Danny Amor's Online Library/Danny Amor's Online Library - Volume 1.iso/html/startrek/incomplete/inhisimage.p1-3.from.author

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From: [e-mail] (JoAnne Soper-Cook)
To: [e-mail]
Subject: Story for the archive
Date: Sun, 28 May 1995 10:43:35 -0400

Dear Joseph: here is the first three parts of a new (non-adult content)
Trek Voyager story, "In His Image"  I'd like this added to the archive
along with my Q stories that you already have.
Thanks so much!
JoAnne

In His Image
(c) JoAnne Soper-Cook, 1995
A ST: Voyager Story

(Disclaimer: All characters the property of Paramount
corporation; otherwise, this story the sole property of the
author.  May be distributed freely but may not be altered.)

~~Author's Note:  First and foremost, I would like to thank Laura
Bowen, whose idea this was in the first place, and who so very
kindly entrusted it to my hands.  I would also like to thank
Laura for her invaluable technical advice on holograms and
computer animation, which helped this psych major iron out the
sticky technical details so necessary to this story.  A huge
thank you is also owed to Stephan K. Zitz, MI Programmer
extrordinaire, for his kindness and patience in helping me figure
out that all-important 'paradigm shift' in the good Doctor's
holographic consciousness...these people are the real creators of
this story; I just happen to be the one seated in front of the
terminal.  Oh, and this story isn't related to any of the others
I've written previous to this. It is intended to stand on its
own.~~

Captain's Log, Supplemental:  We are currently in orbit around
Serini Six, a class-M planet rich in what Neelix says are
alternative food sources.  I have dispatched three away teams to
scout the area, and to secure provisions under Neelix's
direction.  Our energy reserves are at a premium, and I am eager
to supplement our food supplies in any way possible.  I hope that
this planet's indigenous flora will provide that supplement....

     Captain Kathryn Janeway switched off the recorder at her
elbow, just as the door to her ready room beeped cheerfully.
"Come!"  She saved her log entry, and slid the recorder into her
desk drawer, looked up to see Tuvok maintaining his usual
impassive stance in front of her desk.
     "Tuvok--what can I do for you?"
     The tall, staid Vulcan shifted one implacable eyebrow a
couple of microns and returned her frank gaze in silence.  "I was
not aware that Mr. Neelix had gone to the surface with the
others, Captain."
     Janeway grinned.  "I'm sorry, Tuvok.  I thought you'd been
informed."  She strode over to the replicator, spoke to it:
"Computer, a cup of vegetable broth, hot," waited until the cup
had been deposited before speaking again. " Would you like
something?"  And when he refused, "Our preliminary scans revealed
nothing threatening down there; the planet is, as far as we can
tell, completely uninhabited."  She took a grateful sip of her
soup, savoured the rich broth.  "What, exactly, are you worried
about?"
     "Mr. Neelix has not been trained in Starfleet
protocols...the last time he was on an away mission, he
deliberately disregarded the orders of Commander Chakotay, the
result being the *incident* with the V'dians...I am not certain
that allowing him to beam to the surface was appropriate
protocol, seeing as how he is a civilian."  This was one of the
longest speeches Tuvok had ever made, and at its conclusion, he
lapsed again into silence.
     Janeway resumed her seat behind the desk, laid her soup down
in front of her, and regarded him over her steepled fingers.
"Mr. Tuvok, are you questioning my judgement?"  The statement was
delivered lightly, a levity that was, of course, entirely lost on
Tuvok.
     "Not at all, Captain; I merely question Mr. Neelix's fitness
for such an endeavour---"
     He was cut off as the intercom beeped.  "Chakotay to
Janeway."  The first officer's voice was crisp, impassioned.
     "Janeway here."  She immediately slipped into command mode.
"What is it, Commander?"
     "The second team has run into trouble on the surface--Ensign
Quinn says they were attacked from orbit--some kind of forced
plasma beam.  They've beamed directly to Sickbay."
     "My God---" Janeway started up out of her chair.  "Total
casualties?"
     Chakotay paused, and Janeway could hear him mentally
tabulating losses.  "Five--two dead, three injured.  Oh, and one
of the injured is Mr. Neelix."
     "I see...Janeway out."
     Tuvok's bearing and posture shifted slightly; he appeared
more than ever to be leaning over Janeway from his position in
front of her desk...it was the Vulcan equivalent of 'I told you
so' and Janeway knew him well enough now to recognise it on
sight.  "I suspect your concern in this matter is now a moot
point, Tuvok."
     The tall Vulcan nodded imperiously.  "Indeed."


