"I am going to confiscate his emitter and restrict him to sick bay. Maybe disable his audio subroutines." Captain Janeway let the padd slip from her hands and fall to her desk. "Or I could put Tom in charge of sick bay." She stared at the other two occupants of her ready room. "I am not joking."
The ship was safe. The bizarre incident with the sentient holographic Hirogen prey was over. Tuvok stood ramrod straight as always but Chakotay kept shuffling his feet. Right now he refused to make eye contact with her.
"He clearly disobeyed orders. He nearly cost us our Chief Engineer...and we came close to having an all-out war with the Hirogen. I have to do something. He can't be allowed to just go off on his own like that!" she said.
"He thought he was protecting the Holograms," Chakotay said. He finally looked up from the floor to her eyes. "He had no way of knowing that one of them would evolve into a cult leader. He had the best of intentions when he set off."
"I understand that. I sympathized with that. I even told him so but in doing what he did he put the lives of the crew at risk. I simply cannot overlook it. There must be ways to punish a hologram. I can't just confine him to the brig. I could confine him to a holodeck scenario he would find unpleasant where he can't deactivate himself. For a month."
Tuvok and Chakotay locked eyes for a moment. Chakotay immediately looked away.
"Might I remind the Captain that long-term confinement is not part of Federation Policy," said Tuvok.
"Just like you did last time?" She gave him a long cold stare. " These are extraordinary circumstances."
"Aren't they always?" Chakotay asked. His words were harsh but his tone was gentle. "I know that before you had to satisfy the Moneans but you told me you were never going to resort to that again."
"This isn't the same thing. Tom was reckless but at least he didn't endanger the ship or put our lives at risk"
"I agree you should exact some sort of punishment because he did disobey orders but there was a reason he did what he did. There is no cause to be overly harsh."
The Captain sat back in her chair and crossed her arms. Her face was resolute. Tuvok and Chakotay shared another long glance and this time Chakotay nodded.
"Computer, access file Tuvok Zeta. Open sub file, Dear Captain Janeway," Tuvok said.
The screen on her monitor flickered. A short series of texts appeared on her screen.
"What is this? "She asked.
"As you know as Security Officer I monitor all ingoing and outgoing messages. This was in a packet of messages recorded by Lieutenant Paris when he was confined to the brig for thirty days two years ago. The bulk of it was an intended transmission for his father with one exception. This one I brought to the attention of Commander Chakotay," Tuvok replied.
"You read his...diary?" She uncrossed her arms and straightened her posture.
"Only this one entry which was addressed to you and to be honest I was uncomfortable about it. It was like the time I went digging around in B'Elanna's personal holodeck logs but there was a reason I did what I did. We didn't know what kind of effect thirty days in solitary would have on Tom," Chakotay said. "If he were in an unstable mental or emotional state we needed to know. He is a popular member of the crew. Your...punishment of him angered a lot of his friends. He could easily have spread discontent on Voyager."
"You thought Tom might have been sending me hate mail or perhaps had ideas of acting as some kind of subversive?" Janeway asked. "Tom Paris?" The skepticism was heavy in her voice.
"In a manner of speaking, yes," Tuvok said. "It was highly unlikely but we know his attitude shifted when he was discharged from Starfleet and joined the Maquis. I thought Commander Chakotay should be apprised in case he showed signs of turning into a malcontent."
"A real one this time." Chakotay let a faint smile pass his lips as he reminded them of an old memory. "I've seen the angry brash Tom Paris up close, remember?" Chakotay said. "I've seen him at his lowest point and the last thing I wanted was to see him end up there again. He could have easily turned into a very angry man. We felt we had a need to know his frame of mind. That's why we read it."
"Well, did he make threats? Tell tales out of school to Starfleet? Plan a mutiny?"
"No, he did not. His readjustment to life on Voyager was swift. We were relieved to conclude that our fears were unfounded. He did, however, write something very interesting," Chakotay said.
"And so you kept it. Who else knows about this?"
"Only myself and Commander Chakotay. Mr. Paris too of course but I suspect he has forgotten all about it. He probably fully intended to delete this but failed to do so." Tuvok said.
"Why did you keep it?"
"We kept it to use in case a similar situation occurred," Chakotay said.
"A situation where you think I'm being overly harsh I presume?" She asked.
"Yes. Read it. I'm sure Tom won't mind. It was addressed to you after all. If you still want to proceed with your punishment you are of course free to do so and we will carry out your orders," Chakotay said.
"The text is not written in any organized manner. The entries are not dated. It appears to be simple streams of consciousness entries but I agree with Commander Chakotay. It would be well worth your taking the time to read." said Tuvok.
"Why do I feel like I have no choice in the matter?" She asked. She looked back and forth from one man to the other. Chakotay straightened his posture and now he was also standing ramrod straight alongside Tuvok. Her demeanor began to soften. "But then I do trust your judgment and I know you two would not resort to...this unless you thought it important. I will read it. Dismissed."
Her two Senior Officers left her alone with the wall of text on her computer screen.