“What the hell happened?” B’Elanna Torres demanded. No one answered.
The last thing that she remembered was stabilizing the energy matrix, when everything turned up side down and all she heard was the sound of her own screams. Then everything went black. The next thing she knew she was on the floor with a splitting headache and a few bruised ribs, but not enough to keep her from getting straight to work.
Moments later every console in Engineering were still flashing and beeping. B’Elanna ran from station to station trying desperately to stabilize almost everything in Engineering. She worked with only four other officers the rest were seriously injured and taken to sick bay. So far the only information that she could receive from the bridge had been that the explosion was caused by a mironic shield.
“ How could a mironic shield almost blow up the ship?” Torres turned to face Vorik, her Vulcan officer.
“There is no logical explanation for such an explosion to occur.” Vorik replied easily.
B’Elanna had to smiled at Vulcan logic. It never fails she thought, they stay logical through everything. She ran over to the next console. “We have, a loose modulator on deck four, an overload in jeffries tube 23 and five broken power couplings.” She stopped a second shaking her head and, letting her Klingon temper swell. “No this can’t be, Damn!” She tried to calm herself, being half human and half Klingon was becoming more of a burden every day.
Vorik walked over to her. “What is it?”
“I just stabilized the energy matrix, it’s over loading again.” She looked up at him, blood still running down her face. “You take care of the energy matrix maybe you’ll do a better job than I did. I’ll work on the power couplings, we’ll have to take care of the rest later.” She picked up a tool box and headed for a nearby wall. She unscrewed the panel and started working.
A few moments later the doors to Engineering opened and Tom walked through them.
“How’s it going down here?” He asked with a smirk on his face, and an air of mischief surrounging him. He kneeled down next to B’Elanna, who was still working on the power couplings. “Well?” He asked again when he didn’t get an answer the first time.
She turned her head and looked at him. Her raven hair limp with perspiration, bobbed on her shoulders as her head snapped sideways. “Oh I’m sorry, I thought that it was obvious how it’s going down here by just looking at the mess around you.” Be’lanna’s charcoal colored eyes simmered with frustration. She was exhausted and not in the mood for her usual squabbles with Tom.
“Did you fall on the wrong side of your head today?” He added sarcastically, noticing the nasty gash on her forehead.
Looking up at him a moment, she decided to let that remark go and move on. “So why did they send you to check up on me? Did they run out of options, or did they get tired of seeing you on the bridge?” Her strong and beautiful features took on an expression of sarcaism.
“For your information, I didn’t come from the bridge. And, I wasn’t ordered here, I was worried about you so I decided to pop in and see if you were all right.” He touched her face, gently wiping away the blood.
Looking into his aqua marine eyes, she noticed his mood had changed. He became warm, a characteristic that only recently she learned he had. She smiled, pleased with his sudden change of disposition. “You know, I like you better when your worried about me.” He returned her smile leaning in for a kiss. She stopped him reluctantly. “I have work to do, and shouldn’t you be on the bridge helping them?”
“Yes he should.” Commander Chakotay’s shadow fell over Tom and Be’lanna.
Tom flushed as he stood to face the Commander. “Chakotay, I was just on my way to the bridge.”
“We don’t need you on the bridge Tom, the ship isn’t going anywhere. The Doctor needs you in sick bay.”
Tom protested. “But I was just there not long ago, and he didn’t say anything. All he told me to do, was to take a nap.”
“That was before the explosion, he needs your help now.” Chakotay said, knowing how much Tom would like to weasel his way out of helping the Doctor.
“Maybe I’ll go see the Captain first and check if there is anything she needs.” Tom stated hopefully.
“You can’t do that.” Chakotay said, his expression changing suddenly.
B’Elanna had been listening to the conversation and looked up. She noticed the worried look on the Commander’s face. “What is it Chakotay?”
He looked down and took a deep breath. “The Captain was abducted.”
Three hours later the senior staff sat around the conference table. The room was filled with discussion of the events that had occurred in the past four hours.
Chakotay sat at the head of the table where the Captain usually sat. He observed his crew members, stained with blood and worn from hard work but still filled with enough energy to argue. He listened as they yelled over one another, trying to prove that their explanation for the explosion was the correct one. Chakotay however, did not participate in the discussion. He just sat and listened to the crew argue.
After a while he found himself smiling. What a long way they had come he thought. He could still remember the first day that they functioned as one crew. Actually, on the first day, they didn’t function as a crew at all. On the first day the Maquis and Starfleet were still sworn enemies, constantly budding heads. It was a strange mixture. The; can’t stand rules Maquis, and the; live by rules Starfleet, suddenly thrown together 70,000 light years away from home. But both crews adjusted remarkably fast. The mixture that at first glance seemed impossible, was now inseparable. Both crews grew together, learning from one another. The Maquis learned that, sometimes rules can save your life. And Starfleet learned that, sometimes you have to brake the rules in order to survive. No question about it, in the past four years both crews have been through hell and back together. They soon became one crew that supports and depends on one another. Like a family, a very close family. Even though the crew was budding heads again, right now, it wasn’t anything like the first day. Now it was very similar to when a family fights over who gets the bathroom, and that made Chakotay smile.
He continued to smile lovingly at his crew, and he knew that if the Captain was there she would be doing the same thing. They would both be sitting and smiling at their crew, like proud parents. That’s what Chakotay thought of sometimes, that Kathryn and himself weren’t the commanding officers of this crew but their parents. Which reminded him, two of his children were missing, Tuvok and Seven. So he decided to wait for them before he would start the meeting. Besides, Seven was going to be an important part of the meeting.
