“Memorial” is episode fourteen of season six of Star Trek: Voyager.
Harry, Tom, Neelix and Chakotay are returning to Voyager on the Delta Flyer. Harry says the next time he volunteers for a two week away mission, confine him to sickbay. Neelix enjoyed himself. When Voyager contacts them, they say they scanned 15 planets in 14 days and have a cargo hold full of dilithium ore
B’Elanna and the Doctor are there to greet them. The Doctor wants to know who will be first to go to sickbay for their check-up. Away team protocol; a physical if a mission lasts more than two weeks. Chakotay will let him know who will be first. In the morning.
B’Elanna has been working on a surprise for Tom. She replicated the components for a TV set, circa 1956, then assembled them. Complete with remote control. Tom says there weren’t any remotes from that period (not quite true); poetic license according to B’Elanna. She even has programmes from that period and popcorn. One tiny detail not right, according to Tom; no beer. She can fix that. As Tom watches the television and fails to hear anything B’Elanna says, she wonders if this was a bad idea.
Tom is still watching, with B’Elanna asleep, when The Untouchables morphs into a futuristic war movie. Tom can’t change the channel or turn the television odd. Then sees himself in the film. Then enters it. He gets shot and B’Elanna wakes to find him lying on the floor, groaning in pain. Tom has had enough television for now.
Harry is in a Jefferies tube when he comes over strange and crawls out. In sickbay, the Doctor tells him it sounds like an anxiety attack. Harry has never been claustrophobic before. Does the Doctor know what could have caused it? Yes; the away mission. Harry is suffering from exhaustion; take two days off. Or the Doctor can make it three.
Neelix is in the galley, seemingly a bit nervous, when Naomi comes in. She talks about a project Seven of Nine has her working on. Neelix says he’s busy; Naomi offers to help, and hurts her hand. Neelix panics then, when people come into the mass hell, tells Naomi to get down behind him.
Chakotay is asleep, dreaming of the same battle, of civilians, armed ones admittedly, being attacked by soldiers, Chakotay being one of the soldiers. Tuvok contacts him and says there is a security breach in the mess hall. Neelix has a phasor and is telling everyone to stay away from Naomi; he won’t let them hurt her. Chakotay arrives and recognises a name Neelix mentions, Saavedra, from his own dream. Chakotay manages to talk Neelix down.
In sickbay, the Doctor tells the captain that Neelix is essentially suffering from PTSD. Chakotay explains he dreamt of fighting in an alien war, the same one as Neelix. The Doctor says Harry was in earlier; he hasn’t spoken to Tom yet. The Doctor scans Chakotay; he has real memories not hallucinations or dreams. Captain Janeway wants the mission retracing.
All four of them are telling the captain and the Doctor what they experienced. They work out they were soldiers trying to evacuate a remote colony of civilians when a fight broke out. They weren’t coerced; they volunteered. There was a meeting beforehand in which Saavedra told the troops he wanted no casualties on either side. This is a temporary relocation; the civilians will be back in a few weeks. However, 24 civilians were unaccounted for, someone, perhaps one of the armed civilians, fired a gun and everything went to hell.
The four who went on the away mission are badly affected by memories that are more than likely not theirs. Experiencing the after effects of being involved in an accidental massacre without actually doing it. Then more of the crew are affected. Whatever is causing it is having a very bad effect on people.