A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing

Source Episode: VOY 01x11 State of Flu

"It's PTSD," I told the EMH as I sat on a biobed in sickbay.

He lifted a brow. "Are we diagnosing ourselves now? Why even bother to activate me when you clearly have all the answers."

"Goddamnit, Doctor."

"You of all people should be familiar with the dangers of self-diagnosis."

"Yes!" I snapped, sliding off the bed. "I do know. Which is why you're going to give me..." Making my way to the console in the middle of the room, I did a quick database search and pulled up an assessment. "This."

He stepped up behind me and peered over my shoulder, making the hairs on the back of my neck rise. "Hm."

Slipping out of the too-small space between the console and the hologram's body, I watched as he skimmed the assessment... and then closed the file.

"What are you—?"

"Given that this is your chosen assessment tool for diagnosing Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, I'll get more useful results with a different one." He tapped in a few letters and opened a different file.

A Bajoran assessment.

I frowned.

"After the incident with Mister Neelix," he said, "I came to realize how important it is to familiarize myself with humanoid psychology beyond what has been built into my program. So I took it upon myself to study the field."

My irritation ebbed. He'd taken my words to heart—so to speak. A smile crept onto my face.

"Now if you'll return to the biobed, I will do the diagnosing."

The rumors reached me before anyone involved said a word.

Early that morning, Chakotay led an away mission to the disabled Kazon ship, taking Tuvok, B'Elanna, and Seska along with him. One survivor was beamed to our sickbay, and Kes was in the process of seeking donors to replace his blood.

What had the crew talking, however, was a strange piece of technology which had apparently been responsible for the accident. No one knew what it was, as the console remained in a heavily radiated area and could not be retrieved. But within an hour of the mission, all of Voyager knew that it was composed of materials used exclusively by Federation engineers in the Alpha Quadrant.

The rumor went like this: Seska volunteered for Neelix's unit on the food-gathering mission because he lacked officer training like the rest of us had. She was easily able to distract him, at which point she snuck away to the caves under the guise of gathering mushrooms. When no one was looking, she slipped inside. There, she met with Kazon from the ship in orbit, gave them some of Voyager's technology, and staged a firefight when Chakotay and Neelix showed up to rescue her.

No doubt Neelix was at least partially responsible for the rumor. He was still upset that she used his stint in sickbay to break into the kitchen and take food that should have been rationed for the whole crew.

That mushroom soup had come back to bite her in the ass.

Served Seska right, in my opinion. I had no idea whether there was anything to the rumors, and did my best to remain skeptical. Rumors tended to be a strange mixture of truth and absurdity, and it was wisest to keep some distance from them. But I had to appreciate the poetic justice of it all, at least.

It wasn't until much later that day, when Seska made a characteristically impulsive attempt to retrieve the mystery console—and was injured in the process—that my superiors decided to pull me into the investigation.

That was also, conveniently, around the same time that another Kazon-Nistrim ship finally showed up on long-range sensors. We had four hours to figure things out before they arrived, and Janeway wanted to make good use of that time.

Poor Chakotay was in a very difficult spot.

I sat in Captain Janeway's ready room, in the very same chair I had taken when I informed her about my problem with crew evaluations. Janeway was behind her desk, fingers steepled as she studied my reaction. Tuvok and Chakotay flanked her.

"Someone has made unauthorized transmissions to the Kazon," Tuvok informed me. "But we have yet to uncover the identity of this individual."

I couldn't help the smirk that tilted my lips. "So this is the nugget of truth within the rumors. Someone really did give our technology to the Kazon."

"That is not what I said."

"No, but that's what you suspect, isn't it?"

Janeway dropped her hands. "We can't know until we get the console off that ship. But yes, that is what we suspect."

"What do the rumors say?" Chakotay asked.

"That Seska gave it to the Kazon while she was collecting mushrooms by the caves," I replied, throwing a harsh look at Chakotay.

His eyes narrowed. Direct hit.

Janeway pressed her lips into a thin line. "We have one suspect other than Crewman Seska."

