Kes's body is taken over by the mind of a ruthless political leader who's determined to regain control of his planet.
Voyager beams aboard three people just before their damaged ship explodes: an Ilari female named Nori, her injured spouse Tieran and an Ilari male named Adin. Although the Doctor and Kes try to save him, Tieran dies. Not long after, Neelix is shocked when Kes announces she'd like to spend some time apart from him. When Voyager arrives at Ilari, the local leader, known as the Autarch, sends a representative to the ship instead of coming himself. Inexplicably, Kes pulls out a phaser, kills the representative and a crewmember, and escapes in a stolen shuttlecraft with Adin and Nori.
Kes takes the shuttle to a military encampment and takes command of the waiting troops. In the meantime, Janeway meets with Demmas, the Autarch's oldest son, who explains that Kes's body is now inhabited by Tieran, a former Ilarian ruler who was overthrown by Demmas's ancestor 200 years ago. Since then, Tieran has lived on by transferring his mind to a series of host bodies. Janeway agrees to help Demmas stop Kes/Tieran, but before she can, the tyrant has killed the Autarch in front of Demmas's younger brother, Ameron, and appointed himself the new Autarch.
Kes/Tieran tries to poison Ameron's thoughts against Demmas and urges him to cooperate with the new regime. In the meantime, the Doctor designs a synaptic stimulator that will remove Tieran's neural pattern from Kes -- if they can get close enough to use it. Tuvok beams into the Autarch's palace, but is caught and imprisoned before he can succeed in the attempt. When Kes/Tieran interrogates Tuvok, the Vulcan is able to initiate a mind-meld and speak directly to Kes, who tells Tuvok she is fighting Tieran for control.
Kes/Tieran orders Voyager to leave orbit, but the stress of the mental battle between Kes and Tieran results in a paranoid Kes/Tieran killing Adin. To Nori's chagrin, Kes/Tieran announces she's marrying Ameron. Moments later, a coalition of Voyager's crew and Demmas's forces burst into the palace. Paris releases Tuvok, while Neelix places the synaptic stimulator on Kes/Tieran. Tieran jumps to a new host body -- Ameron -- but Kes places the device on him and Tieran is finally destroyed. Demmas, the rightful heir, becomes Autarch.
CAST
CAPTAIN KATHRYN JANEWAY
KATE MULGREW
COMMANDER CHAKOTAY
ROBERT BELTRAN
LIEUTENANT B'ELANNA TORRES
ROXANN BIGGS-DAWSON
KES
JENNIFER LIEN
LIEUTENANT TOM PARIS
ROBERT DUNCAN MCNEILL
NEELIX
ETHAN PHILLIPS
THE DOCTOR
ROBERT PICARDO
LIEUTENANT TUVOK
TIM RUSS
ENSIGN HARRY KIM
GARRETT WANG
GUEST STARS
ADIN
ANTHONY CRIVELLO
DEMMAS
BRAD GREENQUIST
NORI
GALYN GORG
RESH
CHARLES EMMETT
AMERON
KARL WIEDERGOTT
and
TIERAN
LEIGH J. McCLOSKEY
Teleplay by: LISA KLINK
Story by: ANDREW SHEPARD PRICE
MARK GABERMAN
Directed by: DAVID LIVINGSTON
HIGHLIGHT LISTING
STAR TREK: VOYAGER: "Warlord" -- Kes's body is taken over by the mind of a ruthless political leader who's determined to regain control of his planet.