     The Doctor was immersed in setting Ensign Quinn's broken arm
with a regen brace, when the door hissed open, and the Captain
entered, practically at a run.  Her gaze took in the scene in
front of her, swept around the room to encompass the two still
forms shrouded in sheets near the far wall.  "Doctor?"
     "Captain--"  The Doctor paused, reset a control on the
brace, and turned to Ensign Quinn.  "I would like to see you in
here tomorrow, alright?"
     "When can this brace come off?"  Quinn, a young Irishman
with a permanently-ruddy face, had sustained superficial plasma
burns on one cheek, which gave him an odd, lopsided expression.
     "Not until I say it can come off...oh, and go get Kes to
dress that burn."
     He turned back to Janeway.  "As you can see, we are coping
with our losses here...Ensign Quinn seems to be the best case,
nothing more than a hairline fracture of the ulna and a plasma
burn...Lieutenant Marsh and Ensign Cho are both dead...forced
plasma beam.  Lieutenant Adams has sustained severe plasma burns
over most of her body, and will require extensive
reconstruction...and Mr. Neelix is in a coma."
     Janeway absorbed this blow almost without blinking, but the
skin around her eyes and mouth had tightened into a squint, and
her throat felt as dry as dust.  "From what range was this weapon
fired, Doctor?"
     He stared at her for a moment, his dark brows knitting in
the center of his forehead...  "Although the severity of their
wounds would suggest a short burst at close range, I'm afraid
this weapon was fired from orbit, Captain."
     Janeway blinked.  "Orbit?" she whispered.
     "Yes.  I'm assuming your surprise means that this vessel
didn't appear on sensors?"
     Janeway nodded dumbly.
     "Hmmm...must have been using the planet as a shield.  My
guess is that they were on the other side....probably why our
sensors didn't pick them up on the initial scans..."  His own
astute assessment of the situation didn't instill any surprise in
the Doctor's holographic mind; he knew that his programming was
flexible enough to make logical inferences.
     Janeway drifted over to where Neelix lay motionless on a
bio-bed...the pudgy Talaxian, her self-declared "morale officer"
lay pale and still.  His chest rose and fell in an almost-
imperceptible rhythm, and the instrument panel above his bed
dutifully beeped and whirred, recording all the pertinent
biofunctions.  "What happened to him?"  Janeway looked up as the
Doctor joined her.
     "Some kind of high-level stun--I would think--creates some
kind of blockage in the neural pathways.  Mr. Neelix was hit
pretty hard..."  He paused, tapped a couple of keys on the panel
above the bed, frowned at it.
     "Hit by whom?"  Janeway felt this situation spinning out of
her control.  "My God, Doctor! I send a few of my people down to
the surface on a perfectly innocuous mission and suddenly, we're
in the middle of a war we knew nothing about! What the *hell* is
going on?!"  She turned on her heel and strode away.
     The Doctor watched her go with an expression of
consternation.  "Was it something I said?"  He bent over Neelix,
took a quick reading with the tricorder. He had better inform
Kes...

     "In a coma? When, how? Doctor, you must tell me!"  She
pushed past his restraining hand and was instantly at Neelix's
side, bent over him, peering anxiously into his face.  "I want to
know who did this to him," she demanded.  "Who did this?!"
     "Kes..."  The Doctor put a gentle hand on her arm.  "All I
know is that he was hit with some kind of high-level stun while
he was on the surface.  It's not a technology we're familiar
with..."  He smiled, but his face was creased with worry...she
was the closest thing he had to a friend.  "You can stay with him
if you wish.  As far as I can tell, there's no neural damage.  He
should come out of it on his own."
     Kes nodded, suddenly ashamed of her brusqueness with him.
He'd never been anything but patient and gentle with her, and
now, clearly burdened beyond his programming by this situation,
he still had gentleness to offer her.  "I'm sorry."  She squeezed
his hand.  "Of course, you're right. I'd like to stay here until
he comes out of it, if I'm not in the way?"
     A flicker of pain crossed his face, too quick to detect, but
he felt it slice into him, deep inside.  What was it like to have
someone love you, he wondered, the way Kes loved her pudgy little
Talaxian?  What did that feel like?  "Of course you aren't in the
way," he said, with difficulty.  "I'll be in my office if you
need me."  He turned to go.
     "Doctor...?"  Kes caught his forearm in her hands and
pressed a quick kiss on his cheek.  "Thank you."
     That kiss made him undeniably miserable.

