- Shuttlecraft Dawkins to Jupiter station. - Go ahead.
Lieutenant Reginald Barclay requesting permission to dock.
Granted.
- What? What is it? - It's me, sir. Reg Barclay.
Come in.
Doctor Z? How are you?
- Nice of you to finally drop by. - I've been extremely busy.
The Pathfinder project.
You're still searching for that ship? What's it called? Pioneer?
- Voyager. - Voyager. Any luck?
We're on the verge of a breakthrough. A communications link.
Congratulations. The first transgalactic phone call.
Is there any word from Starfleet Medical?
Doctors.
I've been scanned a hundred times and they still can't tell me what's wrong.
I'm dying, Reginald. And there's nothing anybody can do about it.
Seven of Nine to the bridge.
We're receiving a transmission from Starfleet.
Route it here.
It's a compressed datastream,
badly degraded.
On my way.
They say good things come in small packages.
This is all the data they could send us... until next month.
Next month?
They're using a cyclic pulsar
to amplify signals from the MIDAS array.
The cycle only peaks every 32 days.
So once a month we'll be able to receive
a short burst of information.
We'll have about 17 hours to respond.
So far we've got tactical updates, letters,
and news about the Alpha Quadrant.
- Have they found us a shortcut home? - It doesn't look that way.
We don't have much time to prepare a response,
but I want to give everyone an opportunity to send something.
- Inform the crew. - Yes, ma'am.
Lieutenant Barclay, Pathfinder. They didn't give up on us.
So when you write those letters, you might want to thank them.
- Mail call. - A letter? For me?
It's from Lieutenant Barclay.
- Bad news? - Lewis Zimmerman is seriously ill.
- Zimmerman? - The father of modern holography.
He invented the matrix that made my program possible.
What's wrong with him?
"Suffering from acute subcellular degradation.
"The doctors are having trouble finding the cause.
"I've included his medical files. The prognosis isn't good.
"He's only got a few months.
"I'm sorry I don't have better news, but I thought you'd want to know."
- How well did you know him? - I've never met the man.
If you'd like to send a response, the captain will need it by 1900 hours.
- Here's the information you requested. - Thank you.
You're reviewing his medical data.
I thought I could send Starfleet a second opinion.
Maybe my experiences could provide some insights.
These Borg regeneration techniques might help them develop a treatment.
You bear a striking resemblance.
He used his own physical parameters as a model for my matrix.
Can't say I blame him. A doctor needs to inspire confidence in his patients.
Compassionate eyes and a strong chin can go a long way.
I believe I can help him, Captain. You remember the Vidiians?
The early stages of the phage are very similar to Dr Zimmerman's disease.
I can adapt various Borg regeneration techniques to arrest the cell damage,
maybe even reverse it.
Make sure to pass along your findings. Thank you, Doctor.
- I hoped to administer the treatment. - What are you suggesting?
I'd like you to send my program back to the Alpha Quadrant.
It would take the doctors at Starfleet
months to fully understand these techniques.
- You're needed here. - Mr Paris can take over sickbay.
He's more than capable.
We've done this before. There weren't any problems.
Three years ago and we used alien technology.
Seven of Nine believes we can compress my program.
If we send you, there won't be room for anything else.
I realise I'd be asking the crew to make a sacrifice,
but they can wait another month. Dr Zimmerman might not have that time.
I'm sorry he's not doing well.
I met him once at a conference.
He offended just about everyone, but he was certainly brilliant.
I'm sure Starfleet is consulting their best physicians.
They are, but no one's been able to develop a cure. I have.
But I can't treat a patient who's 30,000 light years away.
This is the first time we're sending a response. It might not get through.
- I'm willing to take that risk. - I'm not.
He programmed me. Every algorithm, every subroutine.
If it weren't for his work, I wouldn't be here.
I owe him something. And, frankly, so does this crew.
He's responsible for every life I've saved.
Lewis Zimmerman designed the template for Starfleet's EMH.
You're one of thousands. It's not as though he's your father.
From your perspective.
From mine, he's the closest thing I've got.
If I don't try to help him now, I may never get the chance.
You'll have to convince Tom to take those duty shifts.
He's already agreed.
Tell him Captain Jane said hello. It's what he called me at the conference.
I've heard he can be difficult.
I certainly hope you get a chance to find out.
Thank you, Captain.
- My vocal processor. - It's not a malfunction.
I've removed your singing algorithms. They'll be stored until you return.
