Soul's Revisions
2. False Hope
J/C
Rated MA
September 2009
By: AW
Length: 5,871 words
Summary: They meet the Vaduuar, but is it too late for the Janeways.
Disclaimer: blah blah blah, I DON’T OWN THEM
[Directly after B’Elanna’s Discovery]
Kathryn stood and stretched her back. Chakotay walked up to her. “Back bothering you again?”
“I don’t need you worry about me Chakotay, I’m going to be off shift in an hour and all I can think about is spending time with my girls and having a nice hot bath.”
Chakotay smiled, “I guess some things never change. Kathryn felt the ship shake under her feet and walked out onto the bridge. “Report.”
Harry looked at his pregnant Captain then back to the Commander, “We've entered some kind of a subspace corridor.”
Tom looked perplexed at the command couple. “We were cruising at warp six then, wham, this thing pulled at our warp field like a magnet.”
Kathryn stared at the back of Paris’ head, “Get us out of here Tom.”
“I’m trying Captain, but this ‘corridor’ is filled with debris.”
“Come on Tom.”
“I'll do my best, Captain.”
There was another shake of the ship and Kathryn grabbed the back of Tom’s chair to stop her from falling.
Chakotay looked back to Tuvok’s station. “Tuvok?”
“It was a vessel, sir. They are hailing us.”
Kathryn got her bearings and stood up straight, “Put it through.”
An alien appeared on the viewscreen, “Who are you?”
Janeway stood up to her full height, “I'm Captain Kathryn Janeway of the Starship Voyager. And you are?”
“This under-space belongs to us.”
“We're here by accident. We're trying to find a way out. Can you help us?”
“Help you? Yes, we'll help you.”
Kathryn watched as their ship got the harmonics on their shields changed and got pushed out of the underspace. As the ship exited the ‘underspace’ Kathryn slipped and Chakotay caught her before she hit the ground.
Kathryn watched the alien on the screen threatened to board her ship, “We're going to destroy that information, one way or another. Lower your shields.”
She made a slashing motion across her neck and Kim cut the transmission. “What do you think Chakotay?”
“I think we need to get out of here Kathryn.”
Tuvok decided now was the time to voice his opinion. “Their vessel is highly manoeuvrable. It's difficult to get a phaser lock. “
Kim looked at the Captain, “Picking up two more ships heading our way. “
The fighting went on, and the shields and the warp drive were down. Chakotay finally stood his ground, looking at the planet below them. “If we route enough power to the shields we can survive in that, but maybe our friends can't. “
Kathryn nodded thinking, as Tuvok told her that their shields were almost half gone. Finally she took the initiative and told her crew to take the ship into the atmosphere of the planet. “Do it.”
They entered the atmosphere and Kathryn watched the viewscreen. Finally they cleared the stratosphere and she wasn’t sure what to say. Chakotay stated, “I thought you said this planet was uninhabited.”
Harry was embarrassed as he shook his head looking at the Captain, “Radiation must have interfered with my scans.”
Tom added his two cents worth, “I doubt it's inhabited anymore. Looks like this planet's in the middle of a nuclear winter.”
Kathryn asked the crew about the Turei that were in orbit; apparently they weren’t leaving that easily. Kathryn sighed as she heard Harry’s surprised voice, “Captain, I'm detecting faint life signs coming from a chamber several hundred metres beneath the surface.”
Kathryn turned and stared at Chakotay and he knew what she was thinking, and there was no way in hell he was letting her go down to the planet. She turned to Chakotay and asked, “Survivors?”
“After nine hundred years?”
She stared at Chakotay and he knew that this was the Captain not his wife and not the mother of his children,
“Oversee the repair teams. “
He knew what she was going to do, or rather what she wanted to do. “You're going down there. “
Her look at him brooked no argument, “If somebody survived this catastrophe they might need our help. Get a good fix on those co-ordinates. I don't want to beam into solid rock. Seven, Tuvok, You're with me. “
Chakotay grabbed her arm, “You can’t go down there.”