     Janeway reached the bridge just as the first barrage hit;
she was knocked sideways but managed to grab a railing and use
its leverage to get into her seat.  "Report!"
     Tom Paris' deft fingers danced on his console.  "Two ships
off the port bow, Captain...looks like V'Dians..."  He swiveled
in his chair, his handsome, boyish face sheened with the
intensity of the moment.  "They're powering up for another
barrage."  Paris clutched his console as another shock wave
rocketed the ship, slapping Voyager sideways, as if by a giant
hand.
     "Rear thrusters offline, Captain!"  Harry Kim's voice was
firm, but limned with a nervousness inherent in youth.  "And
we've got a hull breach on Deck Four..."  Kim peered at his
console, his Asian face a mask of control over his roiling
emotions.  "...Contained!" He crowed triumphantly.  He swayed as
Voyager rocked again.
     "Mr. Tuvok, return a phaser burst, aimed at their propulsion
systems."  Janeway was up out of her chair, pacing the bridge,
anger crackling along her skin like electricity. "I am getting
very tired of this little game."
     There was a pause, in which a bolt of power was sent
sizzling out of Voyager to smack into the first of the V'Dian
ships...the blast tore through the hull and ripped apart the guts
of the ship, and with a blinding flash, the alien ship exploded.
     "Target has been destroyed."  Tuvok's voice was a study in
composure, betraying nothing...the bridge crew watched the silent
dance of dispersing debris from the V'Dian vessel, and said
nothing.  Harry Kim darted a glance at Tuvok, seeking some crack
in that perfect facade, and finding none.
     "Mr. Kim, I think if you attend to your console you will
find that we have a breach in the ODN conduit on Deck Three..."
Tuvok's voice was ice, and he didn't look up.
     "Yes sir!"  Kim frowned at his console, cursing himself
mentally.  Damn Tuvok! This wasn't the first time that the Vulcan
had caught him out.  "Repair crew has been dispatched."  He
didn't look at Tuvok again.
     Janeway's voice, when she spoke, was crisp.  "Open a
channel."  She sat down in her chair, crossed one leg over the
other.  "This is Captain Kathryn Janeway of the Starship
Voyager...acknowledge."
     Nothing but silence greeted her.
     "This is Captain--"
     "I know who you are, Captain..."  A roiling lechery of a
voice suddenly crackled over the comm channel.  "I see that you
have destroyed one of our vessels...."
     "And you have killed two of my crew and seriously injured
the others! Just what is it you want?"
     "The planet below has been claimed by the V'Dian Sodality.
You are required to remove your presence from this sector or
face..."  The voice paused, then offered the final statement as
one might offer a treat for delectation. "...*consequences*"
     Janeway darted a glance at Chakotay, whose face was set in
inscrutable lines, and her eyes flamed anger.  "Now you listen to
me---"
     She was greeted by silence.
     "Channel closed, Captain."  Harry Kim dared not meet her
eyes.
     "Tuvok, get the remaining teams off the surface now! I want
a meeting of all bridge crew in one hour.  Commander Chakotay,
you have the bridge."  Janeway vaulted up out of her seat and
disappeared into her ready room.
     Only after she'd gone did anyone dare to speak, and it was
Tom Paris who offered a pithy morsel for their consideration.  "I
think the Captain is pissed off."
     Nobody answered him.

     Janeway went straight to the replicator and ordered a cup of
strong coffee, hot and laced with cream and sugar.  She was dimly
aware that she'd probably used up her replicator rations for the
next week, but she didn't give a damn.  This whole situation with
the V'Dians was becoming very rapidly ugly.
     She sat at her desk and reached for her log recorder.
"Captain's Log---"
     "Sickbay to Janeway."  The Doctor's voice filled her ears.
Oh, God! would it never end?
     "Go ahead, Doctor..." She pressed her palms to her forehead,
trying vainly to push back the ache that was rising there.
     "Captain, I've run into a problem here.  The remaining two
teams have beamed aboard, and there are numerous injuries among
them...I'm afraid I can't handle it all myself...Is there anyone
you can spare as a temporary medic?"
     Janeway's store of patience ran out, and unfortunately, it
ran out on the unsuspecting Doctor.  "I'm afraid we're under
attack, Doctor.  If you want extra help, you'll have to make it
yourself--Janeway out."

     The Doctor waited for a moment, to see if Janeway would
reactivate the intercom, and when no continuance of their
conversation was forthcoming, he was forced to admit failure in
his bid for an assistant.  Now what to do?  The Sickbay was
filled to capacity with wounded, and Kes was trying to help, but
was clearly occupied with Neelix.
     "What am I going to do?" He didn't realise that he'd
pronounced his plight aloud until his own voice echoed off the
walls of his office.
     'If you want extra help,' Janeway had said, 'you'll have to
make it yourself.'
     Ridiculous! And moreover, he didn't appreciate being
dismissed like that, what was Janeway thinking, that he could run
everything by himself?!
     Unless...
     A germ of an idea insinuated itself into his consciousness,
embedded itself there, and grew.
     If only he could make himself an assistant...
     Perhaps the idea wasn't so entirely outside the realm of
possibility.

     (to be continued...)




--
"I seem to have found myself aboard the Voyage of the Damned..."
---The Doctor, ST: Voyager---


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From: [e-mail] (JoAnne Soper-Cook)
To: [e-mail]
Subject: In His Image, part 2
Date: Sun, 28 May 1995 10:47:47 -0400

In His Image, Part II
(c) JoAnne Soper-Cook
(Disclaimer: All characters the Property of Paramount
Corporation.  Otherwise, this story is the property of the
author. Distribution is permitted, but please do not alter.)

