. Flashlight, scanner, repair systems, dispenser for medi-gel (something else I might need to 'invent'), camera, communication systems, miniature replicators… Holy shit, it is building on top of my Star Trek knowledge as well. In the Academy you had to learn how to repair basic replicators since they are so vital as well as dangerous. And my knowledge of omni-tools integrated that knowledge without even skipping a beat. They can also be very effective melee weapons. I've never even heard of Geth Juggernauts using omni-tools before, but I now know that they commonly use them to create energy pulses and to drain enemy barriers. Hell, Alliance infiltration units used a cryo-blade to flash freeze opponents flesh on contact. Holograms are also nothing new to Starfleet, so having a holographic interface in the form of an orange gauntlet appear when activated should be easy to adapt to. Plus, they could prove to be deadly surprises for opponents who expect a disarmed person when we hand over our phasers. Because this is Star Trek and eventually someone is going to be caught off guard on a planet's surface without a weapon. At least I'll be able to give something to Captain Janeway when she comes back around to speak with me in the morning, because I know she will. I would in her position. She'll want to know what I can do for Voyager now that we are all alone out here on the opposite side of the galaxy. What can I do? I can prepare this ship for war with the Delta Quadrant.  

Season 1 - Episode 1: Caretaker Part 2 March 2371 Waking up the following morning was something of a learning experience for me. On the one hand, the persistent hangover-like headache and muscle pain that I had been vaguely aware of from the previous day had vanished, leaving me with a clear mind and more focus. On the other hand, I was already on the floor and working my way through a set of pushups before I knew I was doing them. Apparently my new old life had some interesting habits associated with it. And that was more than just a little disturbing. I stayed in the plank position for a good thirty seconds while I tried to come to terms with what was happening and why. Mostly I just held the position and tried to not freak out, as memories of doing this exact same routine for the last six years flooded into me. Something else I'm going to have to get used to, I guessed. Random memories. Not sure how comfortable I was with that, but I'd have to get used to them. Didn't really have a choice. After collecting myself and calming down, I finished the set of floor exercises, might as well , before walking to the replicator panel on the wall and seeing what was on the menu. It turned out that the machine was shut down, but a quick visit to the restroom got me the glass of water I was craving. Problem, meet solution. Halfway through the door separating the restroom from the rest of the guest quarters, which frankly was more than a little like a small apartment, I reached up to the doorframe on a whim and began doing pull ups. I had always been strong, in my previous life, but pull ups had always been one of those exercises that had been impossible for me to do. I couldn't help the broad smile that graced my face, or the little giggle of glee completely at odds with what my new old memories said I'd normally do, when I effortlessly pulled myself up off the floor and let my legs dangle out in front of me. I was up to twenty pull ups before I let myself drop to the floor and started shaking my head in wonder. At least I could admit this body was in good shape, although I did wonder if that would make me stand out too much. From what I remembered from the shows in my previous life, and from what my memories from this life are feeding me, most humans in Starfleet were physically average. Not too strong, not overly muscular, and with a significant amount of focus on cardio. Then again the most physically demanding thing people in Starfleet ever did was "run away." Had an over-reliance on starships made humanity weaker? I'd noticed that my arms were larger than most people's legs on this ship, and my natural height had carried over between universes to leave me towering over most crewmembers, so I supposed I'd be a good example of the difference between ground and space combat. For most missions with 31, if you are engaged in ship-to-ship combat then you have seriously screwed up somewhere. The point is to get in, get out, and not be seen. Then again, my new old memories, and my memories of the show, never showed 31 agents as that muscular. Maybe it was just a difference in philosophy between the two very different settings and not strictly about the organizations? Star Trek was all about peaceful negotiations, playing things safe even as they explored the frontiers of space, and relying on transporters to turn any major conflict into ship-to-ship action. It played into an optimistic view of the future. Meanwhile, Mass Effect had a lot more hostile negotiations, dealt with dangerous wildlife and pirates as just something that routinely happened, and exploration was often performed from behind the barrel of a gun. It didn't attempt to portray a utopia, and instead showed a galaxy that might be, when you have many different races all existing at the same level of technological development - a collection of interests working for their own gain. I supposed that means if the Alliance was an analogy for Starfleet, then Cerberus was an analogy for Section 31. We certainly did have a similar preference for assassinations, sabotage, and questionable technology. Stopping that line of thought before I began to slide down that rabbit hole, I took a seat on the floor and crossed my legs. I'll admit that in my old life I once had a bit of an anger issue, especially when I was young, but, of all people, my art teacher in high school talked me into considering meditation as a way to deal with my issues. Certain stresses at that time of my life had been getting to me, impacting my educational and social life, and so I tried the exercises, found what worked, and eventually made it a part of who I am. Was. Am. Certainly helped lead me to a more relaxed life as an adult, and heaven knew I needed to deal with what has happened to me sooner than later if I didn't want to explode on something, or someone. So I straightened my back, took a slow deep breath, and focused inwards. It felt different than it had before I arrived here. My usual mental space had always been a void, black and endless, and I found the emptiness to be conforming. It was like wrapping yourself in a blanket that blocked out everything else but was cool to the touch. That same void was there, but I was no longer completely alone. There was an orb of some kind, white and warm, about the size of a golf ball, directly in front of me. I reached out for it, touched it, and felt a jolt as all the information I had acquired yesterday rushed into me. Clarity came with it, telling me exactly what I knew, as well as what I didn't. I could physically see where the gaps in information would be, pathways where improvements, offshoots, and derivative technologies would be developed, as black spaces in the branching stream of information, making the beginnings of a grand web. With this new clarity came disappointment. Yes, researching omni-tools from the Mass Effect universe the previous evening worked as expected; I now knew how to construct one. If I had the spare parts and equipment common to that universe to do so, that is. It wasn't that much of a hurdle in the long run, it just meant I would have to spend time designing the tools and parts I'd need before scanning them into the replicator to make as many copies as I needed. Not a problem. No, the real issue was what I didn't learn. For example, how to program the subsystems to make it useful. I'd learned how the develop the code for the device itself, but not for the variety of things it could be used for. It was like knowing how to make a cell phone, Operating System and all, though only the bare minimum to function. It could make calls, but if you wanted to play chess you would have to also develop the app for it. Same for the calculator, calendar, wireless internet connector and everything else we took advantage of those handy little devices for. That is where I was with the omni-tools. I could make the hardware, but the apps were another issue. So, making an omni-tool with built in tricorders and all the other various tools would be challenging. My Starfleet Academy training hadn't covered the basics of writing the code that made a tricorder work, nor building them from scrap, they focused on reading, maintaining and repairing them. That required the more specialized training you got if you took followed the Operations scholastic tree. Unfortunately, my reincarnation was more interested in weapon systems, combat strategies for both ground and space, and specialized defenses, not programming. On the other hand, this wasn't an impossible situation. I could learn what I needed by using my power, paying for it with precious points, or I could learn how to program my omni-tool through more traditional means. Considering how good the ship's computer systems were, I might be able to just ask it to load in the code necessary once I have the hardware in place. Then it would be a simple matter of making sure the interface was user friendly and the information collected was accurate. That would be something I'd l have to run past the engineers and have them double check for me once I had a prototype ready. I pulled away from the orb of information, frowning in thought, as I considered these seemingly arbitrary restrictions that have been put on me by whatever cosmic joke stuck me here. Oh, I could probably use this gift to instantly learn how to construct Iron Man's suit of armor, but more than likely wouldn't get the necessary information for an arc reactor to power it because it was technically not required to make the suit function at minimum requirements. You could power one of those suits by hooking it up directly to an alternate source of energy, it would just make them less useful, and I could forget about the Jarvis AI helping me as well. Most likely I would have to pay extra for each system, several points might have to go into the suit's arc reactors alone since it was technically an outgrowth of the original, much larger, piece of technology. Then again, Voyager 's warp drive most likely could out produce any energy produced by an arc reactor by several orders of magnitude, and even if I wanted Iron Man's armor, it most likely wouldn't be very useful for me or the crew