I looked at all three of them. "Am I the other suspect?"

"No," Tuvok replied, "you are not. The transmission was made during a test of the dorsal emitters, which we conducted a week ago. Only two people involved with that project were assigned to the planet's surface—Crewman Seska and Lieutenant Carey."

"I see. And, whoever it was, they used the test to hide their transmission."

Tuvok nodded. "Precisely."

Captain Janeway leaned forward. "We will begin questioning Mister Carey shortly, and I would like for you to observe the proceedings. We need as much insight as we can get, and you can give us a unique perspective on his behaviors and responses."

"I'm a counselor, Captain, not a telepath."

"I realize that," Janeway assured me. "But I still think your input would be valuable."

I nodded. "Alright. I'll do what I can."

The captain gave me a half-smile. "Good." Looking over her shoulder, she ordered Tuvok, "Bring in Mister Carey."

Throughout the interview, Joe Carey was confused and on-guard. At first, he thought that there was a problem with his job performance. He was understandably upset that the work into which he poured his heart and soul was being questioned.

When the topic turned to whether he had contacted any Kazon ships or personnel, he became defensive.

"What about before we arrived at the planet?" Janeway asked. "Did you have any reason to signal the Kazon-Nistrim ship?"

"No," Carey insisted.

"Nevertheless," Tuvok said, "a signal was sent to the Kazon from your station in engineering during our dorsal emitter test last week."

Carey looked shocked. "My station?"

"Were you not in engineering at that time?"

"Well, yes," Carey answered breathlessly, "I was, but you know how it is down there during a systems analysis."

"Did you see anyone else at your station?" Chakotay asked.

Carey grew more defensive. "Honestly, I don't remember. Maybe you should ask Seska."

I stole a glance at Chakotay, who was watching Carey through narrowed eyelids.

"Why Seska?" Janeway asked.

"Everybody knows she was found in the cave with the Kazon." Carey paused to take a calming breath when his accusation was met by the captain's harsh expression. He glanced at Tuvok, who studied the man carefully. Shifting back towards the captain, Joe's expression softened. He sighed. "Look, I'm not saying she did anything wrong. But I didn't, either."

"I'd like to believe you, Mister Carey," Janeway said. "But somebody did contact the Kazon and, until we know who, I'm going to have to restrict you to quarters."

Carey nodded, accepting the harsh reality. He was a Starfleet officer, so he knew how these things worked. At Janeway's nod, Carey stood and followed Tuvok out of the room, flexing and releasing his fingers as he went.

As soon as the doors closed behind the men, Janeway swiveled to face me. "What do you think?"

"He didn't delay in reacting or responding to the questions. His body language was appropriate, and matched up to what he said. He didn't touch his face or ears, or fidget with his uniform or hair."

"Every Starfleet officer with command training knows how to handle an interrogation," Chakotay argued.

I nodded. "That's true. But he seemed genuinely anxious, and his anxiety increased exactly as I would expect it to, correlating to the increased pressure of the questions. He didn't try to break up the rhythm of the questioning. He went right along with it until he blurted out Seska's name. And he appeared to be remorseful afterwards. I don't think he meant to say that."

Janeway nodded. "I had that sense, as well."

"As I said before, Captain, I can't tell you for sure whether he was lying or not. But I didn't see any signs of deception."

"Thank you, Lieutenant," she said. "You may go."

Glancing at Chakotay as I came to my feet, I noted the ambivalence on his face. He believed Seska was innocent, but he wasn't sure how to feel about our talk with Joe Carey.

I barely had time to log my notes from the interview before I was called upon to assist in diplomatic efforts with the newly-arrived Kazon-Nistrim ship. Captain Janeway invited them to visit the injured man in our sickbay, and they accepted.

The leader of the Nistrim sect, First Maje Culluh, beamed to Voyager with one security guard. Janeway, Tuvok, and I escorted him to sickbay where the EMH happily announced to the captain that he had a new report to offer.

"Doctor," Janeway said, "this is First Maje Culluh of the Kazon-Nistrim. Could you give us the latest condition report on your Kazon patient?"