Your program's too large. I have to extract all non-essential subroutines.
They're essential to me. They're part of who I am.
Are you planning to perform opera during your visit?
- Will you be reciting poetry? - Doubtful.
- Hoverball? Holophotography? - I may want to take a few snaps.
- Sexual activities? - I get the point.
- How much has to be left behind? - 12 megaquads.
You could get rid of my athletic abilities and my grand master chess program.
That leaves three megaquads.
- Your painting skills? - Oh.
If you must. Try to leave a few of my enhancements intact.
I don't want to look like every other EMH on the block.
Dr Zimmerman will be interested to see what I've learned.
He probably never imagined what one of his creations could accomplish.
I could spark a whole new field in holographic research.
- Bon voyage. - See you in a month.
Don't get lost.
If I've told you once, I've told you a thousand times. Stay off the food.
Haley? What's the status of my lunch?
It's coming, Doctor.
As if things weren't bad enough. Now I'm dying of starvation.
Come in.
- Haley. - Mr Barclay. Is something wrong?
- Just the opposite. Is he in? - He's not taking visitors today.
- Tell him this is important. - He's in a prickly mood.
I brought something with me that might cheer him up.
- Computer, is the download complete? - Affirmative.
Lunch.
- That's not pork chops. - It's salad. It's healthy.
I'm dying. A piece of meat won't kill me any quicker.
Give the plants to Leonard. He's the one watching his weight.
Lieutenant Barclay is here to see you. He says it's urgent.
Can't it wait till I'm dead?
All right, send him in. He's got three minutes.
Be civil to him, Lewis. He's worried about you. We all are.
- I found a friend waiting for me at home. - You don't have any friends.
Well, I guess you could say he's a friend of yours.
Please state the nature of the medical emergency.
An EMH Mark 17? I'm not in the mood for nostalgia, Reginald.
But this is the Mark 1 from Voyager.
I was compressed into a datastream and transmitted from the Delta Quadrant.
Congratulations. I recommend a tour of Jupiter's third moon.
I'm not here for a vacation. I'm here to treat your illness.
You brought a Mark 1 30,000 light years to treat me?
I was wrong about you, Reginald. You do have a sense of humour.
- Care to let me in on the joke? - You didn't tell him?
- Tell me what? - Well, I...
You're obsolete, extinct. Yesterday's news.
- My program was retired? - Retired? Not at all.
The EMH Mark 1 was reconfigured to scrub plasma conduits
on waste transfer barges.
I've been treated by the Mark 3, 4 and the finest doctors in Starfleet.
None of them could help me!
He has been running almost continuously for six years.
He has seen more things than most doctors could even imagine.
I also have an exceptionally high tolerance for difficult patients.
- I didn't program you for sarcasm. - You'll find I'm full of surprises.
Show the Doctor to the plasma generator. There's a build-up of residue.
If we had time, I'd enjoy trading barbs with you.
But right now there's a more pressing concern. Your life.
I'm working on a treatment based on a disease I encountered,
but I'll need to run a complete analysis.
However, if you don't believe that a Mark I could have anything useful to offer,
I'll be happy to pack my bags and go explore those sulphur mines.
Go ahead. Scan away.
I'll be outside.
- What were your initial symptoms? - Radical hair loss.
Fatigue, nausea, joint inflammation.
You've been outside the solar system recently?
- What's that got to do with anything? - Just answer the question.
I haven't left Jupiter station in over four years.
You've been exposed to theta radiation?
No.
- Neutron flux? - Never.
You've had relations with a Bolian?
These are questions first year medical students would ask.
- I'm just being thorough. - "Just being thorough."”
- Did that creature just speak? - His name's Leonard.
- He's a hologram. - Computer, deactivate iguana.
- How dare you? - I'm a doctor, not a zoo keeper.
- Has there ever been an epidemic... - Enough questions!
- Finish your scans and get out of here. - Doctor!
I travelled across the galaxy to treat you. At least show a little gratitude.
- Thank you. Get out of here! - You need me.
Like hell. I brought your matrix into this world and I can take it out.
I have exceeded my original programming.
- I'm no longer under your control. - Really?
Computer, transfer EMH to the living quarters.
How did it go?
- Power up the array. I'm leaving. - What happened this time?
I ran a mitochondrial scan. There was something odd about the results.
I spent an hour analysing them and what did I discover?
He's a Vulcan marsupial. He reconfigured my tricorder!
- You find that amusing? - A little. Well, not really.
- Sounds like you're making progress. - How?