until I could mass-produce the versions designed for operations in space. No, I'd started down a particular tech tree, so I might as well see my way through it as much as I could before I needed to branch out. That way they'd all work together, and I would hopefully only need to figure out how to make them interface with Voyager 's computers once. What I was going to get from this tree was limited, Gods knew that most of the tech in the Mass Effect universe runs on a unobtanium-like Element Zero. So, unless it is possible to replicate or synthesized Eezo in the trek-universe, most of the technology of that setting would be useless to me. Robotics, body armor, omnitools, and that might just be about it. Maybe medi-gel. The ideas for some Trek versions of the technology, on the other hand, could be useful. Maybe some time later, when things calmed down, I could shift focus to Genetics. I never agreed with the idea of humanity shying away from a technology that could solve ninety percent of its problems. Just because humanity was pulled into a third world war, which was going to happen anyway based on the way things were going at the time, didn't mean the idea of augments was inherently a bad one. It just meant that the technology hadn't been perfected yet. Nearly every other species in the Federation used genetic engineering to some degree, but if a human was found to have had it used on them to do anything more than remove a genetic disease (so long as it wasn't a germline replacement), then that person was hit with a stigma by their peers and a possible prison time by the government, even if they hadn't wanted it or it was done before they were born. It's what would have happened to Dr. Bashir on DS9. Even with the Dominion War in full swing, Starfleet took the time to get involved and almost locked up the man just because his parents got him some minor enhancements to make up for poor genetics when he was a child. That being said, genetic enhancements would be a valuable but slippery slope to climb. Everything would have to be reviewed by the Doctor and would also require me to show that I knew a hell of a lot more about an incredibly stigmatized field than I really wanted. Not only that, it would require the Captain and crew trusting me. Based on what I could remember, which I must admit wasn't that much as almost ten years had passed since the last time I'd watched Voyager , I knew the crew of this ship would need help. If things happened as that had on the show, people will die, and there won't be many opportunities to replace the missing crew. After all, only the truly desperate would be willing to abandon all they knew and live on a starship full of strangers for the rest of their lives with no hope of ever going home. Those that do won't be the kind of people who will take well to Starfleet rules and regulations. Robotics could be an answer to the problem of labor, but once more I just didn't see that happening. It's already impressive that an Intrepid-Class starship, something the size of an aircraft carrier that normally carried thousands of people, was run by just a hundred and forty. Hell, the ship could, and would, still run with half that number. I couldn't imagine the materials needed to build a dozen T-800s would be difficult to find in your average asteroid field, I didn't remember anything unusual about their components, but people would still get worried. With the Federation's history of homicidal AI's, anything that appeared to house one was an issue, and their design would make everything worse. With Replicators, normal robots weren't needed for construction, so the crew wouldn't even be comfortable with the concept of mindless machines. If I wasn't careful, that fear could eventually lead to me being left behind on some moon one day. Nodding internally, my choice seemed to be made for me. I would have to stick to small improvements for now, earning trust and building a good reputation with the crew. I would have to pick what skills I wanted or needed very carefully since I could only hope for fifty points a year to accumulate. And becoming an expert in something may take a fifth of that. A tone at the door shook me out of my thoughts, and I looked up from the floor to call out, "Enter!" To say I was surprised to see Tuvok enter my quarters while carrying a serving tray with an obvious plate of something hidden under a stainless steel bowl alongside a glass of water, would be an understatement. As he stepped inside, I rose to my feet and gave him a respectful nod, but stayed where I was until he had placed the tray on my bedside table and moved a respectful distance back towards the door. Before I could say anything, the Vulcan looked at me and raised an eyebrow. "When I entered, what were you doing on the floor?" Glancing over at him, I smirked as I replied, "I would think, of anyone on board, you would recognize meditation." "Curious. While I know that Humans are capable of meditation," the man explained, "It is uncommon to find one of you who practices it. You may be one of only three or four people on board who do so." As I walked to the tray of food, I smiled at the Vulcan. "That might be true, but I'm not going to begrudge those who don't. It is a useful art and I can think of a lot of people who could use a little more centering." It wasn't difficult to notice he was keeping himself between me and the exit, but I decided I wouldn't call him out on it. "Thank you for bringing me something to eat, Lieutenant." "You have likely noted by now that your room's replicator is disabled," He stated factually. "We are currently running on limited power, and so to conserve energy we have temporarily disabled replicators for the entire crew. Ration packs have been distributed for the time being to make up for the shortfall, but if you wish for something a little more...adventurous, you can find one Mr. Nelix working in the kitchen." I raised an eyebrow at the head of security, new world knowledge clashing with old for a moment as I choose how to respond to that. "I wasn't aware that Intrepid-class starships possessed kitchens. The mess hall is supposed to just have a series of replicators and that is all." "Indeed," he answered, eyebrow twitching slightly just enough for me to recognize as irritation. "Much to the surprise of many, and without prior permission, Mr. Nelix took the space normally reserved for the captain's private dining room and converted it into a small kitchen." "That must have been a joy to discover," I laughed softly. "Exactly how many code violations did this spontaneous new room receive after the engineers went over it?" "Plenty." Was all he would say about it. I removed the cover from the tray, seeing something that looked like scrambled eggs, except it was red and seemed to have the consistency of cardboard. I took a small sample bite of the concoction, and started to cough. Between fits of gasping, and sipping water, I managed to choke out, "I suppose I don't want to know what it is made from?" "Presumably, no." was the immediate reply. "But I have been assured by the Doctor that it is safe for general consumption." "I'll take your word for it." With that I put the top back over the plate and turned to look at the Vulcan. "So, I have to ask, but is it really necessary to keep me locked in here like a prisoner?" Tuvok arched an eyebrow and stated, "To the best of my knowledge, you are not a prisoner. Nor is this the brig." "Right," I drawled out. "That's why security has been outside my door all night. And why food was brought to me by the head of security." He tilted his head ever so slightly to the right as he answered in his usual clipped voice, "I brought you food, because I knew you had not left your quarters, and I am to escort you to Captain Janeway once you have completed your meal. The guard detail on your quarters is due to the fact the Maquis crew would by now know of Seska's death and might seek to blame you. They are there for your protection. Mr. Shepard." I didn't quite believe him, but it wasn't worth fighting about. I was about to meet the Captain anyway and get this all sorted out, so going along with this might be the best thing to do. Taking another bite of the food, this time doing a much better job of not being overwhelmed by alien spices, I looked back at the Vulcan and asked, "So how is Chakotay holding up? Is he blaming me, or himself?" Cocking his head ever so slightly to the side once more, Tuvok replied, "It is not my place to speculate on the mental state of the ship's First Officer unless there is a medical emergency." "Fair enough." I accepted. "I just hope that he can put the situation behind us. We'll likely be working together in the future." After a moment's pause for thought, he replied, "I have worked with and known the Commander for some time, and have seen him put aside his disputes with others for the good of his mission. I believe he will do the same once more should there be no further antagonization." I nodded in understanding, finished my last bite of food, and cleared my throat with a glass of water. "Well, if I'm going to see the Captain, I should dress the part." "A temporary uniform had been placed in your wardrobe prior to your dismissal from Sickbay." Tuvok helpfully informed me. That was a good thing to know, since all I remember bringing onboard were my civilian clothes. When I checked the closet, I was more than a little surprised to find what was basically a blank uniform. It was just like any other crewmembers on the ship, but instead of a red, blue, or yellow shoulder stripe it was grey. Section 31 uniforms were a uniform black, but they also didn't look much like normal Starfleet uniforms since they weren't an acknowledged part of the Federation. Usually you just wore what was required to play the role you were assigned. I stepped into the bathroom for a moment to change, and exited a few minutes later with a stretch as I moved around to get used to the material and how it hung on me. With a gesture, Tuvok led me out of the room waved away the two security officers who nodded at the two of us and walked away. The journey that followed was one of silence. I saw a few people walking the halls, some carrying repair kits or datapads, and they all looked busy. We traveled up a couple of hallways, stepped into the turbolift, and exited a moment later on Deck One where Tuvok led me to a door on the starboard side. The Captain's ready room. After we were granted leave to enter, I could see Janeway sitting behind her desk nursing a cup of coffee in one hand while the other was holding up a datapad. Something I just didn't understand was