     The Doctor sparkled into existence in the middle of a blank
holodeck, a black space marked out in yellow grids of glowing
light that delineated the parameters of the room.  It was an
unusual experience: he'd been here before, but not without some
kind of simulation having been run...it was *unsettling* to exist
in the middle of such artificial nothingness.
     He sighed once, looked around, and decided to begin
immediately.  'If you want help, you'll have to make it
yourself...'  Well fine, then, I will...
     He recalled paging the Captain this morning, to enlighten
her as to his intentions, as well as to secure the holodeck for
the entire day. He wasn't entirely sure why, but he preferred no
outside interruptions at this stage...he preferred to create in
solitude, and in silence....

     "Captain, please activate your Emergency Holographic
Channel.  I wish to speak with you."  He'd waited until he was
alone in his office before contacting her, to avoid any
awkwardness.  He desired no complications from the curiousity of
others, most notably Kes.  He knew she would want to assist as
soon as she found out, and he planned to delay that misplaced
kindness as long as possible.  Luckily, she was occupied with
caring for Neelix who, although still comatose, was recovering
from his injuries.
     "Yes, Doctor, go ahead."  Janeway seemed possessed of a
little more patience this morning, a condition probably directly
related to the disappearence of the V'Dians.  "What can I do for
you this morning?"
     "It's rather important--"  He bit his lip, forced himself to
go on, despite his nervousness.  This had suddenly, without
warning, become immensely important to him: what if she refused
permission?
"Is it about the situation in Sickbay, Doctor? Since the V'Dians
have so obligingly disappeared, I can spare a couple of people
for you. Shall I send someone down?"
     "Ah...no! Thank you Captain, but that won't be necessary."
He shifted a little in his chair, forced himself to look into the
monitor and meet her gaze.  "I was wondering...if I might be able
to use the holodeck for today."
     Janeway smiled, and her pretty eyes creased becomingly at
the corners.  "The holodeck, Doctor? You? I thought your last
adventure in their would have put you off for good."  When he
didn't respond to her invitation of repartee, Janeway continued.
"If you're planning to run a program, I don't see why not.  Mr.
Paris can help you program---"
     "--that won't be necessary, Captain."  He hastened to
disabuse her of this idea.  "I have everything already
programmed, I did it remotely." This last was a blatant lie: he
had no real idea of where to begin.  I...can't be sure how much
time I need, but I assure you that I can be reached, in case of
an emergency."  He waited, an agony of suspense.
     "Fine. You're overdue for a little time off.  Have fun,
Doctor. Janeway out."
     It had been that simple.  He congratulated himself on his
conversational prowess.  To all appearences, she didn't suspect a
thing...and likely wouldn't bother him further. With a quick word
to Kes, he was gone.


     ...And now that he was here, he ought to get started...
     "Computer, please create basic humanoid simulcrum,
unanimated female."  He watched as the humanoid template
appeared, noted it with satisfaction.  It was shorter than he,
and recognisably feminine by the exterior shape, but anatomically
it was a blank slate, an outline waiting to be sketched in.  It
stood, a blind puppet of holographic flesh, poised as if
listening for something, its head tilted slightly to the side.
The hands hung just below waist-level, and the bodily attitude
was entirely one of waiting.
     The Doctor consulted the padd in his hand, within which was
contained the sum total of personnel records for Voyager, which
he'd downloaded from the main computer.  With this, he hoped to
select the appropriate exterior for his creation, within the
boundaries of his own aesthetic, of course.  "Computer, add a
pair of eyes."
     "Please state colour and ethnic configuration."  The cool
voice of the computer prompted him to decide from amongst the
hundreds of samples on file, which simulated gaze would meet his
own.
     "Caucasian, medium sapphire blue. Brown eyelashes."  He
watched as his command took shape upon the face of the puppet
before him, and the mere addition of sight animated the
projection eerily...although it still did not move, it appeared
to be gazing at him, a mute query from the bald and lifeless
form.  He walked to within inches of the blank face and stared
into the eyes, watching for some flicker of sentience, but
knowing that his creation had not yet been given vital breath...
     The Doctor was becoming very unnerved, and for one moment,
considered canceling this entirely.  Perhaps it had been a very
bad idea, perhaps it was beyond his ken to animate a lifeless
holodeck creation, a computer-generated simulation...
     And then it blinked.  Standing toe-to-toe with him, the
glistening sapphire eyes blinked, and so startled was the Doctor
that he jumped back reflexively, stumbling over his own feet and
then *staring* with a world of concentration into the gleaming
blue orbs...
     The template did not move again.