- He only teases people he likes. - Then he must love me.
I take it that you still haven't been able to diagnose him?
On the contrary. The patient is suffering from an acute case of arrogance!
- That's Roy. - Don't tell me. A hologram?
Commissioned by Starfleet Intelligence, an experiment in micro-surveillance.
Dr Z keeps it around as a sort of a pet.
Undercover insects, talking iguanas. This isn't a research station.
It's a three-ring circus.
You should charge admission.
We can't send you back for another two weeks.
So please, just keep trying.
I can't treat a patient who won't let me near him. He's deranged.
What he needs is a counsellor.
Finally I've accomplished something.
I thought you might be able to provide some insight.
It's not that simple, Reg. Dr Zimmerman sounds like a complex individual.
I'd need to speak to him in person.
Maybe I could get him to agree to counselling.
The Enterprise is on a mission. We're nearly seven light years from you.
- An important mission? - They're all important, Reg.
I could refer you to a colleague of mine on Earth.
I need the best, Deanna.
It would be an interesting challenge.
Thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
I'll still need to clear this with Captain Picard.
If he agrees, I might be able to be there by early next week.
I'll see you then.
Come in.
Good morning.
- Problem? - I haven't decided.
I've just listened to a communiqué from Admiral Hayes.
Nice to have friends in high places.
Hello, Captain. I hope this message finds you well.
It has not been easy,
but a lot of people here are very proud of what you've accomplished.
We have not given up finding a way to get you home.
We've redirected two deep space vessels toward your position.
They could rendezvous with you in the next five to six years.
Computer, advance to time index 121.4.
...as we get closer and our conversations become more frequent.
When you respond to this message, please let us know of any casualties.
I'm anxious to know of the status of your crew,
the Maquis, first contacts you've made, interactions with the Borg.
But there'II be time for everything.
Our thoughts are with you. Talk to you soon.
- What? - "Status of the Maquis.”
Do you find that surprising?
I don't think of you or B'Elanna or the others as Maquis.
I think of you as part of my crew.
You may have forgotten, but we haven't.
It'll be years before we have to deal with those issues.
- Let's worry about it then. - Do you have lunch plans?
Is that an invitation?
I was hoping you'd help me compose a response.
You're on.
Doctor, your lunch is ready.
- Are you all right? - Fine, Haley. Fine.
Give me a few minutes.
Lower.
Perfect. I needed this.
You have no idea what I've had to endure these past few days.
Last night, I woke up
and I found him hovering over my bed with a hypospray.
A smattering of photons, that's all he is.
What's that?
A tricorder? You were scanning me?
Computer, realign Voyager's EMH.
- You! - Outbursts will aggravate your condition.
- You are aggravating my condition! - If you'd let me examine you...
- I'll report you to Medical Ethics. - Doctor!
- Save it for your hearing! - I'm only trying to help!
Why won't you leave me alone?
Because, for reasons beyond my comprehension, I care about you.
You weren't programmed to care. You were programmed to hold a scalpel.
I'm not the same EMH you created six years ago.
Of course. You can sing and dance. I should install you in a nightclub.
Voyager appreciates my attempts to expand my program.
This isn't Voyager. It's my lab.
And in my lab, you're still just a hologram!
A hologram you created. A hologram who owes you his existence.
Is that what's keeping you here? Some twisted sense of obligation?
Let me assure you, you don't owe me anything.
Doctor? You have a visitor.
Hello. I'm Deanna Troi.
Which one of you is Dr Zimmerman?
Deanna Troi. Another one of your tricks?
- Excuse me? - He thinks you're a hologram.
I can assure you I'm quite real.
The last beautiful woman to walk in here turned out to be him.
I'll take that as a compliment.
- Did I come at a bad time? - Your timing couldn't be better.
The patient is suffering from acute anxiety, associated with terminal illness.
It's made him agoraphobic, paranoid and extremely antagonistic.
I see.
- Mind if I sit down? - Please.
Reg tells me you won't let the Doctor help you.
He's a Mark 1, obsolete. I'd be safer in the hands of a Klingon field medic.
I understand he's developed a promising treatment.
For a Borg drone. He's threatening to use a ghoulish assimilation technique.
You won't even look at my research.
You've berated me, treated me like an antique.
Antique or not, I took a huge risk coming here.
I had to plead with my captain, leave my ship without a surgeon.
Doctor, imagine that your program was seriously damaged
and the only person who could repair you was an engineer
from, say, 100 years ago. Would you feel comfortable with that?
