Disclaimer: Am I making money off of this? No. Does Paramount own the characters? Yes.
Answer to a challenge. With the safeties off, could someone get pregnant by a holographic character?
Doctor's Log - Stardate 53431.6
I don't know where to begin. I am at a loss to explain exactly what happened. I suppose I should start at the beginning.
Two weeks ago, Captain Janeway came in here for her annual physical. Same as usual, overworked, over stressed, too much caffeine in her system, underweight. It all is on the records. For every single time she's had a physical since this journey began.
Except for one thing.
The three month old fetus growing within her.
"What?" she questioned. Apparently, she had no clue of her impending motherhood, nor did she seem surprised.
"Yes, Captain. You are indeed, three months pregnant. The baby is healthy and will remain so if you choose to start taking care of yourself," I added. She stared at me in disbelief. Then she said the last thing I expected.
"Could you tell me who the father is?"
"You mean you don't know, Captain?" I asked. I'd read the text on immaculate conception, but I didn't think of Kathryn Janeway being a candidate.
"Believe me, I haven't been with anyone in. . .a long time," she said. I turned my tricorder again and scanned her, fed the results into the computer and came up with the most likely candidate. Wasn't much of a surprise to me.
"It appears that Commander Chakotay is the father," I said. I watched as the captain's eyes widened beyond belief.
"Thank you Doctor," she said, getting off the bio-bed and heading toward the door.
"Make sure you come back for regular visits. And remember, you're now taking care of two," I reminded her.
I thought that would be the end of it. Apparently, the rumors that had been running rampant through the ship proved to be true. The captain and commander were in a relationship. I couldn't be farther from the truth.
The truth became boldly clear to me when I transferred my program to Neelix's resort one afternoon. There, I came upon the most startling conversation between the two involved.
". . .what do you mean, you're pregnant?" the commander asked. I knew he was bordering on anger, as I had heard this tone of voice before.
"I think the meaning is pretty damn clear, don't you? Me. Baby."
"So, who's the lucky father?" Chakotay said. I knew my scans were correct. I knew he was the father. Had the captain pulled a Seska?
"You are," her quiet voice said.
"That's a good one, Kathryn. Mind telling me when we did this? Seems I don't recall making love to you anywhere within, oh hell, since this mission began."
She turned away from him, her arms over her chest, her head down in thought. "We did it three months ago, apparently. But it wasn't us."
"Am I missing something?" Chakotay asked her. I knew I should leave, but I had to know.
"I was lonely. I came to the holodeck to use one of my holonovels. Harry told me the safeties were off, but I thought a gothic novel would be safe enough. So, I indulged."
"Look, I may not be a great engineer, but that doesn't explain how my baby is in you."
She turned on him then, tears running down her face. "I used your image to replace Lord Burleigh. I used the computers specs on you, from medical records."
"Damn you, Kathryn! You flirt with me for five years, then tell me that we can never have a physical relationship, that it wouldn't be fair to you or me. Then you turn around and have sex with my holographic image. That's cold."
"You think I don't know that? How do you think I feel? I'm pregnant and the father is a holographic version of you. Do you think I don't feel?" She was visibly upset, her hands in fists.
"Gods, Kathryn. You told me it was never possible. We weren't a possibility. Then this happens." He turned on her then. That was one thing I had never thought of. Getting pregnant with the safeties off. By a hologram. This needed further study. I focused back on the conversation. "What do you plan on doing?"
"I'm keeping it, Chakotay. It isn't this baby's fault it was conceived. I won't deny it life."
"Then you'll need someone to be father." He turned back around. "That is unless you want me to stay out of it, which is your prerogative as Captain."
"Yes, I want you to be a part of it. You may not be the father, but you are." She got this funny look on her face. "Does that make any sense?"
"No, but then again, pregnant women rarely make sense," he said, tipping her chin up to look him in the face.
"However, I will not be a father without at least making love to the mother at least once."
I took my cue and left. I found it fascinating, but highly improbable.
Doctor's Log: Stardate 54211.4
I'm pleased to announce that Captain Janeway gave birth to healthy twin girls today. Unidentical, one looking like her mother, the other like Commander Chakotay. Mother and daughters are doing fine.
However, I am going to step up my investigation into this 'safety protocol' incident. It seems that Seven of Nine is pregnant. When I asked her who the father was, she said she was unsure as she hadn't had sexual relations with any member of the crew.
I asked her about her relationship with Ensign Kim. She told me that she had only kissed him. Before I could question her further, she declared she had set up a holographic program, using Ensign Kim as a model. To practice human sexuality on.
"I wanted to know what to do when we reach that stage of our relationship," she said.
I wonder how Ensign Kim will respond to the news that he's to be a father. Especially considering, he's never gotten beyond kissing with the mother.
**Finis**