She glared at him. “I’m the Captain.”
He sighed, “I’m not disputing that Kathryn, but you’re also my wife and you’re carrying my son.” He paused and stared her in the eyes, “You said you didn’t want to lose or jeopardize your children, but I think that’s exactly what you’ll be doing if you go down there.”
She held his gaze willing him not to disagree with her decisions, “In my ready room Commander.”
[Ready Room]
As soon as the doors to the ready room closed Kathryn spun on her husband. “How dare you?”
“Kathryn that’s my son –”
She got into his personal space, “Don’t you dare presume to tell me how to do my job Commander. Whether I’m your wife or not, I’m still the Captain of this ship.”
He shook his head. “A month ago you were telling me how you couldn’t lose another child and here you are putting another one in danger, and you’re brining Jennica with you: She has spent most of the last month in and out of surgery because of things that Tom’s father forced on her.”
“That’s not fair Chakotay, what was I supposed to do? At that point in my life I did the best I could: I told Tom this and I’ll tell you too, I couldn’t raise a child at that point in my life.”
“But now you can, and now that you have your career set you can make the decision to do what’s best for this child.” His hand went to her abdomen.
“I have to take care of the crew.”
“You have to take care of yourself and this child.”
She remembered:
“I can’t take care of this child mom.” She held the child in her arms and looked at the red-blond porcelain perfection before her.
“Are you sure this is what you want honey?”
Kathryn had tears trailing down her cheeks. “It’s what I have to do.”
Her mother nodded at her and trailed a hand across the red-blond down on the baby’s head. “I understand honey, but I need to make sure this is what you and Tom really want.”
Kathryn drew in a deep breath, “It’s not what we want; it’s what we have to do.”
“I know what I have to do Chakotay, I know better than you could ever know. And I am the Captain, and I have to do this.”
Chakotay looked at the woman he loved seeing her trying to save everyone but herself and shook his head at her imminent optimism.
She grabbed his hand. “I know you’re scared, and many times so am I; but I can’t let that prevent me from doing my job.” She placed his hand on her belly, “I’ll be careful for all of us.”
Kathryn motioned for Tuvok and Jennica to come with her and they headed off to the transporter room.
Chakotay sauntered out of the ready room and Tom looked at him. “You can’t really let her go down there, and she’s taking my daughter with her.”
Chakotay glared at him, “She’s also taking my son. It will be okay, she knows when to step back.”
“Sometimes.”
“Enough Lieutenant; she’s the Captain, stand down or I will have you relieved.”
Tom backed off and sat down at the helm hoping that Chakotay was right.
[Vaadwaur cave - stasis chamber]
Kathryn felt her body materialize and looked around at the cave in which they had been deposited.
She motioned for Tuvok to look farther into the room, and walked up to Jennica. “You’re looking better than you have in a long time honey.”
Jennica scoffed, “Yeah five surgeries later.”
Kathryn brought out her tricorder and scanned the walls of the enclosure. “These walls have been reinforced with tritonium. They built this place to last.”
Tuvok approached her, “Most of the power relays are still active. “
“Not bad after nine centuries.”
Jennica scanned the chambers, “The main reactor is drawing energy from the planet's geothermal core. It’s hard to believe that these people came up with this nine centuries ago.”
Tuvok walked up to the pods and wiped the dust away. Turning to Kathryn he stated, “Some kind of stasis pod.”
Jennica looked at the displays. “This display indicates that there are more chambers behind these walls.”
Kathryn felt the baby inside her doing summersaults, “It's amazing they survived at all. Let's see what else we can find.”
“I've activated the reanimation sequence." She pointed to the man in the stasis pod, "He may be able to provide us with some answers.”
Tuvok went to stand between his Captain and oldest friend and the stasis chambers, “We don't know anything about this species. They could be hostile.”
“Most humanoid cultures are.”
Kathryn stared at her daughter, “Jenn, remind me to reacquaint you with away mission protocols.”