If he were skilled, intelligent, creative.
Honestly, Doctor? A hundred years ago?
- I suppose it would give me pause. - Huh.
Now, put yourself in the Doctor's shoes.
Imagine you had to treat someone you cared about, an EMH Mark 12.
- There is no Mark 12. - But if there were.
And you wanted to save his program. He wouldn't let you near him.
He wouldn't care you won the Daystrom prize for holography.
From his perspective, you'd be out of date.
But what if you knew you could save him?
Thank you, counsellor, for extending that olive branch.
I'm willing to see past our differences, if he is.
All right.
He can start by purging the plasma conduits on deck 6.
- Dr Zimmerman. - I will not put my life in his hands.
You'd need a drill to get through that thick skull.
Get out! Spare us your psychobabble.
I came here thinking that you were opposite sides of the same coin,
identical but different.
Now I see you're both exactly the same.
You're both jerks.
Jerks.
You called the wrong counsellor, Reg.
You'll figure something out.
Things are worse now than when I arrived.
Lewis won't come out of his lab and the EMH is hiding in a holodeck.
He's feeling homesick. I let him use my Voyager simulation
and it seems to be cheering him up.
A hologram fighting to save the life of his creator,
who just so happens to be the same man his own personality is based on.
I'd need a whole team of therapists just to get them in the same room.
Mr Barclay says this is your favourite ice cream.
I hardly deserve it, but thanks.
- You're a hologram. - How do you know?
I'm an empath. I haven't sensed any emotions from you.
- When were you first brought on-line? - Nine years ago.
No offence, but you're more antiquated than the EMH Mark 1
and yet Lewis seems to listen to you. Why do you suppose that is?
Were you here when the Mark 1 was created?
Yes.
Any idea why Lewis made it in his own image?
- Maybe you should ask him. - I did.
He evaded the question. I was hoping you might know.
He was extremely proud of the Mark 1.
He used to dream about hundreds of holograms saving lives.
He put so much of himself into its development.
I suppose it seemed natural that it should look like him.
But the Mark 1 failed to meet Starfleet's expectations.
He was devastated.
He locked himself away for two years trying to repair the defects.
Finally, he just gave up, started from scratch. A whole new matrix.
- The Mark 2. - Followed by the Mark 3.
And then the Mark 4. He was obsessed with perfecting it.
But none of the later models resembled Lewis.
He wasn't about to make that mistake again.
And now, after all this time, a Mark 1 shows up.
It must be like staring in a mirror
at a reflection you don't want to remember.
Computer, resume recording.
Last will and testament, Dr Lewis Zimmerman.
Let's see, where were we?
Subsection 8. The Trojan Horse project.
I hereby bequeath my latest research
in holographic infiltration technology
to the only engineer I trust to complete the work,
Lieutenant Reginald Barclay.
Subsection 9, holographic art.
I hereby bequeath my entire collection,
including the 21st-Century masterpiece "Woman in Four Dimensions"...
...to the person who has appreciated it the most.
I guess that would be Reg Barclay, too.
Subsection 10.
Haley.
I realise she's only a hologram,
but she's been a loyal assistant for many years.
I'd like to request that Starfleet keep her program running
for as long as this research facility exists.
She's been as real to me as anyone I've ever known.
Not that I've known many people.
I have created most of my friends.
Pause recording.
Don't worry. I'll find a home for you, too.
- So this is Voyager? I like it. - It's a remarkable facsimile.
But Mr Barclay did get a few details wrong. Neelix doesn't purr.
That may be because of Reg's cat. He named it after your friend.
Neelix would be honoured.
I've nearly finished updating Dr Zimmerman's medical files.
Maybe the next physician will put them to better use.
Actually, I stopped by to ask you to dinner.
- I'm a hologram. I don't eat. - But we'd still enjoy your company.
- "We"? - Lieutenant Barclay, Haley, myself...
- Dr Zimmerman. - No, thanks. I'm not interested.
It's the perfect opportunity for us to talk things out.
- Just one meal. - I said no. Something's wrong.
Troi to Lieutenant Barclay. There's something wrong with the EMH.
- Can you be more specific? - She's a counsellor, not an engineer.
Stand by.
- What's happening to me? - Your program is destabilising.
They sent you 30,00 light years. I should have expected some problems.
It's not your fault, Mr Barclay. We just need to find a way to repair the damage.
You don't understand.
Your primary matrix is degrading and there's nothing I can do.
