“Jetrel” is episode fifteen of season one of Star Trek: Voyager.
Neelix is playing pool against Tuvok in Tom’s holodeck program. Tuvok has left him with no shot, so Tom advises Neelix to do a safety. Which he does. Tuvok then explains his logical course of action – which fails miserably. Captain Janeway then contacts Neelix, requesting he come to the bridge.
An approaching vessel has hailed Voyager, asking specifically for Neelix. When Neelix is asked if he recognises the vessel, he does; it is a Haakonian shuttle. Neelix’s people fought a war with the Haakonians for the best part of a decade, and they conquered his homeworld 15 years ago. The Haakonian on the shuttle asks to speak to Neelix; his life may depend on it. He gives his name, Dr Ma’bor Jetrel. A name Neelix clearly recognises and is not happy to hear.
Neelix explains to the captain privately that he lived in a colony on the moon of Rinax, a beautiful place. Until the metreon cascade. A weapon of mass destruction conceived by Jetrel who lead the team of scientists that created it. The weapon enveloped the moon in a deadly cloud that killed more than 300,000 people. Including Neelix’s family. Neelix survived because he was on Talax with the defence forces. Preparing for an invasion that never came, because after the cascade, Talax surrendered unconditionally to the Haakonian Order.
Jetrel beams onboard Voyager, and is told by the captain that Neelix refused to meet him. Jetrel does not find that surprising. He needs to do a full medical examination of Neelix. Neelix was part of the team that returned to Rinax after the cascade looking for survivors. Some of those on the team have contracted a fatal blood disease called metremia, which causes the body’s atomic structure to undergo fission. Jetrel wants to develop a cure.
Neelix is in the galley where Kes is asking him about his past when Janeway arrives. She explains the disease and what Jetrel wants to do. Neelix doesn’t want to participate, but Kes and the captain convince him to at least listen to Jetrel. Kes tells him that the Doctor will not rest until a cure is found if Neelix has the disease
Jetrel says he did what had to be done, and they had thought those close enough to be exposed would be killed by the blast. They were wrong. He may have developed the weapon, but it was the government and military leaders who decided to use it. Neelix asks Jetrel if that reasoning helps him sleep at night. Not really. Neelix isn’t willing to help, but is again convinced to do so. The Doctor explains to Neelix that Jetrel has to do it; he lacks the instruments. During the process, Neelix tells a story clearly intended to make Jetrel feel bad. And it turns out that Neelix does have metremia. . He considers the bright side of this being that he would die before Kes, as her species only lives 8-9 years, something he did not know when they fell in love. Once, she considered that an eternity; she no longer does.
Jetrel is impressed with Voyager‘s transporter system; Janeway asks him what about Neelix. The transporter does have relevance; Jetrel thinks it may be able to help develop a cure. Using it, they could get a sample from the metreon cloud and synthesize an antibody. So, Voyager heads to Rinax, a significant way out of their way.
Jetrel is clearly ill with something, although he is pretending not to be. At times, he also seems rather too disconnected from the effects of science on the world; knowledge should be found and shared. He cannot control what others do with it, only live with the consequences. At other times, he seems rather more empathic. When the cloud was deployed, Jetrel’s wife considered him a monster, and took his children away; Neelix suggests that maybe she was right. Jetrel is keeping his true motivations secret and Neelix has to deal with issues dug out of his past.