The EMH eyed Culluh. "Well, the good news is, we've been able to stabilize him." The doctor led us to the survivor's bedside. "We had to completely replace his blood."

Culluh looked suspicious. "Replace his blood? With what?" His security guard produced a handheld scanning device and took some readings of their man.

Janeway smiled proudly at Culluh. "The blood of volunteers from our crew. They saved his life."

"His own blood cells were killing him," the EMH explained. "They were changed by the accident on his ship."

Culluh wasn't pleased. "Changed in what manner?"

"We haven't been able to determine that yet."

Janeway pressed on. "We've been working on a plan to access the source of the explosion, which should answer a lot of questions."

"That will no longer be necessary," Culluh said. He gave the captain a polite nod. "We will take the damaged vessel to our port for inspection."

"I'm afraid I can't allow you to do that just yet."

Culluh turned fully towards her, making the captain look so very small. "And what gives you the right to interfere in our affairs?"

Janeway lifted her chin and set both hands on her hips. "There was a trace of a Federation compound in the remains of the explosion. We have reason to believe that someone on board this ship gave technology to your people. Until we have a better explanation of what occurred, I can't release that ship to you."

"That is not acceptable."

"It will have to be."

Culluh paused for a breath, but did not break eye contact. "Your unique technologies make you brave, Captain, but you have only one ship. In less than a day there will be four Kazon vessels off your bow."

"Perhaps by then we'll have the answers we need."

"You will leave us with him," Culluh demanded.

"Why?" I asked.

All eyes shifted, at once, to me. I had caught both the captain and the maje by surprise.

Culluh sneered. "It is none of your concern."

"I beg to differ, Maje," I argued as I angled my body protectively between the unconscious patient and Culluh's encroaching security guard. "On our ship, everything is our concern. Now, either explain why you want to be left with an unconscious man, or step back so that our medical personnel have space to continue rehabilitating him."

A large part of me worried that Captain Janeway might rebuke me for taking such a forceful stance. I wanted to throw her a look letting her know that I had reason for my actions, but breaking eye contact with Culluh was not an option in my mind. If she objected, I would simply have to accept the consequences.

Thankfully, the EMH came to my rescue. "It is not advisable to move him right now. It could endanger his life. He should regain consciousness within the next few hours. We can reassess his condition then."

Culluh tightened his jaw and glared at Captain Janeway. "You will contact us the moment he awakes."

She nodded. "Of course, Maje." She kept her eyes on him until Tuvok had escorted both Kazon men out of sickbay. When the doors closed, she turned to me. "What did you see?"

"When the doctor said his blood had been replaced, they gave each other a grim look and their body language changed to something more threatening. I didn't want them to harm him."

She nodded. "Good thinking, Lieutenant."

"Our patient may be equally upset when he finds out what we did for him" I added. "There's no telling how he'll react, or how cooperative he'll be with any questions you ask."

"I'll keep that in mind. Dismissed."

A few minutes later, the captain was comming me yet again to summon me to her ready room. Chakotay and Tuvok were already there when I arrived. Janeway's lips were tight and thin, and her blue eyes were sharp like glass.

I braced myself for something horrible.

Janeway got right to the point. "I have just finished speaking with the doctor and Kes. They informed me that Crewman Seska is not, in fact, Bajoran. She was born... Cardassian."

Cardassian. The word bounced around my mind like a ball. It refused to make sense.

"What?" Chakotay sounded incredulous.

"According to Kes, Seska's blood lacks all the common Bajoran blood factors. She and the doctor have concluded that Seska was genetically altered to appear Bajoran."

Chakotay shook his head. "You expect me to believe she's a Cardassian agent who infiltrated the Maquis?"

Tuvok spoke up. "Starfleet Intelligence has documented several incidents in which Cardassians have used cosmetic alterations for the purpose of infiltrating an enemy."

"This is crazy," Chakotay said. "This is just impossible."

I cleared my throat to loosen a lump. "There's no other possible explanation for her blood factors?"

Janeway shook her head. "The doctor was quite certain."

