Star Trek: Voyager (1995–2001): Season 5, Episode 14 - Bliss - full transcript

A stable wormhole leading to Earth suddenly appears in Voyager's path. Everything seems perfect including sensor readings, transmissions from Starfleet, even letters from home promising warm welcomes and promotions. But Seven of Nine insists it's too good to be true and that the Captain should be cautious. When she seeks The Doctor's opinion he is deactivated. When she provides proof she is ordered to be put into stasis. She resists, unsuccessfully, and Voyager falls into a clever alien deception.

Ah!

Surprised?

What's wrong?

Can't figure out
why l'm still not running, huh?

Can't read my thoughts?

Go ahead. Attack!

Take my ship.

Damn ship!

Hold together.

Hold.

Ah! Ah!



Wormhole?

Approximately
400 million kilometers

from our current position.

Take a look at the
transkinetic vector.

lt leads to Sector 001.

lt looks like a wormhole,

but we're detecting
massive bioplasmic activity.

That suggests a life-form.

Neutrino flux?

Erratic.

A direct route
to Earth's doorstep

out of the blue.

What's wrong with this picture?

We should launch a probe.



Go to Yellow Alert.

Prepare a class-5 probe.

Let's see
what's really out there.

Daily Log, Seven of Nine.

While we failed to locate
a new source of deuterium,

our mission had
educational value

for at least
one member of the crew.

lf you go looking
for deuterium tomorrow,

can l come?

Well, that's up to the Captain.

lt's likely you'll be replaced
by a more experienced officer.

But this is
my first away mission

and l didn't get
to do anything.

l disagree.

You familiarized yourself
with this vessel.

Well, can't we make first
contact with somebody

or get in a space battle?

Yeah...

can't we?

Another time, perhaps.

Hey, Naomi,
you want to take the helm?

Can l?

Ensign.

She'll be familiarizing herself

with the vessel.

Here.

Okay.

First, bring us up
to one-quarter impulse.

Hit this control,
then that one.

One-quarter impulse, aye.

Now, you think you can chart
a course back to Voyager?.

Yes, sir.

They're in a hurry.

Crewmen Boylen and White--

frequently late
for their duty shifts.

Ah.

Speaking of late,
l'll make a deal with you.

l'll explain to Sam

why her daughter's
two hours late for bedtime

if you start
on the survey report.

Acceptable.

Have fun.

You're back.

l was beginning to worry.

The survey took longer
than expected.

Lucky our deuterium shortage
is no longer an issue.

A wormhole.

The wormhole.

lt leads all the way
back to Earth.

The odds of finding
such a phenomenon

are infinitesimal.

Never bet against the house.

What are you doing?

Looking for anomalous readings.

You will find none.

He's right--
no subspatial contortions,

no temporal variance.

The probe we sent in has already

picked up faint signals
from the other side.

B'Elanna's still
downloading them,

but she's pretty sure
they're from Starfleet.

This wormhole is only
300 million kilometers away.

Long-range scans
should've detected it days ago.

Perhaps it was
an oversight on your part.

lf it'll make you feel
better, run a diagnostic.

ln the meantime,
let's maintain course.

Come in.

l've completed my diagnostic.

Sensors are operating
at peak efficiency.

Then there's nothing
to worry about.

On the contrary.

The wormhole's neutrino levels
are extremely erratic.

l thought so, too...

until l received this.

lt turns out those faint signals
we detected

were communiqués from Starfleet.

They assure me the neutrino flux
is nothing to worry about.

Starfleet may be in error.

We should run further scans.

No time.
The wormhole might destabilize.

The Doctor often instructs me
''to look before l leap.''

lt is an antiquated adage,
but l believe it is relevant.

l have another one for you--

''He who hesitates is lost.''

Captain...

l think we're avoiding
the real issue here, Seven.

You're still feeling
uncomfortable

about returning
to the Alpha Quadrant.

lt's nothing to be ashamed of.

Trust me. You're going
to thrive on Earth

just as you've thrived
on Voyager.

Yes?

Letter number two.

l'm getting jealous.

Mark.

Apparently his engagement
was broken off.

What about you?
Any news?

A full pardon and
reinstatement to Starfleet.

l've even been offered
a professorship

in anthropology at the Academy.

Oh, Chakotay, congratulations,
but it's not fair.

Don't worry.
lt's only part-time.

How am l expected to run
a ship without you?

You'll do fine.

Computer, access all log entries

recorded by Captain Janeway
on stardate 52542.

Access to those files
is restricted.

Access granted.

Play first log entry.

Captain's Log, Stardate 52542.3.

Long-range sensors have
identified a wormhole

leading to the Alpha Quadrant.