The alien in the chamber looked around at Tuvok and Jenn and spied Kathryn standing in the background, “Who.”
Kathryn placed a hand on the man’s shoulder, “It's all right. We're not your enemy. We're from a starship. We discovered this chamber and revived you.”
“How long was I –”
Kathryn cut him off, “In stasis? Close to nine hundred years.”
Gedrin shook his head confused, “Nine hundred?” He got out of the pod and went to the one adjacent to him and wiped the dust off of it, “Jisa. Help her, please.” The realization that his wife was not coming back hit him, “No, Jisa. She was my wife.”
“I’m sorry Gedrin.” She placed a hand on her belly and thought about what she would do if she and Chakotay were in the same situation. “Let’s get you back up to Voyager and have the doctor check you out.”
Gedrin nodded and Kathryn led the way.
[Sickbay]
The four of them walked into sickbay, “Just sit down on the biobed Gedrin; our doctor will just check you out.”
Gedrin looked frightened at the E.M.H. “I won't hurt you.” He pulled the tricorder out and pointed it at Kathryn, “Captain, here; let me scan you and prove to him that it’s not dangerous. And it’ll give me a chance to check you and the baby out.”
Kathryn nodded as the doctor scanned her from head to toe.
Gedrin shook his head, “I was drifting in and out of consciousness when they brought me here but I thought I saw you appear out of thin air.”
“I'm a computer program: a hologram.”
“And the others?”
“Flesh and blood, like yourself.”
He looked at Janeway, “And she’s carrying a child?”
The E.M.H. nodded, “Yes she’s due to deliver in about four months.”
He turned to Janeway, “You're the ones that took me out of stasis. I don't recognise your species. “
She raised an eyebrow unsure of how much to divulge, “We’re human. Our home planet is halfway across the galaxy.”
"And you've expanded your territory into this space?”
Kathryn eyed the man suspiciously, “Our ship was brought here by accident. We're trying to get home.”
He turned to Jennica, finally looking at her and her remaining implants for the first time, “You're Borg.”
“How do you know that?”
He stared at her surprised, “Don't you recognise my people? The Vaadwaur?”
“The Collective's memory from nine hundred years ago is fragmentary; and I’m no longer part of the collective.”
Jennica touched her head and the doctor swiftly went to her side with a tricorder.
“I’m seeing minor fluctuations Jennica; I assume you’re just like your mother. Headaches?”
Jennica nodded, “It’s nothing really.”
The doctor sighed and pressed a hypospray to her neck. “There that should help.”
Gedrin brought her back to the conversation at hand, “I've had many encounters with your kind.” He turned to Kathryn, “How did you find us?”
“We needed someplace to hide from the Turei after they found us in one of their subspace corridors.”
“Their corridors.”
“So they claimed.” Kathryn stepped back as she saw the anger cross his features.
“The corridors were ours. It took centuries to map them. We were the envy of a hundred species, including the Turei.”
Kathryn felt his pain and slowly re-approached him, holding a hand possessively on her belly, “Are they responsible for what happened to your planet?”
“The Turei and a dozen others. What one couldn't accomplish the others finally did. I would like to look at what's left of my world.” Kathryn nodded and understood the man’s pain despite her misgivings.
She turned to the doctor. “Is Jennica okay?”
The doctor nodded, “Yes she seems to have taken on her mother’s cavalier attitude towards her health though.”
Kathryn glared at the EMH. “If she’s okay, I’d like her to return to duty. I need her on the bridge.”
The doctor cleared his throat. “Captain, you’ve been on duty for more than 10 hours straight now, I think it’s time you took a break.”
Kathryn sighed and nodded, leaving sickbay and heading for her quarters.
[5 hours later - Mess hall]
Kathryn had taken the doctor’s advice and had lain down for three hours, at which point she had gone to the mess hall for something to eat and to meet with Gedrin.
She had shared a meal with Gedrin and then she had stood up placing a hand on her back which was protesting with all the extra weight she carried.
“We made our final stand there.”