why everyone insisted on using those pads. Pads are very useful if you need to be mobile, or share information away from any wireless connections, but since almost one hundred percent of all data is kept on the ship's main computer network, why not just use the perfectly good terminal on your desk and access the data there? "Captain, I have escorted Commander Shepard as requested." Tuvok announced unnecessarily. Janeway didn't look at us, or do anything else to acknowledge she heard us, but it was obvious she had. Purposely ignoring someone is a standard technique used to establish dominance and show who is in control of the situation. She was already in charge. I honestly didn't care about who was in command of who on this Love Boat, as long as I could get a lab to work in, so all this posturing was pointless. All she succeeded in doing was making the Lieutenant and I stand at attention for a prolonged period, and wasting everyone's time. Eventually, she broke her silence and announced, "Thank you, Mr. Tuvok. That will be all." He nodded to her, turned, repeated the action towards me, and stepped back out. No sooner had the doors hissed closed behind him did Janeway look up and declare, "You are something of a problem for me, at the moment." With no way to respond to that, I just remained standing at attention. From what I remembered of her, she'd be looking for anything to criticize to gain an upper hand, her first tactic having been useless. She looked back at the pad in her hand, "I've just been going over your service record in more detail, or at least the portions that I have access to. Argus Array information retrieval in 2369 is an interesting footnote to be added to the history books, since without that the Peace Treaty of 2370 would have been very different. As would the various operations you ran on Bajor, Cardassia Prime, Arawath and a half dozen others." "I think my favorite mission in your file has to be the Kriosian rebellion," Janeway sneered, almost hissing between her teeth as she continued on. "A Klingon tributary planet along the Federation border, and not only did Section 31 find out that it was the Romulans who had been supplying the weapons to the rebels there, killing innocents, they then began to funnel more weapons to the planet while you personally led the locals in a series of operations to force the Klingons into granting them their independence." The silence following that declaration stretched out, broken only by the sound of Janeway taking a drink of her coffee as I still stood at attention. Another unexpected benefit to my newfound athleticism was I found no trouble holding this position. After nearly a minute, she asked, "Well, do you have nothing to say?" "May I speak freely?" I asked, and almost hoped she wouldn't agree. When she gave me the nod to proceed, I said, "Argus was a simple data mining mission. The station was also a target for the Cardassians. We knew they would be there soon to destroy it, and that it would take too long to get the information if we went through official channels." "As for the Kriosians," I continued, "all I did was finish what the Romulans had begun." "You undermined our ally." Janeway countered. "An ally that the Federation has spent a lot of time and effort over the last hundred years to keep happy. Why would you risk a century of peace like that? We have laws about interfering in the affairs of other species and governments." "Do you think if would have been better for the Kriosians if we didn't help them?" I asked, frowning at the thought. "Let's play this out on the assumption that me and my people didn't help the Kriosians. The Romulans continue to provide limited support for the independence movement, which the Klingons tolerate. To a point. Eventually the Klingon governor would have to take action, and that action would include birds-of-prey in orbit launching attacks on anything that looked like a good target. Armed camps, government centers, hospitals, schools, basically anything large enough for insurgents to whole up in. Meanwhile, the Klingons start to think it is the Federation providing aid to the rebels, even though we aren't, which just makes relations between us worse. This isn't helped when Starfleet learns what the Klingons are doing to the people on their world. It would be seen as another Bajor, where the Federation stood back and allowed millions to die because trying to kick the Klingons out would be too hard, or because it might, only might, start a war." After a deep breath I calmly added, "In the end, the Romulans get exactly what they wanted: the Federation and the Klingons turning against each other. Let's examine what actually happened: because of the way we handled it, the Kriosians got their independence after losing only a few thousand people to the Klingons, they then immediately sought Federation protection which was given to them, and the Klingons no longer had a convenient place to attack the Federation along the border from, if it should ever come to that. Rather than warring with the Klingons to remove one of the few remaining worlds they held in the neutral zone, Section 31 persuaded them to give it up willingly, thus saving lives." And wasn't that a weird thing for my memories to throw at me. The fighting on that world had been brief, relatively. A few years of buildup, but only around four months of fighting was needed. The Klingons, in all honesty, had no real reason to hold onto the world other than 'honor' and prestige, because they had done exactly jack all to make what should've been a vital strategic interest into something worthwhile. It would have been like the United States occupying West Berlin after the Second World War, and not building a military base there. Then again, I suppose that had more to do with the Feudal nature of the Klingon Empire rather than any active failing of their leadership. "You say that," Janeway rebuked dismissively, as if saying so negated any of my points, "but all I see in this record of yours is someone I don't want on this ship. There is a reason why Section 31 is not a formal part of the Federation or Starfleet, and it has a great deal to do with the way your organization operates. You don't operate on the same moral compass as we do, or even think of solutions the same way. If there was a building in your way, keeping you from your objective, agents of 31 are more inclined to just blow up the building and anyone inside rather than let something like that stop their mission." I cocked an eyebrow at that. "Does the building have a bomb in it? If it is just in the way, it's more efficient to just go around it. We generate less attention that way. Just because Section 31 operates outside the standard Starfleet Doctrine does not make us monsters. You are in command of an Intrepid-class starship, Captain, a vessel that possesses the firepower to wipe out every living thing on a planet if used correctly. Is the only thing keeping you from doing so Federation law?" "Besides," I pressed on, "just because we think differently isn't a bad thing. In fact, in our current situation, I would argue that it is vital to your survival." "Explain." she ordered, not taking her eyes off me. To someone else it would be a pinning, intimidating glare. I'd seen worse. With a shrug, I stated the obvious, "In Federation space, with Federation support of hundreds of ships nearby and clearly established rules of law, Federation doctrine can work. But we aren't in the Federation, or anywhere close to it. We are strangers to a region of the galaxy that has its own powerful interstellar powers and rules. And it is the height of hubris to believe that as we stomp our way across the galaxy, knocking over ant hills and generally making a mess of things because we don't like their way of doing things, that everyone should play by our rules. You can stick to Starfleet law on this vessel, but once you are beyond the outer hull it's the wild west." I knew she wouldn't listen, not yet. Hopefully she would before we met the Borg. "Compassion given to all, regardless of circumstances, won't work here," I finished. "We don't have the resources to do so." "I'm not sure I need a soldier on this ship." Janeway eventually argued after a long moment, but there was no heat left in it. "Not since the early days of Starfleet have trained soldiers been on our ships outside of wartime circumstances." "MACO units occasionally get called up when missions require the starship to be in dangerous territory or in a situation where they will be away from resupply for a long period of time," I pointed out. "We're in both. Most captains tend to forget that Starfleet may primarily be a scientific and exploration organization, but we must also prepare for conflicts and defend ourselves. Out here, in the Delta Quadrant, you are going to need every advantage you can get." Janeway looked down at her cup of coffee, frowned at the resulting emptiness, and then tapped the pad on the table for a few moments as she thought. I stood, waiting. She looked up at me, expectantly, but I had said my piece. After a long moment of us just staring at each other, the Captain declared, "I am unable to directly command you since you are a part of a different branch of Starfleet, but I will expect you to follow my orders on this ship." "You are the Captain. This is a Starship. I follow your orders. It is that simple." I agreed simply. She nodded. "I'll treat you the same way I have the recovered Marquis, by finding you a job you can take on while onboard that you are well suited to. I suspect you will be able to take over Mr. Tuvok's job as Chief of Security in a few weeks, allowing him to focus on being my second officer, once you are up to speed." Janeway reached into a drawer near her knees behind the desk, retrieved something, and then tossed it at me. I caught it on reflex, and then widen my eyes at seeing a Section 31 comm badge in my hand. Unlike the bright silver badge everyone else wore, mine was black as onyx and slightly heavier. Without hesitating, I attached the device to the uniform over my left breast. Once in place, I gave the Captain a thankful smile. Going from inconsolably hostile to gracious and friendly that quickly left me wondering if her anger, too, was a power play. Either way, it didn't matter. I had a position I could work from, and head of security would give me enough leeway to make small changes that would help everyone sooner rather than later. With that thought in mind, I noticed Janeway was smirking at me. "Welcome aboard Voyager , Commander Shepard. Treat her well, and she will treat you well." "Thank you, Captain."  

