Author Notes: This is a simple look at Tucker's thoughts after the episode, Cogenitor.
Choices
Trip stared up at the ceiling. He had retreated to his room for sanctuary troubled by the news, his longtime friend, Jonathan Archer had told him. The Vissian Cogenitor had taken her own life. He had been utterly shocked. The Capt'n lecture had been particularly brutal. Archer was angry and frustrate. He had all right to be. What clung to Trip's mind was the statement, "Dam right, it's your fault."
Was it? Well, yes, he had played a part in this tragedy but so had others even the Cogenitor herself. She had decided to committee suicide to escape? Right or wrong that been her choice. Still it stabbed him like a knife in the heart that his actions had leaded to another person taking their own life. Then again what kind of life had she been living? Part of him wanted to believe they'd killed her; since she refused to become a mindless puppet once again. That would mean they were the one's responsible.
Yet, he knew that wasn't the truth. He didn't believe the Vissian Captain had lied to Archer. The two had become close friends. This lead to a very disturbing thought, he had caused her death. The truth was always harder to swallow then a lie but it wasn't entirely his fault.
The events of the last few days replayed through his mind, as he analyzed ever choice and ever action he had made. She was dead because he showed her a different path, but slowly he was coming to the conclusion he wasn't the only one to blame.
The culture she had been raised in was also to blame, wasn't it? After all, it was the one that had let her be treated like a thing, rather than a person. Culture, how far could that be used as a defense? In this event everyone kept using culture to justify her treatment.
Did culture, nullify moral obligation? True, it was an alien culture, but when T'Pol said that he didn't understand them she was wrong. He did understand them, but that didn't make what they were doing right. If Cogenitor had desired to stay a vegetable, then fine, it was her choice but she hadn't. It was a load of crap, that just because they were aliens they shouldn't be judge.
It all came down to the oppressor versus the oppressed. Those in power didn't want the Congenitors to have free thought as they might learn they held power over their society, good or bad. Oppressed the Congeitors didn't know they could be more, because they weren't allowed a chance to be anything more than an object.
In reality it hadn't been all that long ago that Earth's culture had allowed other human to be objects to be owned. Slavery, the oppression of woman, the oppression of people of different faith the list went on and on. Was this really any different than those situations? It this kind of thinking that had let people uses culture to justify oppressing one group over another throughout Earth's history. If people hadn't drawn a line in the sand, whether it was their culture or not, nothing would have changed on Earth. There would still be slaves and women wouldn't have the same right they do today.
If an alien race had come along to Earth and found slavery rampant across the planet should they have said well that their culture. Hell no, cause it was wrong and that what mattered. The Cogenitors were no different. The Cogenitors mirrored the plight of black slave in America's past; a people that once had been treated like animals by those in power. The slave master said black people didn't need freedom, didn't need to read or write. That had been the culture of the time, but it hadn't been right then, as it wasn't right now. So, yeah it was their culture. That didn't make it right.
Trip was no fool, he understood that cultures had to be given room and people had to keep open mind, else freedom and idea wouldn't flourish. But there was a difference between allowing a man to marry more than one wife or believing in different deities, then allowing other people to be oppressed. Would Archer have denied a woman or black slave asylum on this ship if they were trying to escape? He didn't believe so. She'd been sent back solely on the fact she was an alien.
Still Archer had been right it was his fault she was dead. He had taught her to read, to think for herself, without thinking of the consequences of his action. You can't let someone taste freedom and then force them back into chains. He had failed her again, when she fled to Enterprise. She had been a slave running form her master and instead of taking her in, they had given her back. That was on Archer and the others.
Yet he should have fought harder. A dozen different scenarios play out in his head but few would have work without the Captain backing him. Even if he had stolen a shuttle pod, he wouldn't have gotten far in deep space. The two ships would have run them down and he would have been thrown in the brig. She would have been returned to her people and she would have still died, but at least he could have put up a hell of fight. Made his stand and prove he wasn't afraid to fight for what he believed in. He still didn't believe he'd been wrong to open her eyes, he just wished he'd had the mean to truly free her.
Trip would carry this burden for the rest of his life but at least he tried to help her. The Cap'tn, T'Pol, and the Vissians were also blame whether they admitted it or not.