“Cold Fire” is episode ten of season two of Star Trek: Voyager.
The episode opens with a recap about how Voyager ended up in the Delta Quadrant, and how with the Caretaker dead the best chance of getting home died too. But, before he died, the Caretaker revealed that there was another like him who left hundreds of years before. After his death, Voyager took his remains with them.
Ten months later and Tuvok is tutoring Kes on using her mental abilities. He gets her to open herself to the minds on the ship, and she hears many voices. Tuvok gets Kes to isolate one voice, and she focuses on Neelix. Not surprising, according to Tuvok, given her emotional attachment. Kes giggles during this and Tuvok tells her she needs to learn to control her emotional outbursts. On it just being a giggle, he says he will teach her a Vulcan mind control technique to help inhibit giggles.
Kes then heads to sickbay. She’s late, again, and the Doctor thinks Vulcans would be more in tune with punctuality. The Doctor never doubted Kes would be making excellent progress, and starts talking about those studies interfering, when they both hear a high-pitched noise. Which is coming from the remnant from the Caretaker, which is vibrating.
Janeway, Tuvok and B’Elanna are summoned. The Doctor detected lifesigns, but B’Elanna doesn’t now. Tuvok suggests that they place the remains of an alien entity they do not understand into containment when they start vibrating again. B’Elanna now detects lifesigns, but they are not coming from the remnant. The remains are resonating to an external energy source. Some other lifeform. The captain contacts the bridge and has Harry scan for sporocystian energy and he detects some approximately 10 light years away. The Caretaker’s remains could be reacting to his mate. If they can track her down, she might have the ability to send them home.
B’Elanna and Harry construct something to help them pinpoint the location of the sporocystian energy. Tuvok suggests that, as the Caretaker was a being of considerable power whose mercy they were at, they develop a toxin to put them on more even ground. Captain Janeway agrees. Tom picks up sporocystian energy and B’Elanna and Harry get a lock on the direction.
This leads them to an artificial structure. One very similar in appearance and composition to the Caretaker’s array, but smaller. There is no sporocystian energy on it, but there are 2,000 carbon-based lifeforms. Ocampa. A hail gets no response and there’s an energy surge that could indicate weapons according to Tuvok. The array fires at the ship. Definitely weapons, according to Chakotay. A message from the station is received; the Ocampan tells them to leave. Not a friendly chap.
Kes is brought to the bridge so that they can try again. The unfriendly man is contacted again, and this time Kes is introduced. He initially thinks it’s some kid of trick but Kes reassures him. He then wants to know what Kes is doing on an alien starship. That’s a long story. What are Ocampa doing on an alien space station? Also a long story. Kes suggest they meet and exchange stories, and the Ocampan agrees to join them on Voyager.
The Ocampan, Tanis, asks if they are looking for the lifeform. To destroy it? No, to get home. It seems Voyager has acquired quite a reputation in the region, and is known as a ship of death. They killed the Caretaker, declared war on the Kazon and raided planets for resources. Tanis is corrected on this, but he wants to talk to Kes alone. In private, Kes reassures him. The crew of Voyager saved her at great risk to themselves when they didn’t have to. Tanis admits they aren’t what he expected. More surprising was finding Kes.
Tanis wants to see where Kes lives, and she shows him the hydroponics bay. He thinks the ship is cold and barren, Kes is so isolated. He also beloveds Kes is very young. Which, at 2, she is. Tanis is 14 – even though Ocampa normally only live to be 9. Tanis explains that Suspiria, the Caretaker’s mate, brought them here and treated them differently. She taught them to use their dormant psychokinetic skills – and he makes the plants grow using these powers.
Afterwards, Kes explains to Janeway and Tuvok that she always believed the Ocampa were capable of more. She doesn’t know whether to feel overwhelmed or frightened. Tuvok thinks a non-emotional response would be more useful. The captain thinks that, as Kes isn’t a Vulcan, a combination of both is appropriate. She suggests caution, but Kes has a good feeling.
That feeling may be misplaced. Tanis contacts Suspiria mentally; she isn’t interested in Kes. She just wants the ship. Probably not for a good reason. Kes’s experiments with new abilities that Tanis shows her go a little awry.