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At the beginning of the episode, Seven finds the weapon while Voyager is in dry-dock but it is “out of phase” and she indicates that they have found where the weapon was placed but not when.

At first I thought this implies that the weapon was placed before that point (given my linear experience of time) but they later conclude that the weapon was placed two years later during an attack by the Kazon.

Given it’s a time weapon, it might make sense that the weapon exists outside of time and can be seen prior to it being placed (in a linear sense), but when Seven jumps forward to two years later and goes to the same hatch during the Kazon attack, she can’t see the weapon because it hasn’t been placed yet. So this implies the weapon does follow the normal rules of linear time.

So if she can’t see it at that point, how could she have seen it while Voyager was in dry-dock two years previously?

See this timeline for clarification:

Dry dock       Kazon attack      Seven
(Can see)     (Can’t see)      from here
        |_______________|______________|
 Time ->                       |
                                Weapon
                                 Placed

Note: I’m willing to accept this is just a plot hole given that, as enjoyable as this episode was, it was badly written in a couple of places (Janeway recognising the time ship as Relativity without being told, and Janeway knowing Seven was from three years in the future, again without being told).

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  • Not wanting to get into a debate about quality of writing (especially not Voyager,) but I'm assuming there was at least one scene - prior to Janeway showing this knowledge - where Seven made some kind of decision to trust Janeway? It could then be implied that she told Janeway this information off-screen. This was a fairly common device in the days of episodic TV, as it saved screen time for more important plot developments instead of rehashing things the audience already knew. (I'm sure it still happens in today's continual format shows, but it seems less common in my experience.)
    – Steve-O
    May 13, 2020 at 13:26

1 Answer 1

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The weapon creates distortions that are not only visible to Seven, but also interfering with her temporal transport beacon

Here are the revelant quotes from the episode:

SEVEN: I've localised the temporal distortions. Deck four, section thirty nine. (She opens a panel in a junction. Her enhanced sight shows the otherwise invisible object.)
SEVEN: I've found the weapon.
DUCANE: Begin the procedure.

She finds the distortions first, and then sees it due to her implants.

Shortly after that:

SEVEN: I've been detected. I must leave.
BRAXTON [OC]: There's too much interference from the weapon. Recalibrate your temporal transport beacon.
SEVEN: Understood.

So the weapon has an effect that can be measured, and that she can be seeing due to her borg implants.

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  • So why can’t she she it two years later?
    – Darren
    May 13, 2020 at 13:03
  • @Darren If I follow what you wrote in the question correctly, the Seven who finds the weapon is from three years in the future. Maybe Seven from two years in the future didn't have the necessary upgrades to see it (yet) because they were added before she left on her time mission (between two and three years into the future.)
    – Steve-O
    May 13, 2020 at 13:19
  • @Steve-O no. I don’t think you’re correct. Although the two Sevens are different individuals, they are both from the same time. Plus, there is no mention of upgrades being made. She is specifically chosen for the mission because of her implants.
    – Darren
    May 13, 2020 at 13:24
  • @Darren My mistake then. I don't really recall the episode myself, I probably haven't watched it since it was one the air.
    – Steve-O
    May 13, 2020 at 13:27
  • We have seen it a few times in Voyager that her implants can be modified/enhanced. It's just me guessing, but probably they have added or enabled this ability in her implants.
    – Philipp
    May 14, 2020 at 7:12

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