"If you don't mind," Chakotay said, "I'd like to hear her explanation before we dismiss it. Has she been told?"

"No."

"I'd like to be the one who questions her."

"We'll see about that," Janeway said. "But first, we need to retrieve that console." She tapped her combadge. "Janeway to Torres."

"Yes, Captain," came B'Elanna's reply.

"Your status?"

"We're finished with the computer simulations. Everything looks okay. We're ready to beam over."

Janeway smiled. "Good. Then let's get started." She left the ready room and strode onto the bridge with Tuvok following close on her heels.

Chakotay turned to me. His cheeks were flushed, and his face was grim. "Tuvok was working for her. Seska was working for them. Was anyone on board that ship working for me?"

"I was."

He narrowed his eyes. "Were you, though? Or were you working for Fayeni?"

I recoiled. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

He shook his head and started towards the bridge. "Forget it."

While B'Elanna examined the console, which she successfully retrieved, the survivor regained consciousness. We informed Maje Culluh, who returned with his guard to observe our questioning of his man. The doctor deemed him well enough that we could conduct the interview in Voyager's conference room.

This left sickbay free for Chakotay to have a talk with Seska. While he set a trap for her to incriminate herself, Tuvok laid a similar trap for Joe Carey. One of them would have motive to go back into the computer system and plant evidence indicating a guilty party. What they didn't know was that their actions would be monitored, and we would be able to pinpoint which console was being used to plant the evidence. It would either be sickbay, or Carey's quarters.

As for me, I accompanied Captain Janeway to the conference room.

"It was a food replicator," she informed our Kazon guests.

"A food... replicator?" The survivor, Maleth, tried to feign ignorance. "What is a food replicator?"

"The console you were attempting to integrate into your ship's systems," Janeway said. "We have confirmed that it came from Voyager. What happened while you were installing it to cause the explosion?"

"You have examined our vessel with your advanced technologies. Surely, you know better than I what happened."

"I'd like to hear your side of the story."

"Neucleonic radiation began to leak from the device. It caused a cascade reaction."

"How did you acquire the replicator?"

Maleth did not reply.

"We know that a member of our crew made contact with your ship several days ago. Why did they contact you?"

Nothing.

"Why was your ship hiding in orbit of the planet where we were gathering food?"

"We, too, harvest food there."

"But you were deliberately hiding from our sensors. Why?"

"We did not wish to be disturbed."

"How did you know what to do in order to deflect our sensors?"

"Coincidence."

Janeway leaned forward. "So you didn't recieve any communications from Voyager with instructions on how to hide from our sensors?"

"No."

"While we were on the planet, did you meet with a member of our crew to obtain the replicator technology?"

Maleth looked Janeway directly in the eyes, and said nothing.

I resisted the urge to sigh. Already, I could tell that, no matter how long we questioned him, Maleth was not going to give us any new information.

Luckily for us, the captain's plan worked. While she and I were meeting with the Kazon, Chakotay and Tuvok observed as someone snuck into the computer system and planted evidence.

Janeway, Tuvok, and I waited just outside of sickbay with two security officers. We kept an open com channel with Chakotay as he met with Seska inside.

"Chakotay." She sounded nervous. "Is anything wrong?"

"It's over. We know who gave the technology to the Kazon."

"Who?"

Chakotay didn't even hesitate. "You did."

"Look, I don't know what evidence you think you've found, but—"

"We found the evidence you put there for us to find—your own security code."

She paused. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"We already knew where the stolen materials had been taken from before I met with you. We were monitoring the inventory manifest, hoping either you or Carey would try to cover your tracks."

"Hell of a way for me to cover my tracks, putting in my own security code for you to find!"

"That's exactly what you did. You knew no one would believe you could be that careless. You wanted us to believe that someone else was trying to frame you."

Seska scoffed. "Ever consider that maybe someone was?"

Chakotay's confidence did not waver. "We traced the computer station used to enter the data. Oh, you took us all around the system and back again before we could locate the source, but it was this station, in sickbay."