     "Mr. Paris, how are we doing?"  Janeway left her chair and
came to stand behind Paris.
     "Just fine, Captain.  Moving on the same heading for Cirri
Four."  He turned to grin at her.
     "Excellent. Our scans indicate that the food supplies are
very good there.  We should have no problem finding fresh
vegetables."
Janeway felt considerably more relaxed, now that the V'Dian
threat had been dealt with.  Perhaps, if Cirri Four was of
clement climate, she might allow some shore leave.
     "Fresh vegetables. Great! Now if we could only find someone
to teach Neelix how to cook."  Paris turned back to his console,
smirking.
     "Mr. Paris..."  Janeway's curiousity was suddenly piqued by
a random thought, but she masked it.  "The Doctor requested
additional help yesterday, and I'm afraid I was a bit brusque
with him. I suspect he could still use an extra pair of hands.
Why don't you go down there and see what help you can offer?"
Janeway kept her voice level, but inside, she was *dying* to know
what the Doctor was doing. What would a holographic being--albeit
a sentient one--want with the holodeck?
     "Alright."  Paris stepped away from his console as
Lieutenant Mitchell moved in to relieve him.  He smiled at the
Captain as he passed and headed for the nearest turbolift.

     When he reached Sickbay, however, he discovered that except
for Kes and Neelix, it was deserted.  "Computer, activate
Emergency Holographic Medical Program."
     The disembodied voice of the computer issued coolly from the
speaker.  "That program has already been activated."
     "Huh?" Paris was thoroughly nonplussed, turned to Kes.
"Where's the Doctor?"
     Kes looked up from her seat near Neelix's bedside, and
turned quizzical eyes to Paris.  "You mean he isn't here?"
     "No...but he's apparently activated.  He hasn't suddenly
discovered a way to walk out of here, has he?"  Paris watched for
her smile, and it gladdened him when it came.
     "I don't think so, Tom!"  Kes laughed, and the laughter was
a relief after her days of worry and turmoil.  That was one of
the things she liked about Paris: his easygoing sense of humour.
It was surprising, really, given his personal history...his
personnel file listed several distinct episodes of depression,
which the attending physician (in one case, the holographic
Doctor on Voyager) had directly attributed to childhood trauma.
Apparently his father had been given to fits of violent rage....
     "Well, where is he?"
     "He might be on the holodeck.  I thought I heard him asking
the Captain for access earlier this morning. It makes sense,
since it has holographic projectors as well." She flashed him a
luminous smile. "You might try there."
     "Thanks, I will."  Paris leaned over the bed, peered at
Neelix. "How's he doing?"
     "Much better. The Doctor says Neelix should come out of the
coma on his own very soon."  Kes's slender fingers stroked the
Talaxian's cheek.
     "Great."  Paris patted her shoulder companionably, and left.
His curiousity was piqued by this new puzzle of the Doctor and
the holodeck: what could he be doing there?  It would be
interesting to find out, and might even reveal a previously-
hidden side of the Doctor's personality.

     The Doctor perused his handiwork thoughtfully, chin in hand.
To an onlooker, the gesture would have seemed so throughly human
that no doubt could have possibly existed as to his sentience.
Indeed, the Doctor was most human when he was alone.  "Computer,
create facial features as per the program Doctor One and add them
to the female simulation."  He watched as first a short, straight
nose appeared, then a pair of elegantly-arched brows to cover the
sapphire eyes...the computer added a delicate Cupid's bow of a
mouth and surmounted the face with a cap of short, pale hair.
The being was still inanimate, though, and in its present state,
resembled nothing more than a lovely, life-sized doll.
     He paused and walked around it slowly, gazing with keen
scrutiny at his progress thus far.  The face was fine: a little
flat and unanimated, but that could be nicely solved by some
last-minute adjustments.  There just remained the bodily
dimensions to create, and he could then move on to download the
necessary memory components that would provide the framework for
a simulated "mind."
     He was interrupted as the doors slid open, and he mentally
cursed himself for not initiating a privacy lock.  He turned at
the sound of measured footsteps to confront Tom Paris.
     "What are you doing here, Doc?"  Paris's eyes widened as he
saw the simalcrum, and he drew closer to take a look.  His gaze
moved from the lovely, inanimate face to the blank curves of the
template, and then to the Doctor.  "My God...what is it?!"
     The Doctor's mouth opened on nothing, and for a moment he
could only return Paris's astonished stare.  "Well, the Captain,
she---I needed more help in Sickbay and--"
     "Is that what you're doing here? Creating an assistant?"
Paris's hand moved to trace the line of the simulcrum's cheek.
     "Don't touch that!" The Doctor snapped, and then lapsed into
silence, shocked by the ferocity, the *possessiveness* of his own
reaction.  What the hell was going on with him?! It was just a
simulation, after all...
     "Sorry!"  Paris backed off, his hands raised to shoulder
height to show that no threat was intended.  He peered closely at
the Doctor.  "I'm sorry if I walked in on you...I honestly didn't
mean to interrupt your work."  He searched the Doctor's face.
"I'm sorry," he said again.
     "I...this is very personal for me."  The Doctor's gaze
traversed the grid-lined walls of the empty holodeck.  "It's
like...this is something of my own. I didn't want anyone to
know..."  He felt immensely foolish, having said it.  What was
wrong with him using the holodeck, anyway? It was certainly
available to members of the crew, and he was a member of the
crew, wasn't he?
     Paris felt very discomfited, as if he had stumbled upon some
very private part of the holographic man.  He supposed that in a
way, this was like having a child...something very special, very
personal. And he'd just waded right through the middle of it, in
his own inimitable way.  'You've got lousy timing, Thomas!' His
father's voice snarled inside his head, tugged unwilling up out
of long-buried memories. 'You're so goddamn stupid sometimes!'
     "I could help you..."  Paris ventured, tentatively.  "I know
a bit about...this sort of thing."  He was impaled on the
Doctor's gaze, a searching look.  "That is, if you wanted me to."
     "You want to help me?"  The Doctor looked away, allowed his
eyes to rest on the lifelike doll he had created.
     "Sure. The Captain told me to uh, give you a hand."
     "Alright...you're going to have to get Lieutenant Torres to
reconfigure the holographic emitters in Sickbay...I intend to
transfer...the...uh..."
     "I'll get right on it," Paris interjected hastily.  "But the
Captain'll have to be informed of this."
     "I know," the Doctor said miserably.  "I suppose I should
have told her myself."
     "I'll go down to Engineering to see if B'ellana can help us
out, and I'll check back with you later."  Paris tossed him a
sunny grin, and escaped.