Unfortunately,
secondary scans have revealed

that it's some kind
of elaborate deception.

The question is:

Who's attempting to deceive us
and why?

Play next log entry.

Captain's Log, supplemental.

We've begun to receive
faint telemetry from our probe.

l don't want to get
the crew's hopes up,

but B'Elanna thinks it may be
a message from Starfleet.

l'm beginning to wonder

if my earlier skepticism
was justified.

Play next log entry.

Captain's Log, supplemental.

l've set a course
for the wormhole.

With any luck, we should be
back in the Alpha Quadrant

in a matter of days.

Annika!

Annika Hansen!

There is no one here
by that name.

Are you sure?

Because l have a letter
here addressed to her.

l never realized

you knew anyone
from the Alpha Quadrant.

l don't.

Well, it looks like
someone knows you.

Who's it from?

Claudia Hansen.

She claims to be
a sister of my father.

Your aunt.

She is looking forward
to meeting me.

That's great!

Starfleet's appointed me

Ambassador
to the Lan'Tuan sector.

Ambassador?

l guess they thought l'd
have a flair for quadrupeds.

Ensign, l require
a moment of your time.

Sure.

Have you noticed
anything unusual

about the crew's behavior
since we returned?

Like...?

When l presented
the Captain with evidence

that the wormhole may not
be what it appears to be,

she seemed unconcerned.

Really? That doesn't
sound like her.

l believe the crew

is being deceived
by false telemetry,

as well as overly-optimistic
correspondence.

The letters from home?

l got one, too.

No doubt containing good news.

Oh, l'll say.

An old buddy of mine
offered me a spot

at the new test flight center
in Australia.

Beautiful beaches,

a chance to pilot
the latest experimental ships.

l can't believe it.

Then you doubt the veracity
of the letters as well.

Are you kidding?

l've already written back
and accepted the job.

Computer, activate the EMH.

Please state the nature
of the medical emergency.

The wormhole is not
what it appears to be.

l believe that the crew
is being...

Hold on. Wormhole?

You weren't informed.

Not a peep.

Considering
everyone's recent behavior,

that's not surprising.

Since the discovery
of this wormhole,

the crew has ignored obvious
signs that it's a deception.

You must determine if there is
a physiological explanation.

Seven of Nine to the Bridge.

On my way.

l'll call in a few crewmen
for routine examinations.

That should allow me to run
the necessary diagnostics.

We've just entered
visual range.

l thought you'd like
to take a look.

We're starting to get images
from the other side.

There is
considerable interference.

l think l can help clear it up.

Try it now.

How long
until we reach the wormhole?

53 minutes.

Maintain course.

All hands, this is the Bridge.

Secure all systems.

When we reach Earth's orbit,
lay in a descent trajectory,

North American continent,
Starfleet Headquarters.

Computer,
perform a gravimetric scan

of the wormhole's interior.

Look for inconsistencies
in the spatial gradient.

The anomaly is consistent
with a class-1 wormhole.

No irregularities detected.

Recalibrate sensors
and try again.

No irregularities detected.

lsolate grid 925 and magnify.

Computer, is that a vessel
in grid 91?

No vessel has been detected.

Open a com channel.

Channel open.

Alien vessel,
this is the Starship Voyager.

Respond.

Alien vessel...

Who are you?

Seven of Nine,
Federation Starship Voyager.

Our ship is
on an intercept course

3.4 light-years
from your position.

Turn around.

You're being deceived.

How?

He knows what you want.

Computer, identify the cause
of the power failure.

Captain's orders.

Power from Astrometrics
has been rerouted

to the navigational array,
at least until we've completed

our journey
through the wormhole.

l've made contact with a vessel
inside the anomaly.

Starfleet?

Alien.

The pilot attempted
to warn us away.

Sensors show no record
of an incoming transmission.

The sensors are malfunctioning.

He said we were being deceived,

that the wormhole is not
what it appears to be.

The preponderance of data
suggests otherwise.

The data is flawed.

As is your reasoning.

May l ask you
a personal question?

Are you looking forward
to seeing your wife and family?

lndeed.

And is that desire stronger
than you expected it to be?

Your point?

l believe
you are being manipulated.

Someone or something
is compromising your logic.

Otherwise, you would be willing
to listen to my concerns.

Access to the Astrometrics Lab

is restricted
until further notice.

Dismissed.

Naomi Wildman.

Your presence here
is unauthorized.

State your intentions.

l'm... hiding.

From whom?

Everyone.

They're all acting strange.

Even Mom.

Elaborate.

She keeps smiling all the time,
talking about Earth

like it's the greatest place
in the universe.