Admiraal der Nederlanden

Kai The Kmpire!

Very good so far... watching. Now we wait for the response by the Maquis folks, especially First Officer Mr. C. TOC SIDoragon .. Inspired Voyage ST_Voyager_SI- THREADMARKS Razor One .. CH00a - The Case for Neelix SIDoragon .. CH00a - Shepard Bio SIDoragon .. CH00a - MAP - Local Space SIDoragon .. CH00b - Omake (Inspired Mass part 1) SIDoragon .. CH00c - Omake (Inspired Mass part 2) SIDoragon .. CH00d - Omake (Inspired Mass part 3) SIDoragon .. CH01a - Season 1 : Episode 1 (part 1) SIDoragon .. CH02a - Season 1 : Episode 1 (part 2) SIDoragon .. CH03a - Season 1 : Episode 2 (part 1) SIDoragon .. CH04a - Season 1 : Episode 2 (part 2) SIDoragon .. CH05a - Season 1 : Episode 3 (part 1) PublicLee Speaking CH05b - Apocrypha Basic Power Rules SIDoragon .. CH05c - Apocrypha Shepard's Uniform (March 2371) SIDoragon .. CH06a - Season 1 - Episode 3 (part 2) SIDoragon .. CH07a - Season 1 - Episode 4 (part 1) - Interlude 1 SIDoragon .. CH07b - Season 1 - Episode 4 (part 2) - Interlude 1 SIDoragon .. CH07c - Season 1 - Episode 4 (part 3) - Interlude 1 SIDoragon .. CH08a - Season 1 - Episode 5 SIDoragon .. CH09a - Season 1 - Episode 6 (part 1) SIDoragon .. CH10a - Season 1 - Episode 6 (part 2) SIDoragon .. CH11a - Season 1 - Episode 6 (part 3) SIDoragon .. CH12a - Season 1 - Episode 6 (part 4) SIDoragon .. CH13a - Season 1 - Episode 7 (part 1) SIDoragon .. CH14a - Season 1 - Episode 7 (part 2) SIDoragon .. CH14a - Season 1 - Episode 8 SIDoragon .. CH15a - Season 1 - Episode 9 (part 1) SIDoragon .. CH16a - Season 1 - Episode 9 (part 2) SIDoragon .. CH17a - Season 1 - Episode 9 (part 3) SIDoragon .. CH18a - Season 1 - Episode 9 (part 4) SIDoragon .. CH19a - Season 1 - Episode 10: Emanations SIDoragon .. CH20a - Season 1 - Episode 11: Prime Factors SIDoragon .. CH21a - Season 1 - Episode 12: Spare Parts (part 1) SIDoragon .. CH22a - Season 1 - Episode 12: Spare Parts (part 2) SIDoragon .. CH23a - Season 1 - Episode 12: Spare Parts (part 3) SIDoragon .. CH24a - Season 1 - Episode 12: Spare Parts (part 4) SIDoragon .. CH27a - Season 1 - Episode 13: Jetrel (Part 1) SIDoragon .. CH28a - Season 1 - Episode 13: Jetrel (Part 2) SIDoragon .. CH29a - Season 1 - Episode 14: New Faces - Part 1 (Part 1) SIDoragon .. CH30a - Season 1 - Episode 14: New Faces - Part 1 (Part 2) SIDoragon .. CH31a - Season 1 - Episode 14: New Faces - Part 1 (Part 3) SIDoragon .. CH32a - Season 1 - Episode 14: New Faces - Part 1 (Part 4) SIDoragon .. CH32b - Season 1 - Interlude 1 - Continuity SIDoragon .. CH33a - Season 2 - Episode 1: New Faces - Part 2 (Part 1) SIDoragon .. CH33b - Season 2 - Episode 1: New Faces - Part 2 (Part 2) SIDoragon .. CH33c - Season 2 - Episode 1: New Faces - Part 2 (Part 3) SIDoragon .. CH33d - Season 2 - Episode 1: New Faces - Part 2 (Part 4) SIDoragon .. CH34a - Season 2 - Episode 2: Reconstruction (Part 1) SIDoragon .. CH34b - Season 2 - Episode 2: Reconstruction (Part 2) SIDoragon .. CH34d - Training Sim (Canon) PublicLee Speaking CH34e - Shepard's Kobayashi Maru Review (Canon) ShinZed .... CH34f - Earning the Plushie (Semi-Canon) SIDoragon .. CH34g - Season 2 - Episode 2: Reconstruction (Part 4) SIDoragon .. CH34h - Season 2 - Episode 3: Full House (Part 1) SIDoragon .. CH34i - Season 2 - Episode 3: Full House (Part 2) SIDoragon .. CH34j - Season 2 - Episode 3: Full House (Part 3) SIDoragon .. CH34k - Season 2 - Episode 4: Circling the Wagons (Part 1) SIDoragon .. CH34l - Season 2 - Episode 4: Circling the Wagons (Part 2) SIDoragon .. CH34m - Season 2 - Episode 5: Quiescence SIDoragon .. CH35a - Season 2 - Episode 6: Persistence of Vision (part 2) MAP SIDoragon .. CH35b - Season 2 - Episode 6: Persistence of Vision (part 3) SIDoragon .. CH35c - Season 2 - Episode 6: Persistence of Vision (part 4) SIDoragon .. CH35d - Season 2 - Episode 6: Persistence of Vision (part 5) SIDoragon .. CH35e - Season 2 - Episode 7: Cold Fire (part 1) SIDoragon .. CH35f - Season 2 - Episode 7: Cold Fire (part 2) SIDoragon .. CH35g - Season 2 - Continues - Episodes 7 thru 14 xxXxx  