     "He's making a WHAT?!"  Janeway's gaze flickered from Torres
to Paris, and back again.  "Who gave permission for this?"  She
could feel the tell-tale throb beginning behind her eyes, and
pressed a hand to her forehead.  "Janeway to Sickbay."
     "He's not there, Captain. He's still in the holodeck."
Paris bit his bottom lip.  As serious as this was, it was still a
very funny situation.  Who would have ever thought that their own
holographic doctor would have the urge to reproduce?  In the
right context, it was damned hilarious.
     "Mr. Paris, stop grinning."  Janeway paced the strip of
carpet in front of her desk.  "Who gave him permission for this?"
     Torres cleared her throat, darted a quick look at Paris.
"You did, Captain."
     "Explain yourself, Lieutenant."  Janeway's voice was a shard
of cold.
     "The other day, when the V'Dians attacked, the Doctor
contacted you asking for additional personnel in Sickbay.  You
told him---"
     "--that if he wanted help, he could make it himself."
Janeway pressed her fingers to her eyebrows.  The throb was
gaining in intensity.  "Who would have known he'd be so literal?"
     "He is a hologram, Captain."  Torres slid this in quickly,
her eyes on the floor.
     "And he's planning to transfer this...*creation* of his to
Sickbay? To act as some kind of backup?"
     "That's what he says."  Paris coughed, hid his grin behind
his hand.  "He's using a computer-generated humanoid template as
a base for it...he's doing very nicely,too."
     Janeway impaled him on a savage glance.  "Dismissed.  I will
deal with the Doctor myself."
     Paris and Torres fled.

     (to be continued...)

--
"I seem to have found myself aboard the Voyage of the Damned..."
---The Doctor, ST: Voyager---


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Subject: In His Image, part 3
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In His Image, part III
(c) JoAnne Soper-Cook, 1995
(Disclaimer: All characters the property of Paramount
Corporation. Otherwise, this story is the property of the author.
Distribution is permitted, but alterations are not.)

     Janeway's mind was a roiling mass of conflicting emotions as
she left her ready room and headed for the holodeck. Given what
Paris and Torres had told her, the Doctor was probably well along
in his creation of a holographic protegee.  God only knew what
shape that creation would take...there had been no documented
studies on what happened when a sentient hologram decided to
create another of its kind.  The closest parallel that Janeway
could think of was the case of the android Data, who had created
another Soong-type android using Federation technology.  The
legal and moral parameters in that case had never been made
clear: there had been an attempt to appropriate the "offspring"
android as Federation property, but before this could be
accomplished, her neural matrix had broken down, and the android
was deactivated.  If the Doctor's creation suffered a similar
fate, would Janeway herself be charged with the deactivation?
And what place, exactly, would this creation take among the crew
of Voyager?  It was a thorny question, and one which she'd have
preferred not to handle.  If they'd been within range of a
Starbase, it would have been simple to assemble a legal tribunal
which could sew the matter up easily and neatly. But in the Delta
Quadrant, there was no other source to which she could turn.
This problem was hers alone.