You do not share your mother's
desire to return to Earth?

Voyager's my home.

lf we go to Earth,
l'll have to leave the ship.

l'd miss my room, Neelix...

you and l wouldn't be able
to play Kadis-Kot anymore.

Curious.

You and l appear to be
the only ones not affected.

Affected by what?

l am not certain.

Stay here until l return.

Computer, activate EMH.

Please state the nature
of the medical emergency.

Where's the Doctor?

Off-line.

Why?

Starfleet orders--

something about the wormhole

interfering with
the holographic systems.

They didn't want
to damage his program.

He must be reactivated.

No can do, not until we're
on the other side.

lt's urgent.

Believe it or not,
l am capable of handling

almost any medical problem
you might have.

l was just coming to see you.

Why?

l'm afraid l have
some troubling news.

Evidently, our wormhole
passes through

a layer of subspace
monitored by the Borg.

Starfleet's concerned
that your neural transceiver

might attract
some unwanted attention.

We need to deactivate
your implants.

You should not attempt to do so

without the Doctor's
supervision.

Unfortunately, he's off-line.

Then the procedure
is inadvisable.

Try to relax. We're only
going to keep you in stasis

until we've reached
the Alpha Quadrant.

l realize the prospect

of returning to Earth
is frightening to you.

lt's perfectly natural for you
to resist the unknown,

but you're in good hands.

Resistance is futile.

What's our distance, Tom?

2,000 kilometers and closing.

Good-bye, Delta Quadrant.

No more Hirogen hunting parties,
Malon garbage scows.

By this time tomorrow,

it'll be Cardassians,
Romulans, Ferengi...

Chakotay to the Bridge.

Go ahead.

l've spoken to Seven of Nine.

We're putting her into stasis.

Well, make it fast.

We don't want the Borg to crash
our welcome home party.

l need to adjust
my regeneration parameters.

How long will l remain inactive?

A couple of hours
to be on the safe side.

Security alert!

Naomi Wildman.

Security's on their way,

Chakotay.
What happened?

Seven's trapped us behind
some kind of Borg force field.

Try to disable it.

Naomi...

go back to your quarters.

Pay attention to me.

lf this indicator
begins to flash,

enter the following
series of commands.

Watch carefully.

Naomi.

Do you understand?

Yes.

Naomi...

l'm giving you a direct order.

Step away from the console.

She's blocking my commands.

Keep trying.

Computer, lock
onto my coordinates

and initiate
a site-to-site transport.

Main Engineering.

Seven?

l'm sorry.

We've got phaser fire
in Engineering.

Janeway to Security.

Computer, erect a level-10
force field around Engineering.

Lock out the command controls
with Borg encryption code 294.

Seven's tapping
into the engine manifold.

She's trying to shut down
impulse drive.

Bridge.

She has erected
another force field.

lt will require several minutes
to deactivate it.

Where is she exactly?

Engineering Console 16-Beta.

Captain?

l'm sending an EM surge
to that station.

Seven's going into stasis
whether she likes it or not.

She's down, Captain.

Captain...

we're at the threshold.

Take us in.

Report.

lt's just spatial turbulence.

lt's beautiful.

Steady as she goes.

Seven, wake up.

Seven of Nine.

Wake up.

Force field.

You are damaged.

lt's just a scrape.

The crew?

Unconscious. Sort of.

Our hull is demolecularizing.

Do wormholes do that?

No... they don't.

Return to your quarters
while l assess the situation.

But l can help.

My mom says two heads
are better than one.

lsn't that
the Borg philosophy, too?

Simplistic, but accurate.

Please...
l don't want to be alone.

Neelix!

Oh, Neelix.

He will survive.

Neelix.

We must keep moving.

Naomi Wildman.

We will return for him.

l don't think that's Earth.

No.

So, where are we?

l've restored partial systems.

l'm reading
organic compounds,

bioplasmic discharges,

a vast network
of neural pathways.

ls it a life-form?

lf it is,
it's the largest l've seen--

over 2,000 kilometers
in diameter.

What are you doing?

My earlier scans
revealed a vessel.

l'm trying to find it again.

Somebody else is stuck here?

Possibly.

There.

lt's heavily damaged,
but still functioning.

Alien vessel, respond.

This is the Starship Voyager.

Please respond.

l told you to stay away.

Why didn't you listen?

Our crew believed they were
returning to their homes.

Everything
they've always wanted, correct?

Yes.

He deceived them.

''He''?

l believe
we should work together

to escape this anomaly.

Lower your shields
and l'll beam you aboard.

Shields are the only thing
holding my ship together.

l'd be destroyed.

l will enhance
your shield emitters.

