Synopsis:
Chakotay is stranded on a planet inhabited by natives with
ties to his ancestors.
While Kes chides the Doctor for his lack of compassion
towards the discomforts experienced by pregnant Ensign Wildman,
Chakotay is surprised to discover symbols on an alien moon that
are strikingly similar to ones he observed as a teen in the
Central American rainforest. At that time, he'd been
accompanying his father, Kolopak, on a journey to find the truth
about their ancient ancestors. Intrigued, Chakotay is permitted
to lead an Away Team to the site. It might provide some answers
-- or, failing that, some of the minerals that the ship badly
needs for repairs.
The Away Team beams down to what appears to be the
uninhabited planet. As they prepare to land their shuttlecraft,
Chakotay remembers back to the age of 15 when he disappointed
his father by not embracing the traditions of his tribe. The
memories are strong as the team explores the planet's terrain.
But before he can absorb any comparative implications, Neelix is
injured by a native hawk, and later Tuvok finds what appears to
be an abandoned village.
Thinking the Away Team may have frightened off the natives,
Chakotay advises Tuvok and Torres to lay down their weapons in a
gesture of trust. Instead, the gesture seems to inspire a
violent storm. Tuvok and Torres beam back up, but Chakotay is
left behind, knocked unconscious by a falling tree.
Later, Janeway is frustrated by several unsuccessful attempts
to find Chakotay -- it's almost as if something on the planet is
trying to prevent them from beaming down. As they try to enter
the planet's atmosphere, they're engulfed in a cyclone which
Tuvok suspects is generated by residents to ward off intruders.
When Chakotay recovers, he finds the inhabitants of this
strange world, and is surprised to learn that they speak the
language of his ancestors. They recognize the symbol tattooed on
Chakotay's forehead, which he wears to honor his father, who
wore it to honor his ancestors. The inhabitants say they knew
those ancestors -- "the Inheritors" -- when they
visited Earth some 45,000 years earlier.
Chakotay realizes that these are the "Sky Spirits"
which his people's lore is based upon. The aliens visited Earth
again much later, and discovered that nearly all traces of the
Inheritors had vanished, presumably destroyed by other humans.
The aliens tell Chakotay that they attacked Voyager and its crew
with storms because they feared they were enemies who would try
to destroy them just as the human ancestors did to the
Inheritors. Chakotay assures them that humans have come a long
way since those ancient days and mean them no harm. The storms
vanish and the ship is saved just in time. After the aliens give
Chakotay some of the minerals that Voyager needs, they bid him
farewell, leaving Chakotay with the feeling that he's recovered
his connection to his people -- and his father.
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Cast:
Kate Mulgrew as Kathryn Janeway™
Robert Beltran as Chakotay™
Roxann Biggs-Dawson as B'Elanna Torres™
Robert Duncan McNeill as Tom Paris™
Jennifer Lien as Kes™
Ethan Phillips as Neelix™
Robert Picardo as The Doctor
Tim Russ as Tuvok™
Garrett Wang as Harry Kim™
Guest Cast:
Henry Darrow as Kolopak
Richard Fancy as Alien
Douglas Spain as Young Chakotay
Nancy Hower as Ensign Wildman
Richard Chaves as Chief
Joseph Palmas as Antonio
Creative staff:
Director: Alexander Singer
Story By: Larry Brody
Teleplay By: Michael Piller
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