     "Computer, initate body template, program Doctor 2,
manipulational interface mode."  The Doctor had lost all sense of
time, working alone in the holodeck.  He had a vague memory of
Tom Paris having been here, and then a quick consultation with
B'ellana Torres about the holographic emitters in Sickbay...how
odd, and how very relaxing that all the petty annoyances of his
holographic existence seemed to melt away here, inside this
gleaming yellow grid.  He nodded in satisfaction as a glistening
net of pseudo-skin appeared around the body of his creation, a
shimmering synthetic layer that hovered over the template like a
halo.  This was going to be the most difficult part, he knew:
molding the exterior contours of the model to his personal
aesthetic.  He knew that the computer could simulate
physiological function (he himself was proof of this) but form
was much more tricky.  He would have to manipulate the simulation
himself, much as a sculptor would do with clay, in order to
achieve the desired appearence.  He could have had the computer
run a simulated "catalogue" of various physical forms,
superimposing each on the template in turn.  But that option left
him feeling strangely dissatisfied, somehow.
     His comm badge beeped peremptorily, jarring him out of his
creative reverie, and he tagged it with a silent curse.
     "Kes to the Doctor."  Her mellifluous voice immediately won
his attention.  "I thought you might like to know that Neelix has
regained consciousness."
     Damn! Of all the times for....  He chided himself bitterly.
He was a doctor, and a comatose patient had just awakened, and---
     "I see."  He darted a glance at his creation, reluctant to
leave it in an unfinished state.  "I'll be there shortly--in the
meantime, give him 5 ccs. of Galdirol, and some water if he wants
it.  Doctor out."  He closed the channel before she could respond
and turned to the silent template.  He was unaware of how much
time had passed while he'd kept his creative vigil here, but
suspected that he'd been here for most of the duty shift.  He
pondered the still figure for a moment, his gaze lingering on the
inanimate, sapphire eyes, the tidy cap of blonde hair.  He hated
to leave it.
     "Doctor, I would appreciate having been informed."  This
pronouncement came simultaneously with the opening swish of the
holodeck's heavy double doors, and he didn't need to turn around
to recognise the Captain's annoyed tone.
     "I can explain, Captain."  Suddenly, it was vitally
important that he be allowed to continue this project:  despite
her immediate displeasure, he had to win her approval.  It would
be unthinkable to discontinue at this stage; the creation of this
new holographic 'person' was very necessary, at some emotional
level that he had not yet examined.
     "You have my full attention, Doctor, please do so."  Janeway
took a slow turn around the silent figure, noting with a growing
sense of unease the gleaming sapphire eyes, the Cupid's-bow
mouth, the short, pale hair.  Her rational self was squealing
that this wasn't possible, the man who had done this was merely a
hologram, a projection of light held in a magnetic containment
field, a clever program....
     My God, she thought with a pang, he's made it to look like
Kes!  She studied it closer, it suddenly being extremely
necessary to disabuse herself of this perception.  She didn't
know what this meant, why he'd made it look the way it did...
     "You did this yourself, Doctor?"  Janeway forced herself to
look away from the simulcrum and at him.  His eyes were wide and
his face was set in something very like fear.  'But it's not fear
of reprisals from me' Janeway thought, wonderingly, 'he's afraid
I'm going to make him dismantle it.'  Her mind immediately
deduced exactly what this meant.
     "I assure you, Captain; I meant no harm, I was merely trying
to---"
     Janeway held up a hand, then pressed it to her forehead in
her characteristic gesture of frustration.  Damn!  If he were
only a nonsentient program, it would be so much easier to deal
with, but Janeway and everyone else aboard Voyager had long ago
given up on that line of reasoning.  "You've been
very...*overburdened* lately, haven't you, Doctor?"  She looked
at him over her lowered hand, and their was sympathy in her gaze.
     "Yes, I have...with the V'Dian situation, I..."  He lapsed
into silence.
     "And you came to me for help, and I refused you."  Janeway
remembered their frantic bid to rebuff the aggressive V'Dians,
the ensuing chaos on the bridge.  "I suppose I should have
expected something like this."  She gave him a wry grin.  "Is
there anything else you'd like to tell me about this?"  She
indicated the still figure that occupied the space behind them in
its posture of silent repose.
     The Doctor gazed deep into the Captain's eyes and trembled
for a moment on the edge of a truth too deep for him to admit.
He vacillated between revealing the seed of this creation to her,
and preserving himself in silence.  "I am lonely."  The words
trembled on the edge of existence for a moment, and solidified
into resolve.  "There is no one else on this ship who is like
me...everyone has...*friends*..."
     Janeway recoiled as if he'd physically attacked her, and
sagged under the weight of this very intimate revelation.  There
was a great silence while her mind tried to fit itself to the
contours of his statement, and he stood immobile in front of her
while her eyes searched his face.  "I'm so sorry."  It didn't
seem to be nearly enough, she knew this as soon as the words
escaped her careful control.  "I had no idea."  She was able to
break the look that had linked him and fasten her gaze instead on
the glowing yellow grids of the holodeck walls.  "Kes came to me,
you know...near the beginning of this mission...when we had begun
to suspect your sentience."  Janeway began a slow stroll around
the confines of the room, her boot heels marking her progress in
a measured cadence of soft clicks.  "She informed me that a
member of the crew was not having his needs met.  She informed me
that the crewmember in question was *you*."
     The Doctor's head jerked up suddenly, but he said nothing.
     "It would appear," Janeway said, drawing closer to him,
"that we have failed you more profoundly than I have realised,
Doctor."  She swallowed hard, looked at the gleaming tips of her
boots.  "You have my sincerest apologies."  Her hands came up and
squeezed both of his shoulders, and then apparently realising
that they were alone, she hugged him fiercely, her cheek buried
in his shoulder.
     The Doctor's arms went around her reflexively, and he held
her to him carefully, as if she might break.  For all her command
posture, the Captain was a tiny woman, and she felt so very small
and light in his grasp.
     'My God, he feels so *real*!' Janeway marveled silently,
before releasing him.  The warmth of him clung to her, and this
disturbed her, but in some arcane way that she was powerless to
fathom.  "That hug is off the record, Doctor!"  she patted his
arm and grinned.
     "Understood, Captain."  He watched her go, and then with not
a little regret, saved his new creation until he could come back
to it again.