You won't fool me that easily.

l assure you
we are not a deception.

Oh, how convenient.

An enormous starship
comes to my rescue.

You might try
a more subtle approach.

My scans indicate
that your shields will fail

in approximately 15 minutes.

Join us, or you can
remain on your vessel,

secure in the knowledge
that you were not deceived,

but that knowledge will do you
little good when you are dead.

Decide now.

All right.

All right!

l'm taking my shields down.

Ow!

You look real enough,
but over the years,

he's made me believe
many things are real--

a fortune at my fingertips,

good friends
risen from the dead.

You're referring to the anomaly
we've entered.

''Anomaly''?

lt's a beast.

Cunning, deadly.

What does it want?

You...

your ship...

antimatter, biomatter.

He consumes it.

Everyone believed
it was a wormhole.

Hmm, telepathy...

psychogenic manipulation.

He senses your thoughts,
your desires,

and then he preys on them.

Like a pitcher plant.

Pitcher plant?

The Doctor taught me about it
in botany class.

lt catches insects
by mimicking pheromones.

Yes, you're right,

but this one
doesn't eat insects.

He eats starships.

You are familiar
with this life-form?

Familiar? l've been hunting it
for nearly 40 years.

And have you become impervious
to its telepathy?

Almost, but there are days
when he can still trick me.

Like yesterday.

l thought l had found a way
to kill him once and for all.

l'd allow him
to begin consuming my ship,

and then l'd fly directly
to his most vulnerable system--

his primary neural plexus. Boom!

l'd destroy him
from the inside out.

But he knew.

He showed me
what l wanted to see.

l was nowhere near
his neural plexus.

l was flying directly
into his digestion chamber.

And speaking of digestion...

How do we get out
of the monster?

lt's not a monster.

lt's a bioplasmic organism,
and we will find a way out.

No.

The girl's right.

He's a monster

and the only way out
is to destroy him.

Please state the nature
of the medical emergency.

Your ship is being devoured.

l'd say that's an emergency.

The monster ate his ship, too.

''Monster''?

l want to see
your weapons manifest.

''Weapons''?

This is a Sick Bay,
not an arsenal.

What's going on?

Voyager has been lured
into the digestive chamber

of a bioplasmic organism.

We require your assistance
in charting an escape route.

Slow down. The last
thing l remember

l was speaking to Mr. Paris.

He said the wormhole posed
a threat to my program.

The beast has been
manipulating your crew.

The moment he realized you were
beginning to suspect something,

he made sure
you were deactivated.

And who might you be?

The local monster expert?

As a matter of fact, l am.

He's been fooling you for days,
creating false sensor readings,

and he's been altering
your crew's thought patterns--

a little neurogenic telepathy
to make them lower their guard.

That might explain
the heightened dopamine levels

l found during my ''routine
examinations'' of the crew.

Have you informed the Captain?

She's asleep.

Asleep?

lt's our proximity
to the creature.

The neurogenic field
is stronger here.

lt's already rendered
most of the crew unconscious.

Does your vessel's database
contain information

on the creature's anatomy?

Of course.

Retrieve it.

ln the meantime, let's work
on a wake-up call for the crew.

Computer, increase

neurotransmitter levels
by 29 percent.

A cortical inhibitor?

l thought it might disrupt
the organism's hold on her.

lt won't.

l already tried
a similar procedure.

l don't remember asking
for a second opinion.

lt's working.

She's regaining consciousness.

Doctor.

You're being exposed to
a powerful neurogenic field.

You've been unconscious
for several hours.

They're here.

Who?

The Maquis.
They're alive!

B'Elanna,
you're still on Voyager.

You're hallucinating.

Starfleet thinks
you've all been killed.

Computer, increase
neurotransmitter levels

another ten percent.

What happened?

B'Elanna, focus on my voice.

She doesn't want to.

They never want to.

lt's the silence l hate...

the way he takes you
without a fight.

lt was the same way
with the Nokaro.

A crew of nearly 3,000--
families mostly, mine included--

looking for
a new world to settle,

but they came across
our friend here

and he showed them
what they wanted to see--

a glistening green paradise.

By the time l responded
to their distress call,

all that was left of them

was some fading
engine emissions.

That was 39 years ago.

39 years, two weeks,
four days...

Do you mind?

The situation is dismal enough.

l'm just trying to explain
who we're up against.

Well, l'm getting
a pretty good idea on my own.

Judging by these bio-scans,

the organism's been
devouring life-forms

for a bit longer than 39 years.

l'd estimate
it's at least 200,000 years old.