Kathryn shook her head, “I've scanned the cavern. You've got a thousand more stasis pods down there, most of them still active. Hundreds of ships, land vehicles, weapons.”
“A single battalion and their families. We had planned to come out of stasis after five years. We believed that by then, the Alliance would have been at each other's throats.”
She stared at Gedrin admiring his optimism at the rebuilding of his culture, “You were going to rebuild.”
“No, not here; we knew this planet would be poisoned for centuries. We were planning to go to another world, start a colony, hope to find new allies. Learn from them.”
Gedrin stared at the woman who was his would-be saviour, “Maybe it's not too late to meet a new ally and learn from her.”
Kathryn heard Chakotay’s voice break the moment over the comm. line, “Looks like our friends in orbit have found us.”
She turned to Gedrin standing up and nodding encouraging him to join her, “We're on our way.”
[Bridge]
Kathryn turned to Chakotay, “Commander, my ready room?”
Chakotay nodded and motioned for Jennica to follow them.
[Ready Room]
Kathryn drew in a deep breath. “Okay so now the ‘battalion’ has been woken up, and they’re ready to go, but I still don’t trust them Chakotay.”
Chakotay shook his head and stared at Jennica, forcing her to realize this problem was her fault. “I don’t trust them either Kathryn, they’re in a big hurry to get their army up and out of there.”
Janeway nodded, “But there’s something that’s not right about this. Did you hear what Neelix said about them?”
“Yes, and that in some ways scares the hell out of me.”
[Vaadwaur cave - central chamber]
Against his better judgement Chakotay had told Kathryn that if she insisted on coming down to the planet again he was going to join her.
He stared at his wife. “Back bothering you?”
“You know this happens every time I hit about five months Chakotay, I’m carrying like 15 extra kilos on me, and so the pains of pregnancy really begin.”
Chakotay nodded and looked around at where B’Elanna and many of the engineering crew were working on the outdated equipment of the Vaadwaur.
Chakotay stared at his wife, “Dragon's teeth.”
She shook her head unsure what the reference was, “Dragon's teeth?”
“An old Greek myth: After a dragon was killed in a war, its teeth were spread out over the battlefield. They took root and warriors sprung from the ground to continue the fighting.”
Kathryn shook her head and tapped her commbadge, “Voyager two to beam up.”
“Yes Captain,” and she and Chakotay disappeared in a beam of blue light.
Captain's log, supplemental. We've revived nearly two hundred of the Vaadwaur and we're moving forward with our unexpected alliance.
[Mess hall]
Kathryn walked into the mess hall looking for a snack. “Is there anything that I could have a snack Neelix?”
Neelix looked pre-occupied and unsure, then he realized that someone was talking to him. “There should be some biscuits in the cold store.”
He turned and went back to what he was doing. “Computer, access my personal database.”
The computer’s metallic voice answered, “Access established.”
“Go into the Talaxian linguistic files, Old Tongue dialect. Find and define the word Vaadwaur.”
Kathryn ate her biscuits and waited for Neelix to be finished. He finally turned to her, “This is proof that everything I have suspected is true.”
Kathryn nodded, “People change Neelix, maybe this is one of those instances.”
Neelix shook his head, “They try to change but not everyone can, and I implore you to be careful Captain.”
[Astrometrics lab]
Kathryn stood beside Jennica in the astrometrics lab along with Gedrin. She watched as Jennica rubbed her forehead and all Kathryn could think was, *I know how you feel.*
Gedrin pointed at the astrometric map, “That star cluster in grid fourteen twenty one? Nearly half the planets are inhabitable.”
“Unfortunately they are already occupied, by the Borg.”
Gedrin shook his head, “The Borg? In my century they'd only assimilated a handful of systems. It looks like they've
spread through the quadrant like a plague. No offence.”
Jenn sighed and pulled her hand away from her head, “None taken. I`ve told you that I am no longer part of the Borg Collective, I am now an individual.”
“We had a colony near the twin stars in grid three one five.”