That was our cue. Captain Janeway stepped forward, leading us all through the doors into sickbay.

Clad in a blue medical robe, Seska's green eyes held none of their usual luster. For the briefest moment, her face drooped with dismay. When she registered our entrance into the room, she simply looked shocked.

Chakotay pressed on. "I'd almost say it was a Maquis operation, if I didn't already know you were a Cardassian."

If I had thought that Seska's eyes couldn't get any wider, I would have been wrong. "What? What are you talking about?"

"Isn't that why you never got around to a blood analysis when we came on board?"

Seska was almost breathless. "I didn't get around to it because I didn't get around to it."

"Turns out your blood is missing all the common Bajoran blood factors."

She glanced at me, her expression desperate. "It's a side effect of Orkett's disease." She looked again at Chakotay. "Ask your doctor."

Chakotay narrowed his eyes. "Orkett's disease."

"A childhood virus that swept through the Bajoran work camps during the occupation. Thousands of children didn't survive. I did, thanks to a bone marrow transplant from a sympathetic Cardassian woman. Her name was Kattell. When we get home, you can ask her yourself." She glanced at me, the captain, Tuvok, then back again at Chakotay. "You must think I'm horrible. Do you think I gave you my—" she flattened her hand over her chest— "my heart, to get your Maquis secrets?"

I couldn't stop the laugh that bounded from my chest.

"Computer," Chakotay said, "activate Emergency Medical Hologram."

Our balding holographic doctor materialized beside Chakotay. "Ah, have I been called to testify?"

Still speaking to Seska, Chakotay said, "The doctor has already discounted Orkett's disease as a possible explanation for your blood anomalies."

"And may I say," the EMH added, "a doctor less informed about Bajoran medicine might have been fooled, but my program includes the complete Bajoran medical text on Orkett's disease. There's no way any childhood virus or Cardassian bone marrow transplant can explain away the genetic markers in your blood. You are Cardassian, Crewman."

"But that didn't necessarily make you the traitor we were looking for," Chakotay continued. "We needed more evidence, and you gave it to us. The one thing I still can't understand is, why?"

Seska's expression hardened. "I did it for you. I did it for this crew. We are alone here, at the mercy of any number of hostile aliens, because of the incomprehensible decision of a Federation captain." she glared at Janeway. "A Federation captain who destroyed our only chance to get home."

She grit her teeth, and practically spat out her next words. "Federation rules. Federation nobility. Federation compassion?" She looked again at Chakotay. "Do you understand? If this had been a Cardassian ship, we would be home now. We must begin to forge alliances. To survive, we must have powerful friends. The Kazon-Nistrim were willing to be our protectors in return for some minor technology."

Janeway cut in. "Minor technology that could change the balance of power in this quadrant."

"Change it in our favor! That is all that matters at this point. Building a base of power in this quadrant. You are a fool, Captain." She turned her gaze to Chakotay, and her expression became mournful. "And you're a fool to follow her. I can't imagine how I ever loved you. Computer, command XJL."

Chirping in reply, the computer activated a blue energy beam that enveloped Seska and began taking her molecules apart.

"Computer," Chakotay barked, "override transport in progress."

"Unable to comply," the system responded. "Security lockout is in place."

"Computer," the captain said, "identify destination of transport."

"A Kazon vessel fourteen kilometres off the port bow."

The com chirped, then projected Tom's voice into the room. "Bridge to Janeway."

"Go ahead."

"The Kazon ship is powering up its engines. It looks like they're getting ready to go to warp."

"Ready a tractor beam," the captain ordered.

"I've also got two Kazon warships on an intercept course less than ten minutes away."

Janeway hung her head.

Tuvok stepped up beside the captain. "Captain, even with our superior defence capabilities, we cannot prevail against three Kazon warships."

"Awaiting your instructions, Captain," Tom said.

Janeway sighed. "Power down the tractor beam. Set a course out of here, Mister Paris, warp four. Engage when ready."

"Yes, ma'am."

The captain looked at Chakotay, then me. "We'll have to wait for another day to settle up with Seska."