The intelligent always survive.

l wouldn't go that far.

lt appears to operate
on highly evolved instinct.

l haven't detected
any signs of sentience.

Oh, he's intelligent,
all right--

smart enough to fool your crew
into taking you off-line.

No need to get personal.

Seven.

l'm here.

Are we still inside the monster?

Yes, but we are going
to find a way out.

There!
This is it!

Exactly what we need.

These class-9 torpedoes
in your weapons manifest.

lf we can bring
your vessel deeper

into the creature's
digestive tract

and detonate one
of these charges,

we might be able
to destroy it.

Starfleet's not in the habit
of killing life-forms.

Even if that life-form
is about to kill you?

lf l could take a few hours

to examine the creature
more thoroughly...

There is no time.

We kill him!

Maybe there's another way.

Explain.

Any living organism,
no matter how large,

will attempt to expel
a foreign body.

lf we could just make
Voyager a little less tasty...

My scans indicate that your
weapons are tetryon-based.

lf you were to fire one
at a pocket of antimatter

released from our warp core,
it would produce

an electrolytic reaction.

Would that
make Voyager taste bad?

lt might at that.

Once l've beamed you
back to your ship,

try adjusting your shields
to this frequency.

You'll find them more resistant
to the bioplasmic discharges.

You seem to know
a little about everything--

medicine, exobiology,
shield harmonics.

l'm something
of a renaissance EMH.

l could use a crewmate like you.

The beast would have
a difficult time

manipulating
a hologram's desires.

An lshmael to your Ahab?

No, thank you.

You're turning down
the hunt of a lifetime.

As appealing as that sounds,

l'm a doctor,
not a dragon slayer.

My program requires
that l do no harm.

Shame.

Qatai's vessel is ready.

l've rerouted Bridge controls
to Engineering--

ops, tactical, helm--
all integrated into one station.

Efficient.

l thought you'd like it.

l'm plotting a course

for the organism's
esophageal aperture.

Prepare to release
the antimatter.

Hull integrity's dropped
another 13 percent.

Doctor.

Ready on my end.

Voyager to Qatai.
Prepare to fire.

Wait! Wait!

No, no. No, no, no.

What's wrong?

That last jolt

must have destabilized
my targeting sensors.

l could establish an interface
to Voyager's targeting array.

Don't bother.
l know my ship.

lt's just being stubborn.

Ah!

Ready.

lnitiate the burst on my mark.

Now.

Like the taste of that?

l'm reading violent contractions

throughout
the digestive chamber.

lt's working.

We're moving back through
the esophageal aperture.

Voyager has been expelled.

We're 3.9 kilometers
from the organism.

After just one burst?

For a big fellow,

he certainly has a low tolerance
for tummy ache.

Qatai's vessel was
also released.

Hail him.

Why haven't you ejected
a second burst?!

We've cleared the organism.

You've been deceived!

We're both still inside it!

He's right.

l'm reading bioplasmic energy.

l am impervious
to the creature's influence.

You were impervious

when it was creating
the illusion

of Voyager getting home

because you didn't
share that desire,

but now we're trying to escape,
which is what you want.

Think about it!

He's showing you
exactly what you want to see.

Seven!

lnitiate
another antimatter burst.

Now.

Fire.

There.

We're out.

Are we certain?

No sign of bioplasmic energy.

We've escaped.

l'm taking us out of range.

Maximum warp.

l'd better see to the crew.

Well, l'll be on my way.
Thanks for your help.

Your engines have taken
heavy damage.

You require our assistance.

No time.

The beast is
already altering course.

l'll handle the repairs myself.

The procedure would take
several days.

Don't worry about me.

Just get your ship home.

And watch out
for pitcher plants.

Location?

We're still
in the Delta Quadrant.

Scan the wormhole.

Find out what went wrong.

lt's gone.

l can't find it on sensors.

Captain.

Bridge controls
have been routed

to Engineering--
ops, tactical, helm-- all of it.

Bridge to Engineering.

Yes, Captain.

Seven? What's going on?

The Doctor will explain.

l will file a complete report
in the morning

after l have regenerated.

Captain's Log, Stardate 52542.3.

We've deployed
a series of beacons

to warn other vessels
about the bioplasmic creature

and resumed a course for home--
our real home.

Naomi Wildman.

Don't worry.

My presence here is authorized.

By whom?

Mom.

She thinks l need to
learn more about Earth.

l see.

And does studying this image

increase your desire
to go there?

Not really.

l concur.

lt is unremarkable.

But my mom likes it

and even Neelix can't wait
to get there,

so l guess
it can't be that bad.

Given this crew's determination
to return home,

l have no doubt we will
see it for ourselves someday.