“That is part of the Devore Imperium now.”
Gedrin turned to Kathryn and Jennica frustrated, “And who are they?”
“An authoritarian regime. They claim eleven systems across three sectors.”
“I don't suppose they'd be willing to negotiate for a continent or two.”
“The Devore are intolerant of outsiders.”
Gedrin sighed and looked at the map in despair, “It doesn't matter. We have nothing to negotiate with. Our technology is nine hundred years out of date.”
“Your attitude sucks, and your pessimism is frustrating; we will find a home for you.”
“I hope you're right.”
[Briefing room]
Kathryn sat in the briefing room, her husband at her side. “Kathryn we have to get them off the ship, they’re dangerous, and I don’t like you in their proximity.”
Kathryn glared at Chakotay, “Chakotay I’m the least of anyone’s problems right now. Tuvok is going to be here in a few minutes with Gaul: Hopefully he’ll have some answers for us.”
Chakotay looked up as Tuvok walked in carrying a PADD for his commanding officers. “Sixteen Turei vessels are now in orbit. Long range sensors indicate five more on the way. “
Kathryn rolled her eyes, “I can understand that they want the odds in their favour but isn't that overkill?”
Gaul stared at the Captain and then at the map where Tuvok had shown them the placement of the Turei ships, “They may have detected us. If they know their history, they'll come prepared.”
“Nine hundred years is a long time to hold a grudge.”
“The Turei would like nothing more than to find the rest of our subspace corridors. We can't allow that to happen.”
Tuvok looked to Kathryn and Chakotay then to Gaul, “Then I suggest we use the element of surprise. At oh six hundred, Voyager will leave the surface and engage the Turei ships in orbit. As we draw their fire, the more powerful Vaadwaur vessels will attack from multiple vectors. The rest of the Vaadwaur will break orbit from the opposite side of the planet and proceed to the subspace corridors. We'll rendezvous with them afterwards.”
Gaul stood up and stared at Kathryn, “What if Voyager is disabled? We'll be defenceless. If we armed my ships with your photon torpedoes –”
Kathryn stood up and stared at Gaul eye to eye despite her tiny stature, “I can't authorise that.”
“Why?”
”Starfleet protocols are very strict about the transfer of weapons.”
Gaul walked up to the pregnant Captain menacingly: “I'm not used to putting my life in someone else's hands.”
Kathryn approached him and met him glare for glare, “There are a lot of things you're going to have to get used to. We've faced enemies worse than the Turei. I'm confident we can handle them.”
“I need those weapons.”
“I'm sorry, the answer's no.”
“If you want access to our corridors –”
She cut him off, “We'll continue home through open space if we have to.”
He pulled back and backhanded her across the face, forcing her to go down and Chakotay to catch her in mid fall.
“Security to the ready room.”
The Gaul shook his head, “It’s a long way home Captain.”
Kathryn placed her hand against her cheek where a red welt was beginning to make itself known. “And it’s a long way we’ll make with or without your help.”
Security arrived and put Gaul into custody but not before making the final statement, “All right, our lives are in your hands.”
Everyone left the briefing room except Kathryn and Chakotay.
Chakotay turned Kathryn around so he could stare at the welt on her perfect face. He tilted her chin up so he could get a better look at the mark that Gaul had left her with. “I told you they were dangerous.”
Kathryn sighed, “I know but I can’t let them take advantage of any weaknesses we might have or anything that they perceive as weaknesses.”
Chakotay shook his head, “Someday Kathryn your pride is going to be the death of you, and I’m just afraid that at some point I won’t be here to save you from yourself.”
Kathryn turned without another word and made her way to the bridge.
[Vaadwaur caves - central chamber]
The Vaadwaur soldiers gathered around as Gedrin stared at them. “We've found a planet in a nebula near the junction of corridors three nine and eight seven five. We'd be isolated and relatively safe.”
Gaul after questioning had been released from Voyager’s brig, “Relatively?”