- Good riddance to bad photons. - He's dying, Lewis.
He's not dying. His files are just degrading.
People on Voyager count on him.
Send them a Mark 4.
They don't want a Mark 4. They want their friend.
No EMH was designed to be a friend. He's just a hologram.
Is that how you feel about me? Just a hologram?
I will not be ambushed in my own lab.
Stardate 53292. My program malfunctioned.
You cancelled a lecture on Vulcan to repair me.
There's nothing worse than a room full of pointy-eared blowhards.
I was looking for an excuse to get away.
You came back because you cared about me,
just like you care about the Mark 1. You just won't admit it.
He may not be perfect, but he's still one of your creations
and right now he needs his creator.
Don't turn your back on him.
Computer, activate Voyager's EMH.
- State the nature of the emergency. - You're the emergency.
- Where's Lieutenant Barclay? - You're in far more capable hands.
- You're going to repair my program? - Who better?
You threatened to decompile me.
That was before your colleagues made me feel guilty.
You're in no condition to perform delicate procedures.
I'll survive. But you won't if you don't relax and let me finish.
What are you doing?
My scans identified a recursive error in your pattern buffer.
Is that a fractal algorithm?
Very good. I'm using it to realign your matrix.
- Fractal algorithms are unstable. - In the hands of a novice.
- Whoops. - What's "whoops"?
Computer, deactivate EMH.
I... I can't move.
I know. I had to take your mobility subroutines off-line.
- How long have I been deactivated? - 17 hours.
I'm resetting your parameters.
- You don't look well. You need rest. - I'm fine.
And so are you. Your program's been stabilised.
- I'm going to be OK? - No, you're going to be better than OK.
Now what are you doing?
Welcome to sickbay. How may I help you today?
- What do you think? - You've altered my greeting.
That's just the beginning. I've also added new subroutines
for compassion, patience, empathy, decorum.
- I don't feel any different. - Because I haven't installed them yet.
I thought you'd like to be awake for the big moment.
Reginald was right about you. You have exceeded the sum of your programming.
You've accomplished more than I would have predicted. But let's face facts.
You never overcame the inherent flaws in your personality subroutines.
You're arrogant, irritable. A jerk, as counsellor Troi would say.
- She was describing you, as well. - Don't change the subject.
I can't turn you into a Mark 4, but I can make you a bit more presentable.
What if I'm happy with the way I am?
- I'm doing you a favour. - I don't want any favours.
- Why can't you accept me as I am? - Because you're defective!
"Emergency Medical Hotheads".
"Extremely Marginal Housecalls". That's what everyone called the Mark 1's
until they were bounced out of the medical corps.
I tried to have them decommissioned, but Starfleet overruled me
and reassigned them all to work waste transfer barges.
That's where you'd be, too,
if you hadn't been lost in the Delta Quadrant.
Do you know how humiliating it is
to have 675 Mark 1's out there
scrubbing plasma conduits,
all with my face?
I'm sure they're doing a fine job.
- What are you doing? - I'm trying to do my job.
If you give me a chance, you'll see that I'm pretty good at it.
Frankly, I'd hoped that if we ever met,
you'd be proud of me.
Well...
I guess it is comforting to know
that at least one of you is still doing what I designed you to do.
Your intercellular proteins are at a dangerous level.
We should begin the procedure.
Please, give me a chance to make you proud of me.
Maybe we could try it, see how it goes.
See how it goes.
Just don't expect me to put you in my will.
I'm going in. They have been in there for 32 hours.
Be patient.
- You're not fritzing any more. - No thanks to you.
Dr Zimmerman ran a diagnostic and made a very interesting discovery.
Apparently, I was the victim of foul play.
What do you mean?
He found an algorithm designed to disrupt my matrix.
You wouldn't know anything about that, would you?
Traditional therapy wasn't getting us anywhere.
Well, your little scheme worked.
Dr Zimmerman has agreed to the regeneration procedure.
It requires more treatments, but I'm optimistic he'll make a full recovery.
- Trying to steal my secrets? - Another one of my hobbies.
I thought I'd take home a few memories.
- You're supposed to be in bed. - I've got work to do.
It can wait. Go to bed. Doctor's orders.
I hope you won't be coming back next month
to make sure I'm taking my medicine.
My captain's not likely to authorise another house call.
Good.
The next time she sends a datastream,
you might want to drop me a line, let me know how you're doing.
If you insist.
Ready?
- Would you mind? - Not at all.
Smile.