Great idea for a story. One thing he could do was learn how to make black, white and green boxes in his brain from mass effect univers to save information. From there he won't need to worry about loosing a charge from the 10. He would only need to use like 5 or 6 to get the most out of it  

The Spark of madness

Just remember that "they did it on voyager" is not an excuse for anything, even breathing.  

lets hope the SI will replace Janeway at somepoint, as i really dont like Janeway  

fireball900

SIDoragon said: Going from inconsolably hostile to gracious and friendly that quickly left me wondering if her anger, too, was a power play. Click to expand... Click to shrink...

Thule said: lets hope the SI will replace Janeway at somepoint, as i really dont like Janeway Click to expand... Click to shrink...

Doc Sithicus

Watched. This has lot of potential especially for a pragmatic MC with a few hidden aces up his sleeve. Considering the amount of hypocrisy and shitty decisions Janeway made as the Captain, I would like SI to take over - Voyager would get home in half or third of the time and with less crew KIA. The rules that govern Federation starships are fine when you're in Alpha, with the rest of the Starfleet to back you up, but when you're alone, far away from home, you do what you gotta do to keep your crew alive and do your damn best to bring them home safely, especially if the trip is supposed to take 70 years - which means that most of the crew might die of old age on the way. I would say here - fuck the Treaty of Algeron and build the damn cloaking device (we'll worry about keeping it secret after we'll get home). SI might build tech that will eventually become a game changer but I'm pretty sure that there was a lot of tech that was never considered due to the "ethical reasons".  

izanagi_no_yami

I like star trek si and crossover fics, they can be interesting  

Oh wow, I'm looking forward to seeing how this goes!  

PantherHardraad

I think I've just stumbled across what makes me hate Voyager over the rest of them. Janeway continuously acts like she has a responsibility being in the Delta Quadrant to right all the wrongs there, when her only responsibility is to get her crew home. The show doesn't make sense. Chakotay should have been in charge and ran the thing like a dictatorship in order to get back to the Alpha Quadrant.  

LoquaciousLizard

Consider investing points into "intelligence augments" and "safe phasing technology" and "anti-borg technology";As that will let you make some major upgrades to both the ships combat capabilities and your own capacity to leverage your abilities. It might also provide a usable cover for how you suddenly gain the ability to make major leaps in tech.  

PantherHardraad said: I think I've just stumbled across what makes me hate Voyager over the rest of them. Janeway continuously acts like she has a responsibility being in the Delta Quadrant to right all the wrongs there, when her only responsibility is to get her crew home. The show doesn't make sense. Chakotay should have been in charge and ran the thing like a dictatorship in order to get back to the Alpha Quadrant. Click to expand... Click to shrink...

PublicLee Speaking

(fan)fiction writer.

Edoc said: Sooo much internal monologuing... can't he shut up for a bit? I want plot Click to expand... Click to shrink...

SIDoragon said: I imagine that you, like myself and maybe PublicLee Speaking , went on a hour long rant during the Phage episode. Two aliens attack a crewmate, steal his lungs, and after capture Janeway throws up her hands and goes "I'm letting you leave because I'm too ethical." Click to expand... Click to shrink...

NaniteSystems

Fantastic start. I will look forward to more! I'm here bc you got mentioned by publicleespeaking. Anyone he endorses I'd be glad to read. Here's hoping we see some changes-- more than already, I mean. I love when the SI makes an actual difference in the plot. I'm glad inspired inventor got nerfed too. Itll let you give the mc more of a gradual spool up time.  

D1truOverlord

I am really liking where this is going I just hope that there is a way to add stuff from other franchises. Also I have to ask is voyager worth watching?  

D1truOverlord said: I am really liking where this is going I just hope that there is a way to add stuff from other franchises. Also I have to ask is voyager worth watching? Click to expand... Click to shrink...

NaniteSystems said: I'm glad inspired inventor got nerfed too. Itll let you give the mc more of a gradual spool up time. Click to expand... Click to shrink...

Tarks said: Yeah, V1 powers really need nerfing. Even now I think the MC could still just go for 'wish for more wishes' charges (e.g. time dilation, time travel, alternate realities), 'I don't need wishes' charges (e.g. nootropics, genetic modification, mind uploading, AI) or 'screw the plot' charges (e.g. transwarp). Hopefully it won't be quite that easy, this looks like it could be good. Click to expand... Click to shrink...

SemiSaneAuthor

Stuff blowing up.

SIDoragon said: I've already had to toss out the idea of engine upgrades. To make something reliable it would require complete ship rebuild. Click to expand... Click to shrink...