“I'm afraid the planet is somewhat harsh. There are no large bodies of water and the vegetation is sparse.”
Gaul stared at Gedrin his temper once again getting the better of him, “This is absurd!”
Gedrin stared at Gaul, “You have no right to question me or Captain Janeway for that matter after your little performance on their ship today.”
Gaul backed off, but Gedrin had a feeling that the fight was no over.
[Astrometrics lab]
Jennica had heard what Gaul had done to her mother and had no sympathy for these creatures anymore. She pointed to the planet on the viewscreen, “This is an M class planet in orbit of a type G star. We've located a subcontinent with edible vegetation and an underground water supply. Unfortunately, the region is subject to windstorms.”
Gedrin looked at her, “Am I to understand that you are the Captain’s daughter?”
Jennica nodded, “Yes but I don’t see what this has to do with your current predicament.”
“Nothing Mr. Neelix shared it with me and I’m surprised that she lets her child serve on a ship under her.”
“She didn’t exactly have a choice, she rescued me from the collective and didn’t know at the time who I was.”
“Luck of the draw.”
“I suppose so,” Jennica went back to the mission at hand, and pointed back at the viewscreen.
“Not exactly paradise.”
“You will adapt.”
“Practical and to the point: just like my wife. She had a knack for cutting to the truth.”
Jennica shrugged, “She must have been an efficient individual, and from the way you speak of her you must have loved her very much.”
The conversation was halted by a hail from Neelix, “Neelix to Seven of Nine.”
Jennica looked confused, “Yes?”
Then Neelix made a request of her, “Could I see you in Cargo Bay two? It's important.”
“Acknowledged.”
“I'm due for a final briefing with your Mister Tuvok.”
Jennica stared at Gedrin one last time, “I'll accompany you to the Bridge.”
[Ready room]
Janeway rubbed the bridge of her nose with her left hand, her right hand lying on her belly. She heard the door chime ring, “Come in.”
Gedrin pranced into the ready room, “You wanted to see me, Captain?”
“Yes. I need a little history lesson.”
“You told me the Vaadwaur were a culture of merchants and scientists who expanded their knowledge by using subspace corridors to travel to other worlds. You were the envy of hundreds of species, some of whom eventually wanted the corridors for themselves.”
“Your point?”
Kathryn stared at him forcing her blue orbs to stare into Gedrin, “Let me give you another version of events. The Vaadwaur were an aggressive culture who expanded their territory by using the corridors to attack other worlds, until some of those worlds banded together to defend themselves and put an end to the Vaadwaur threat once and for all. Would you care to set the record straight?”
Gedrin tried to escape the trying stare of the Captain, “That was nine hundred years ago.”
Kathryn stood up exasperated and stared at Gedrin, “If we're going to be fighting side by side, I have to trust you. I need to be certain you don't have any ulterior motives.”
“Our only motive is survival.”
Janeway walked up around the desk and went as close as her belly would allow, “If I were to take you at your word, the ancient Talaxians might call me Vaadwaur, foolish. That's what they came to call anyone who allowed themselves to be deceived by an enemy. There are hundreds of other references just like it.”
“Both versions of our history are true. We did use the corridors to explore and, on occasion, expand our territory. But Captain, we have gone from a population of six billion to six hundred. Our weapons are archaic. Do you really think that we are prepared to declare war on the Delta quadrant?”
“Not yet, but right now it's Voyager I'm worried about. The Turei are going to be firing everything they've got at my ship. You might try to take advantage of that.” Her hand went to her belly and she thought about her family and the other families on her ship trying to make their way home.
Gedrin looked at her pleading, “What are you going to do, put us all back into stasis?”
“We said we'd try to help you make a new start, and I want to keep that promise, but I can't ignore history, Mister Gedrin.”
[Bridge]
Kathryn walked onto the bridge and plopped down in her command chair turning to her husband, “Chakotay, I don't know whether to believe him or not. What I wouldn't give for a Betazoid about now.”
“If Mister Neelix is right we should be ready for anything. Their technology may be outdated but it can still do a lot of damage.”