     Tom Paris arrived at Sickbay with B'ellana Torres, both of
them ready to reconfigure the holographic emitters. Paris knew
that he was there only to observe and lend the occasional hand,
since this type of thing was clearly Torres' specialty, and it
was Torres who would perform the delicate calibrations necessary
to ensure that this room would support not one holographic life
form, but two.  All it would take in theory, Torres had told him,
were some simple calibrations to the omnidirectional holo diodes
that, lining both the walls of Sickbay and the holodeck, provided
the "environment" in which the Doctor (and later, his newly-
created protegee) could exist and move.
     "I have to reconfigure not only the optic section of the
diode, but also the forcebeam module."  Torres had already set to
her task, and Paris was careful to stay out of her way.  "We want
this new hologram to be seen, but we also want it to be able to
move around and manipulate objects in the same way the Doctor
does."
     A puzzling thought appeared to Paris.  "If you can
reconfigure those OHDs to support two holograms, then
theoretically, you could use them to project multiple Doctors?"
     Torres smiled slightly, a rather condescending expression
that clearly told of her amusement at his naivete.  "No.  The
Doctor's program is self-contained within his own memory matrix,
as will be the program of this new hologram.  If we wanted
another Doctor, we would have to program another simulation, or
find some way to copy his existing program."
     "Huh."  Paris digested this for a moment.  "Multiple copies
of the Doctor...now there's a thought."
     Kes left Neelix's bedside and came over to where they were
working.  "That looks interesting--what are you doing?"
     Torres cast a quick look over her shoulder at the petite
Ocampa.  "We're reconfiguring the holographic diodes in the
Sickbay to support two sentient holograms."
     Kes's brow wrinkled in puzzlement.  "*Two* holograms? What
do you mean?"
     "I'm getting lonely, dearest!"  Neelix's voice drifted to
them from one of the biobeds in the corner.  "Could--could you
come and talk to me?"
     Kes smiled.  "I'll be there in a minute, Neelix."  She
turned back to Torres and Paris.  "There aren't any other
holograms on board, except for the Doctor.  What other hologram
are you talking about?"
     Paris and Torres exchanged a look laden with meaning, and
then Paris spoke.  "The Doctor obviously didn't mention it,
but...he's been working on creating another hologram along the
lines of his own programming."
     Kes's mobile face brightened into a smile.  "How wonderful!
Is he creating another medical program?"
     "Uh, we're not sure..."  Paris smiled at her, turned as the
air just behind them shimmered and the Doctor sparkled into
existence.  "Hey, Doc..."
     Kes was at his side immediately.  "Doctor! Tom just told me
the news! I think it's wonderful that you've decided to replicate
your own program.  So tell me: how is it progressing?"
     Neelix heard this exchange, and raised himself on his
elbows.  "Another hologram? Heh-heeeh! Doctor, you've been a
naughty boy!"
     The Doctor turned and withered the pudgy Talaxian with a
gaze, swept past Paris and Torres and headed towards his office.
"I'll be in here if anyone...*needs* me."
     He was trembling when he seated himself in his chair, and he
laid his head in his hands for a moment.  He was experiencing a
variety of very human emotions, each chasing on the tail of
another and he was at a loss to sort them out.
     "Doctor?"
     He looked up at the sound of Kes's gentle voice, and his
misery was compounded a hundred-fold...  "Yes?"
     "I thought you might wish to examine Neelix."  She came into
the office and stood before him, her hands folded demurely behind
her, her face a study in empathy.
     "Neelix...yes, I ought to examine Neelix."  He had been so
absorbed in this *project* of his that he'd neglected his most
basic medical duties...
     "Doctor, is there something bothering you?"  Kes restrained
him with a gentle hand on his arm.  "Because I think you're very
troubled about something, and I'd like to know what it is."
     It was difficult to ignore the imploring tone of her voice
and impossible to disregard the kindness in her face.  "I..."  He
faltered into silence.  "I'm sorry. I'll go examine Neelix now."
     "But Doctor---"
     He ignored her.

(to be continued...)

--
"I seem to have found myself aboard the Voyage of the Damned..."
---The Doctor, ST: Voyager---