Awesome intro. Looking forward to more. Since the SI is starting with Mass Effect tech, could you clarify exactly how many charges would be required for the following tech: SAM Quantum-Entanglement Communicator  

• Novels 79 stories
• Short Stories 70 stories
• Graphic Novels 13 stories
• Audio Books 23 stories
• Browse an era

Discovery Strange New Worlds The Original Series Movies 1 – 6

The Next Generation Deep Space Nine Voyager Lower Decks Picard Star Trek: Prodigy

• Picard Season 2
• Submit story

Original tales from the lore of Star Trek

22nd century, 23rd century.

• Kelvin Timeline
• Strange New Worlds
• The Original Series
• Movies 1 - 6

24th Century

• Deep Space Nine
• Star Trek: Prodigy
• The Next Generation
• Lower Decks

25th - 26th Century

• Picard Season 3

32nd Century

By rosemarie taylor-perry, a partnership of lions, by lynda carraher.

Convergence

By glenn g g maitland, by chris riker.

Ghosts of the Khozi

By t. august green.

The Heart of Darkness

By nathan warner, chance encounter, by paul laight & gary o'brien, a purchase worth the price.

Dirge for a Winter’s Solstice

Browse by author.

• Michael Stutelberg (1)
• Kenneth Smith (1)
• Tommy Kraft (1)
• Deep Sixer (2)
• Mistral (0)
• T. August Green (2)
• Paul R. Sieber (2)
• Jan Kotouc (1)
• Victoria Fox (1)
• Ruth McCartney (1)
• Jan "Sokar" Kratky (2)
• Reyka Sivao (2)
• John Fraraccio (1)
• Vic Mignogna (1)
• EC Henry (2)
• Don Horan (4)
• Gary Pirtle (1)
• Dennis Strauß (2)
• Alec Peters (1)
• Louis Colyer (2)
• Mark Naccarato (1)
• Stan Woo (1)
• David Cheng (1)
• Robert Denham (1)
• Ross Manuel (2)
• Larry Brody (1)
• M.D. Bruffy (22)
• Stanley Marcus Grimm (1)
• Joshua Irwin (5)
• David Dietz (6)
• Rosemarie Taylor-Perry (6)
• Phred Jones (4)
• Scott Johnson (1)
• David R. Wrenn (1)
• Rick Chambers (1)
• Ethan H. Calk (2)
• DSE Cascaddan (1)
• Heather Smyth (3)
• Ray Tesi (1)
• David Ellis (1)
• Patrick Berube (1)
• KJ Kaplan (3)
• Rob Caves (1)
• Glenn G G Maitland (6)
• Brady Foster (1)
• Kim Aaron (2)
• Dan R. Reynolds (1)
• Thomas Raube (1)
• Jack Marshall (1)
• Nick Cook (1)
• Heiko Theis (1)
• Chris Riker (1)
• Aaron Vanderkley (8)
• John Atkin (1)
• David Titley (1)
• Lynda Carraher (17)
• Christian Gossett (1)
• James Ballow (1)
• Nathan Warner (9)
• Kara Hughes (1)
• Sky Conway (2)
• Dana Reynolds (2)
• Jack Trevino (2)
• Greg Mitchell (1)
• Jane Stockwell (3)
• Ben Steed (1)
• Gary O'Brien (2)
• Sean O'Keefe (26)
• Dave Mitchell (1)
• Bobby Nash (1)
• Samuel Weiss (3)
• Alex Villepique (1)
• Mark Daley (5)
• Ron Cropper Jr (1)
• David Creighton (1)
• Vance Major (3)
• J. Sandstrom (1)
• Samuel Redfeather (10)
• Dave Galanter (1)
• Camren T. Burton (1)
• Mike Cavaroc (1)
• DW Cropper (1)
• Edward Mason McArdle (1)
• Rudy Linke (1)
• Dennis Russell Bailey (1)
• Benjamin Schulz (1)
• Tim Vining (1)
• Paul Laight (2)
• Dr Winston O'Boogie (1)
• Triangulum Audio Studios (4)
• Jonathan Lane (1)
• Michael L. King (2)
• Victoria Avalon (4)
• Tim Russ (1)
• Brian W Peterson (1)
• Professor Augustine (2)
• Richard Paolinelli (3)
• Sebastian Bittins (1)
• Adam Mullen (1)
• R. Marcus Turnbull (1)
• David Gerrold (1)
• Josh Johnson (1)
• Jimm Johnson (1)
• Merfilly (2)
• George Kayaian (1)
• April L. Payne (3)
• Glen L. Wolfe (2)
• Samuel Cockings (9)
• Maurice Molyneaux (1)

7th December 2022

26th november 2022, 16th april 2022, 10th march 2022, 3rd january 2022, 19th october 2021, about trekkie fan fiction.

This site is here to prove that you don’t have to pay for the best Star Trek books around. Unhindered by corporate bottom lines, our authors are free to fly wherever their fancies take them. I’m proud to be a part of a family of writers who are determined to bring you the best fiction to be found anywhere. From Enterprise to Prodigy and beyond, the sky’s the limit here at Trekkiefanfiction.com!

So, if you’re an avid Star Trek reader, try us out. If you’re a devoted author wanting to be noticed, send me your stuff and, pending approval, you could find yourself published here! The success of this site is in YOUR hands! And please, don’t forget to tell your friends!

Submit your story

Have a story you would like to submit for publishing on Trekkie Fan Fiction?

To ensure all the stories published via Trekkie Fan Fiction are of the same quality, we have a simple submission and assessment process to follow.

We welcome all story submissions and will happily give you feedback if your submission is unsuccessful at this time.

In an effort at complete transparency, it costs roughly $AUS150 a year for me to keep this website going. I’m dedicated to its long-term survival so if anyone would be willing to help contribute to its running costs, I’d be most appreciative. In the efforts of security, I’ve provided a PayPal link below. Any monies that exceed the annual running costs will be donated to the Salvation Army to continue their marvelous works around the globe.

• The Original Series
• The Animated Series
• The Next Generation
• Deep Space Nine
• Strange New Worlds
• Lower Decks
• Star Trek Movies
• TrekCore on Twitter
• TrekCore on Facebook

Commander Rayner (Callum Keith Rennie) isn’t thrilled by this prospect, pointing out before she leaves that it’s too dangerous a mission for a captain to undertake. But Burnham disagrees that this is enough of a reason to stop her; it’s a nice reminder that this is a show and a character that originated in the time of James T. Kirk, a time when captains didn’t stay behind in the face of danger.

But it’s not only that, there’s something else going on. Burnham gives Rayner permission to be blunt, quoting a classic work on Rayner’s native Kellerun , The Ballad of Krull , asking him to “serve it without a crumb of ossekat .” (As far as made-up Star Trek idioms go, that’s a pretty good one.)

It’s also the beginning of a sudden and relentless onslaught of references to Rayner’s culture, but more on that later. What’s Rayner’s problem? He’s uncomfortable with the prospect of being left in command of a ship and crew that aren’t “his.” Welcome to being second in command, buddy.

Book and Burnham take off, heading into the wormhole and finding it to be an inhospitable place. They quickly drop out of communication range with Discovery , there’s ship debris everywhere, including the wreckage of Moll and L’ak’s ship…. and what’s that, the  ISS Enterprise ?!