“Agreed. Maintain a full security alert and have Tuvok keep a weapons lock on their primary reactor.”
She looked over her shoulder to Harry, “What's Mister Gaul's location?”
“He's in the central chamber.”
“Hail him.”
Gaul’s face appeared on the viewscreen and Kathryn all of a sudden felt an irrational fear course through her, Captain, we've reactivated seventy three assault vessels. Our pilots are standing by.”
Kathryn drew in a deep breath, “I need to inform you about a change of plan. I want you to deactivate the particle cannons on all but ten of your assault vessels. Then we'll proceed on schedule.”
“I don't understand.”
“Only ten of your ships are going to engage the Turei. The others will head directly for the subspace corridors. I see no reason for those to be armed.”
“Something could go wrong. Why leave them defenceless?”
Kathryn stood her ground, “Voyager will defend them.”
Gaul looked down at the ground then back up to the viewscreen, “What prompted this change?”
“You haven't been completely honest about your past, and that makes me a little uncertain about the present. I'm going to leave this planet in one hour with or without you.”
Gaul just about hissed at the Captain, “We did not spend nine hundred years in stasis to take orders from you.”
The viewscreen went dark and Kathryn turned to the bridge crew looking completely in control even though inside her stomach was turning.
She sat down in her chair and looked at Chakotay, “I don't know about the rest of you but I'm ready to get moving.”
Chakotay nodded in agreement then she turned to Paris, “What's our status?”
“Impulse engines are online.”
Tuvok stared at the back of her head as he made his report, “Shields at maximum. Weapons standing by.”
They began their ascent sequence and Tom piped up from the con, “Ma'am, they're not ascending into orbit. They're heading straight for Voyager.”
A fight ensued Tom doing his best to dodge the Vaadwaur fighters and Tuvok doing his best to target as many as possible. Finally Kathryn made a decision and turned to Harry, “Mr. Kim, open a comm. line to the Turei ship.”
Harry did as told, and as the face of the Turei filled the screen, Kathryn stood up and opened her mouth before her had a chance to respond. “I've got a proposition for you.”
“No more talk. Prepare to be bordered.”
Kathryn approached the back of Tom’s chair and leaned on it as she spoke to the Turei, “Tell me, have you been picking up weapons fire?”
“We have detected some unusual energy signatures, yes.”
“That's because we're under attack by the Vaadwaur.”
The Turei looked at Janeway with an untrusting look on his face, “Impossible. They were destroyed centuries ago.”
“Some of us have survived.”
A long fight ensued as Kathryn watch the missiles hit her ship and the Vaadwaur ships around her explode.
Kim’s panicked voice came from behind her, “We've lost impulse engines and navigation.”
Paris spun around and looked helplessly at Kathryn, “Thrusters are failing. We're losing altitude.”
Kathryn screamed out to Tuvok in the caves below them, “Tuvok, status. Tuvok!”
“I've lost the signal.”
Kathryn drew in a deep breath and placed her hands on her belly then walked up once again to stand behind Tom’s chair for balance, “All hands, this is the Captain. Initiate emergency landing procedures and arm yourselves. If the Vaadwaur board this ship, we'll fight them hand to hand if we have to.”
[Vaadwaur caves - control chamber]
Gedrin stared at Tuvok, “They're blocking my commands. I'm rotating the carrier frequencies.”
“The chamber is destabilising. We must evacuate.”
Gedrin stared at the Vulcan pleadingly, “Not yet. If we're going to succeed, I need to transmit the signatures of our fighters to the Turei.” He grabbed Tuvok’s arm and pushed him towards the exit. “You go.”
[Bridge]
Chakotay looked at his wife and Captain and stood behind her, “They’re firing Captain.” She stumbled and he held her up so she didn’t go crashing on the ground. “Six Vaadwaur ships were just destroyed by the Turei. The others are breaking off their attack.”
She looked to Paris this time for answers, “Impulse engines.”
