Facilis Descensus Averno
You may be looking for Descensus Averno, a Star Trek: TOS story by Leslie Fish.
| Star Trek VOY Fanfiction | |
|---|---|
| Title: | Facilis Descensus Averno |
| Author(s): | Laura Taylor |
| Date(s): | 1998 |
| Length: | |
| Genre: | |
| Fandom: | Star Trek: Voyager |
| External Links: | Most of the story can be found here in multiple parts |
Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
"Facilis Descensus Averno" is a Star Trek: VOY story by Laura Taylor.
It was posted to alt.startrek.creative.
Reactions and Reviews
INCREDIBLE. How else can a story be described, that combines the themes Laura explores here - love, loyalty, mysticism, joy and despair, the past, the future, and the meaning of friendship, and of life? I'm not exaggerating. She has taken a simple "Voyager finally makes it home" story and turned it into one of the most riveting examples of fan fiction I've ever read. Not one character is left unexamined, and not one character comes across as less interesting or less important than any other.By tying Voyager's fate in the future, with quotes and allusions from our own epics of the past, she draws a wonderful parallel between these "heroes" of ours. And few characters are more heroic than Janeway herself - no longer a young woman, no longer in control or able to manipulate events, she still casts a commanding and, certainly, a heroic shadow. I was absolutely amazed at Laura's ability with dialogue, and her ability to make even the new characters seem "real" to me. The only regret I have is that Kes was not included here - I would have loved to read Laura's interpretation of that character, as the little bit she *does* write is very beautiful.
The story is the kind that will draw you in and make you wonder how the difficulties can ever be resolved - but they are, and plausibly. Despite the fact that every character is nearly fifty years older than they are on TV, they are always *in character,* and there's no doubt they'd behave in exactly this way. And I can't get the image out of my mind of Voyager, nearing Earth for the first time in fifty years, all the "original crew" returning to their posts for that event... Wonderful.[1]
'The Descent to Hell is Easy' -- isn't it just? This is one of my all time favorite fanfic stories, and that's from someone who tends to be more of a DS9 than a VOY fan these days. What makes it so great? Well, Laura's trademark *vividness* for one thing (sorry about the hackneyed phrase -- I just can't think of anything else to call it). Then there's the total originality of the plot-line. *And* last but not least, the characterizations.At long last -- and not by any miraculous technotrick, but by the sheer determination of generations of her crew -- Voyager returns to the alpha quadrant. But the alpha quadrant they return to is not the one they left so many years before. It is an alpha quadrant which is fragmented, hostile, and suspicious of the returning 'heroes'. The leaders of the new 'Maquis Republic' have no interest in truth or justice, but only in using Voyager's return to press their own political agendas. Voyager's crew has aged, married, raised families, had grandchildren -- in short, they've lived a lifetime on their journey home. Familiar characters are completely themselves, but subtly altered, matured -- as would be expected -- by experience and time. New characters show elements of their parents and grandparents, but -- like real children -- are uniquely themselves. Laura presents us with an 'alternative' J/C relationship: a profound and satisfying bond of love between two individuals who are not 'lovers'. It's not a matter of debating how it *should* be, it's a matter of showing how it *could* be. And it works. Beautifully.
Someday Laura, and someday *soon*, please, set K/Du aside (just *briefly*, mind you) and give us all the promised sequel to this one. Please, pretty please....[2]
One of the first and also one of the best Voy stories I've read. It's long and so Laura can not only concentrate on the crew but also on new characters. These new characters are well crafted, on both sides. 50 years have past and the Voy crew has coupled up. They have children who fit in with the old characters. The known crew has aged and therefore changed a bit but is still recognizable. The Maquis are also three-dimensional and although the premis (The Maquis overthrowing the Federation) is a little unrealistic, the political situation, the worshiping of Chakotay and his crew is very interesting. The fine line Chakotay has to walk between being used and trying to change things is also well written. His relationship with Janeway is brought out very nicely. Only the end (that a long war followed) was not what I thought Chakotay and Janeway would go along with. I understand their splitting up, but both are very influential ppl on their respective side and so I would have thought they could have done something about the war. All in all this story is worth the read, it is interesting, the characters are fine written and the new ones are a nice addition. Bravo! [3]
Another fascinating concept -- what if, when Voyager gets back, the Maquis have won? What does that mean for the Federation part of the crew? Really excellent story, with everyone 70 years older to boot. Fine writing, good characterization. I have to admit to having a bit of trouble swallowing my disbelief, but it's a helluva ride.[4]