(A side note before we get too excited about that: what is the deal with all the empty space in the new shuttlecraft set, introduced in last season’s “All Is Possible”? The two pilot seats looked like they were crammed into the corner of a huge unfurnished room.)

Okay, Enterprise time. Burnham and Book rightly surmise that this is where Moll and L’ak must have escaped to and beam to the ship, which of course turns out to be a redress of the Strange New Worlds  standing sets. A quick scan identifies that no one else is aboard — though the clue, which Moll and L’ak have found, does also have a lifesign, hmm — and that Moll and L’ak are holed up in sickbay. Burnham takes a few moments to ponder her visit to the Mirror Universe back in Season 1 and wonder what the alternate version of her half-brother Spock might have been like (bearded, for one).

And aside from some brief storytelling about Mirror Saru’s role as a rebel leader, that’s about it for the Terran Empire of it all. Star Trek: Discovery has spent plenty of time in and around the Mirror Universe already, and I personally don’t think they need to revisit it again. But introducing the  ISS Enterprise — the ship that started it all with The Original Series ’ “Mirror, Mirror” — and then not doing anything momentous with it? Strange decision, and one that makes it ultimately feel more like this was a way for the show to get to reuse a set on the cheap than it does a materially significant addition to the episode.

In fact, in some ways it’s actually a detriment to the episode. If the action had been set on any other ship it would have been fine, but being on the ISS Enterprise I kept expecting something — like seeing Paul Wesley as Mirror Kirk slinking around, or finding Anson Mount camping it up as Mirror Pike in a personal log. If they’d set the action on a generic derelict ship, what we got wouldn’t have seemed like a let down. As it is though, I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop… and it simply never did.

Maybe in a subsequent episode, it’ll turn out that there’s an advantage in having an entire functional starship composed of atoms from another universe at Starfleet’s disposal — or to have a convenient collection of Constitution -class sets available for that Starfleet Academy show to borrow once in a while — but until that happens (if it even does) the use of the ISS Enterprise just seems like a name drop and a “We have to set the action somewhere , why not here?” instead of a significant use of the setting and the huge amount of lore and history that comes with it.

It’s like setting something aboard the Titanic without ever mentioning any icebergs.

As Burnham and Book make their way down to sickbay they do find evidence that the ship was being used in a way that seemed unusually gentle for a Terran Empire vessel: signs that children and families were aboard at one time, and that they were the kind of people sentimental enough to have keepsakes and favorite stuffed animals. But again, nothing about this seems like it needs the Mirror Universe connection. Ships of people trying to escape adversity are already a Star Trek staple.

Burnham and Book find Moll (Eve Harlow) and L’ak (Elias Toufexis) in sickbay, and after a valiant but ultimately unsuccessful attempt at getting them to surrender, everyone starts shooting. Moll and L’ak have a Breen blood bounty — an erigah — on their heads and surrender is simply not an option. During the firefight a lockdown is triggered, forcefields coming down that split the group into pairs: Burnham and L’ak stuck in sickbay, while Book and Moll able to go back to the bridge to try and reset sickbay.

Pairing off also gives Book the opportunity to continue his efforts to connect with Moll, and I have to say, I don’t think I’m a fan. Setting aside the portion of this that’s purely a strategic attempt to forge a connection with someone who is very to keen to kill him, my first reaction to the way Book talks to Moll about her father (and his mentor) was distaste.

I don’t think Book meant it this way, but the way he’s written in these scenes feels unpleasantly close to the “Well, he was a great guy to me , I never saw him do anything bad” response that’s sometimes made to accusations of misconduct. A person can be wonderful to some people in their life and terrible to others; both experiences are true for the people who received them, but they’re not mutually exclusive.

Book is preternaturally empathetic, and yet he doesn’t seem to see how continually assuring Moll that her father loved her is an act that’s both unwanted and actively painful for Moll to hear. I understand that Book is just trying to bring a sliver of comfort to Moll – but in the process he’s dismissing her own experiences of her father and his place in her life. Unless Moll asks him for this, it’s really none of Book’s business.

I suspect they’re setting up Moll’s character for a nice, cathartic arc where she comes to terms with her life, forgives her father, releases her past, whatever. And when that happens in real life that’s great — but it doesn’t always, and that’s okay too. If Moll never sees in her father the man Book saw in his mentor, it’s not a character failing. Discovery is really hammering home the theme of confronting one’s past in order to take control of one’s present and future, and I think it would be valuable if they included an example of a character learning to do the latter… without having to be okay with the former.

And to return to a question I posed in my review of “Under the Twin Moons,” I know Book is isolated and excruciatingly lonely after the destruction of Kweijan and his split with Michael, but the weight he’s placed on his relationship with Moll as “the closest thing he has to family” seems like he’s setting himself up for disappointment. Maybe I’m just a cynic, but this does not feel like a hopeful storyline to me. Not everyone wants to be family, and right now it doesn’t seem like Moll’s been given much of a choice in the matter — despite her frequent and very powerful explanations of why she’s not interested.

Clearly frustrated with Book’s topic of conversation and desperate to return to L’ak, Moll makes a reckless decision to brute-force a solution and overload some circuits. It works, and the forcefields in sickbay come down, but it also sends the Enterprise onto an unstoppable collision course with the too-small-to-pass-through and also going-to-be-closing-forever-soon wormhole. They’ve got eight minutes to figure this out.

Meanwhile aboard Discovery , we see Rayner’s struggles to interact with the crew. This thread could have gone so many different ways, Rayner seeming “too good” for a temporary command, him seeing this as his chance to do things “better” than Burnham or show how it’s “really done,” but instead the show takes the much more subtle and satisfying route: Rayner is deeply respectful of the captaincy, as a rank and a role, and really doesn’t want to step on Burnham’s authority.

He’s more than willing to disagree with her on command decisions , but he doesn’t question her command . And more personally, he doesn’t want his gruffness and lack of experience with this crew to cause problems. He’s trying, in his own Rayner way, and more importantly he’s succeeding — and, as we see as he shepherds the crew through figuring out how to communicate with and then rescue Book and Burnham, the crew does their part and meets him halfway.

Rayner is learning that he needs to tone down his temperament just enough that he doesn’t come across as an actual asshole to this crew, and the crew is learning that his gruffness isn’t a sign of disrespect but simply a desire to cut to the chase and get to direct, actionable information with a minimum of fluff. There are shades of Nimoy’s Spock or Voyager -era Seven of Nine here, but couched within a distinctly different temperament, and it’s fascinating to watch. I’d love to have seen him interacting with the crew of the Antares , where he presumably felt more comfortable.

The interpersonal stuff with Rayner and the crew is great; where Rayner’s thread feels distractingly like a box being checked is the explosion of “Rayner is a Kellerun!” being shouted from the bulkheads. I could practically hear the writers yelping out a panicked “Oh crap, we forgot to say what kind of alien Rayner is!”