“Still offline.”
“How about emergency power?”
She turned to look at Harry as she asked about emergency power and he gave her the only answer her could, “Barely enough for life support, Captain.”
Kathryn sighed and looked at her husband, playing with her commbadge. There was a decision to make and she was going to make it. “Harry, the radiogenic particles in the atmosphere, could we use them as a power source?”
Kim looked at her as if she’s gone mad, and gave her the answer, “We'd have to modify the warp core's conversion matrix. It could take hours.”
“What if we drew the particles directly into our plasma manifold?”
Paris shook his head incredulous, but she was the Captain and that’s why she was the Captain, so she could make the hard decisions. “That would give us one hell of a boost.”
Chakotay took her arm and spun her around. “Kathryn –”
“We have to get airborne Chakotay.”
She looked to Harry for the answer. “It could also blow out every power relay on the ship.”
She approached Harry’s station, Chakotay in tow. “Damned if we do, damned if we don't.” She ran her hand over her forehead, trying to release the pressure in her head. “Open the forward nacelle ports and reverse the pressure gradient. Take in six hundred kilograms.”
Harry stared at her, “Particle concentration at three thousand parts per million.”
“Okay Harry, Tom, let’s do this. Release the manifold.”
Tom’s hands played across the controls, “Rerouting plasma to the power conduits. We have impulse.”
Chakotay looked incredulously at his wife, she’d done it again. “Take us up.”
Kathryn felt the ship lurch under her and the saw the sparks as the power relays blew. Kim told her exactly what she knew was happening, “Thirteen power relays just blew out on deck six.”
Kathryn looked over to Jennica who was holding on for dear life at the tactical station. “Steady.”
Tom gave her the good news she was looking for, “We're crossing the thermosphere.”
“Any sign of pursuit?”
Chakotay looked to his wife, “None. Looks like the Vaadwaur have their hands full.”
“Altitude?”
“We've cleared the thermosphere.”
“Go to warp, Mister Paris.”
“Yes, ma'am.”
Captain's log, Stardate 53167.9. After two days, there's been no sign of the Vaadwaur or the Turei. However, Seven of Nine has made an unsettling discovery: Some of those ships made it to their subspace corridors; I doubt it’s the last we’ve seen of the Vaadwaur.
[Ready room]
Kathryn sat on the ready room couch, Chakotay next to her. “Well we did it again Chakotay, we beat the odds.”
Chakotay laughed, “I don’t know how many times you can push your luck Kathryn before one day your luck runs out.”
“Oh I’ve got a ways to go yet.” Her hands played over her belly and she felt the child squirm within her.
“How’s my little man today?”
Kathryn laughed, “Oh, he’s fine: Squirming around as usual.”
Chakotay placed a hand on her stomach, feeling his child making his presence known. “Have you noticed anything odd about Jennica lately?”
Chakotay shook his head, “Nothing more than usual, she’s a Janeway, she is odd by nature.”
Kathryn slapped Chakotay’s arm good-naturedly. “Ha ha ha, No seriously, it seems she’s been having headaches a lot lately: and hasn’t been feeling well.”
“Well why don’t you ask the doctor or Jennica herself if you’re so concerned?”
Kathryn shook her head, “I can’t put my finger on it, but something isn’t right with her.”
“Janeway to Jennica.”
“Jennica here Captain.”
“Can you please come to the ready room?”
“On my way Captain.”
Kathryn watched Jennica come through the doors of the ready room and collapse just inside the door.
Kathryn’s eyes went wide as she watched her eldest daughter begin to convulse and called for the doctor to come immediately to the ready room.
Chakotay watched the scene before him unfold and was horrified at the tears streaming down his wife’s face.
Kathryn turned to look at Chakotay, “I can’t lose her Chakotay, do something.”
The doctor came rushing into the ready room and Chakotay grabbed his wife’s shoulders and pulled her away from the scene before them. “Oh, god Chakotay. He has to save her.”
END 2. False Hope
TBC in 3. Life Changes