Again, Discovery is back to its old self with the clunky, heavy-handed, and oddly paced character work. Rayner goes from having zero cultural touchstones to having about five in the span of the 15-20 minutes of screentime that his story gets this week. They’re good touchstones, don’t get me wrong — I’m skeptical of Kellerun citrus mash, I have to be honest, but I’d give it a try; not so sure about boiling a cake though — they’re just very present .

As with Rayner’s alienness, the frequent flashbacks throughout the episode to Moll and L’ak’s meeting and courtship feel like a “We forgot to explain this and now we’re trying to reference it!” correction. The content of the flashbacks is fine, there’s a lot of interesting Breen worldbuilding for a species that’s been mysterious from the start — and watching Moll and L’ak’s relationship grow from one of mutual convenience to one of true love is genuinely moving. But the way it’s woven into an episode that, again, feels like it’s composed of bits and pieces of storyline, makes it hard to shake the sense that I was watching a To Do list get checked off.

By the time the season is over it might be clear that there was simply no extra room to give a full episode over to Moll and L’ak’s meeting, or maybe an episode without any of the main cast wasn’t something they were willing or contractually able to do, but I would have loved if these flashbacks were pulled out and expanded into a full-length episode of their own. Some of the worldbuilding felt hasty to the point of hindering the emotional beats — at times I wondered if I’d forgotten a whole bunch of Breen lore and at others I was just trying to keep up with what was going on.

For example, my confusion about L’ak’s comment about having two faces, which Moll seemed to completely understand — “Duh, everyone knows the Breen have two faces” — was a distraction in the middle of an otherwise nice and significant moment. This is later clarified as the translucent face and the solid face, but again I was distracted from fully appreciating an interesting bit of Breen culture because I was busy applying what I’d just learned back to the previous scene.

The quickly (and maybe not totally clearly articulated notion) that Breen deliberately restrict themselves to their translucent form for reasons that are entirely to do with avoiding any perception of weakness is a potent if hasty bit of social commentary, and as I said I nearly didn’t catch it.

Whether holding the translucent form requires the armor for protection or the armor necessitates the translucent form — it seems like it would be more comfortable wearing that helmet all the time if you were the texture and consistency of lime jello — this is surely a metaphor for the increasingly rigid, isolating, and emotionally and sometimes physically unhealthy things men in certain circles feel they must do to be appropriately masculine. Seeing L’ak free himself from that rigidity is powerful.

With the forcefields in sickbay down, Burnham and L’ak immediately spring into action:  Burnham trying to get the artifact from L’ak and L’ak simply trying to get away. They fight, and Burnham impressively proves she can hold her own against a Breen. When L’ak accidentally falls on his own blade, Burnham grabs the clue and speeds to the bridge where she manages to get a message to Rayner through some tractor beam trickery. The message? Another reference to that classic of Kellerun literature that gives Rayner the info he needs. Hey, did you know Rayner was a Kellerun?

The ISS Enterprise makes it through the wormhole, Moll and L’ak zip away in an escape pod, and it’s time to wrap things up. We head to Red’s for a quick but significant moment between Tilly (Mary Wiseman) and Culber (Wilson Cruz), as Tilly offers advice and an ear to a Culber who’s going through a quiet existential – maybe also spiritual? – crisis.

OBSERVATION LOUNGE

• In addition to the dedication plaques on the bridge, the ISS Enterprise has an additional plaque in its transporter room — one which, despite recounting the heroism of rebel action hero Mirror Saru, still states “Long Live the Empire.”
• The transporter room plaque is marked with “Stardate 32336.6,” which is about 9 years before the events of “Encounter at Farpoint.”
• The plaque describes the fate of Mirror Spock, who was killed after instituting the reforms which later led to the fall of the Terran Empire (as described in DS9’s “Crossover”).

The full text of the ISS Enterprise transporter room plaque:

The new High Chancellor presented hope and justice as if they were natural to our world. His words, “The light of hope shines through even the darkest of nights” became our rallying cry. He spoke of reform, and changed many of us. But some saw this as weakness. They killed him, and we sought help from an unlikely ally: A Kelpien slave turned rebel leader.   He spoke of visitors from another world… a near perfect mirror cast our darkness into light. With his aid we secured the Enterprise and stayed behind to continue his work. We bear scars from our escape, but our hope remains. May it carry us into a pristine, peaceful, and just future.

• Not counting L’ak’s previous appearances this season, this episode marks the first time we have seen the Breen in live action since their involvement in the Dominion War in Deep Space Nine.  (The species has appeared in  Star Trek: Lower Decks three times.)
• The 32nd century Breen wear updated encounter suits clearly based on the designs introduced in  Deep Space Nine ; their digital speech is extremely faithful to the incomprehensible noises Breen soldiers have spoken in past appearances.
• Given the fact that Moll appears to be just fine in the environment of the Breen ship, I guess Weyoun was right when he said the Breen homeworld was “quite comfortable” in “The Changing Face of Evil.”
• When L’ak is stabbed he gently oozes some green goo — but as we learned in “In Purgatory’s Shadow,” Breen do not have traditional humanoid blood.

• During his time in command of Discovery , Rayner never sits in the captain’s chair.
• This episode closes with a dedication plaque that reads “In loving memory of our friend, Allan ‘Red’ Marceta”. Marceta was, I presume, the namesake for Discovery’s bar.
• Someone aboard Discovery keeps a Cardassian vole as a pet. Going by Tilly’s reaction, and what we know from  Deep Space Nine , this is not a good thing.
• Linus (David Benjamin Tomlinson) plays a mean piano.
• Owosekun and Detmer get the off-screen cherry assignment of flying the ISS Enterprise back to Federation Headquarters, alone. I’m thinking that’s going to inspire some fanfic…

We don’t learn what this week’s clue is, though we know there’s a blue vial tucked away inside it, but we do learn that the crew of the ISS Enterprise did indeed make it to our universe. The scientist responsible for hiding this particular clue there was one of them, a Dr. Cho, who eventually made it all the way to branch admiral.

They strove for something positive and succeeded against all odds. Hopefully Discovery will be able to do the same as they continue their pursuit of Moll, L’ak, and the Progenitors.

Star Trek: Discovery Season 5 returns with “Whistlespeak” on Thursday, May 2.

• DSC Season 5
• Star Trek: Discovery

Related Stories

New star trek: discovery season 5 cast photos arrive, new star trek: discovery photos — “whistlespeak”, new star trek: discovery photos — “mirrors”, search news archives, new & upcoming releases, featured stories, lost-for-decades original star trek uss enterprise model returned to roddenberry family, star trek: lower decks cancelled; strange new worlds renewed for season 4, our star trek: discovery season 5 spoiler-free review.

TrekCore.com is not endorsed, sponsored or affiliated with Paramount, CBS Studios, or the Star Trek franchise. All Star Trek images, trademarks and logos are owned by CBS Studios Inc. and/or Paramount. All original TrekCore.com content and the WeeklyTrek podcast (c) 2024 Trapezoid Media, LLC. · Terms & Conditions