Moments later the conference room doors opened. Tuvok and Seven entered. The room quieted remarkably, leaving only the humming of the ship’s power.
The Vulcan spoke first, “I must apologize for delaying the meeting. It was not our intent to work so long on the status modulator. However, the task turned out to be longer than we had anticipated.”
“OK, lets start.” Chakotay announced.
Tuvok and Seven took their seats around the oval table.
Seven looked out of place, wearing a skin tight maroon suit, while the rest of the crew wore the traditional Starfleet uniforms. The color maroon was a contrast compared to the black jumpsuits with either red, yellow or blue shoulders. Tuvok adjusted his uniform as he sat next to Chakotay.
“I believe Commander, Seven has come up with an explanation for the explosion, and the whereabouts of Captain Janeway.” Tuvok informed Chakotay.
The Commander sat back in his chair, more than ready to listen to the story. “Please, tell us.”
Seven spoke. Her posture as always, was perfect, as though she was trying to become even taller than she already was. “The Borg encountered the same alien ship a month before I was separated from the collective. The vessel fired extensively at the Borg until it had crippled us substantially. They broke through our shields and transported a drone, and other Borg technology from our ship. Then they left.” Seven sat motionless, her crystal blue eyes open wide, awaiting a response.
Tom dipped in first. “Did the Borg pursue?”
“No.” She answered simply. Her young smooth face turned and waited for any other questions that may emerge.
“Didn’t they want their drone back?” Tom added.
“The Alien species had crippled us, so that we could not pursue, even if we wanted to.” Seven informed him.
Harry was puzzled by this. “I thought that the Borg had a homing beacon that is activated when they are separated from the collective?”
“That is correct Ensign Kim. The drone never responded to the transmission.”
“Do you think that maybe the Aliens killed the drone?” Tom queried.
Seven volleyed his question smoothly. “Perhaps you are correct Lieutenant, but that would mean that the Captain is dead as well.” Everyone winced at that, save for Seven who seemed oblivious to the idea. Chakotay decided to do the same and disconnect himself from the possibility. He would not accept Kathryn’s death until her cold and lifeless body was laid out before him. The thought chilled his very core. Instantly he shoved the picture from his minds eye. Tuvok helped him by adding to Seven’s statement.
“It is not likely that the Aliens would kill their victims. If they had the intentions to kill them, it would have been just as efficient to kill us all.”
Chakotay soaked in the information, letting it sit for a while. “So we’ve established, why the explosions occurred. It wasn’t the mironic shield, it was the Aliens trying to cripple us so that they could lower our shields and abduct a member of our crew. They also crippled us so that we couldn’t pursue when we noticed that someone was missing. Correct?”
The crew all nodded in response.
“Now, going along with Seven’s story, have any other items been beamed off the ship?”
Harry leaned forward. “Yes sir, four rifles, two padds, and a couple of communicators.”
The Doctor added to the list, “I am also missing three hyposparys and other various medical instruments. That by the way, I need back as soon as possible.” He added putting forth his needs.
“Let’s stick to returning the Captain first.” Chakotay reminded him.
Harry had just remembered another item. “They also tapped into the ships memory matrix.”
Tom looked perplexed. “What good would that do them?”
Harry shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know. All the memory matrix contains is the history of the ship and other information, like personal logs. Nothing that should be important to hostile Aliens.”
“Commander.” Tuvok addressed him. “I have come to the conclusion that the Aliens intentions were to study our species and collect samples. Not to destroy us.”
“How so?” Chakotay turned his attention towards the dark skinned Vulcan, who’s eyebrows worked into an intense V of concentration. His eyes were deep but void of any emotion.
“They have collected samples from our ship that indicate the possibility that they wish to study us. Such as, the instruments and information in the computer databanks. The information clearly can be used to interpret the behavior of our species. Like, where we came from and how we feel.” He spoke fluently almost in a rhythm. His logic made the idea seem apparent and Chakotay began to wonder why he didn’t think of it first.
Harry seemed a bit confused. “If they came for exploration, then why didn’t they just ask us if they could board our ship?”
A thought struck Chakotay like a lightning bolt. He shared it with the rest of the crew. “Maybe they wanted to take samples, and by the reactions of other species, they probably found it easier to obtain what they wanted without a confrontation.”
B'Elanna spoke, slightly hesitating. “What do you think they do with their...samples?”
“I have not considered that.” Tuvok stepped back from the conversaion allowing anyone to contribute to the vast amount of possibilities.
“Maybe they’re taking them somewhere.” Harry contributed.
The crew considered the idea.
“That’s a good possibility.” Chakotay said. Harry grinned, and Chakotay smiled back proud of how far Harry had come. He used to be afraid to even contribute to any conversation the crew had, for fear that his ideas would be rejected. Now, he spoke with conviction, knowing that his ideas would be just as valued as anyone else’s.
Tuvok agreed. “Yes Ensign, that is a plausible idea indeed.” Harry erupted into an even larger grin. It was a challenge receiving Tuvok’s approval.
“But where did they take them?” Tom intercepted, causing Harry’s pride to deflate.
“Harry,” Chakotay called. “can you track the Alien ship?”
“No, I can’t. They have a sort of force field that is impossible to track.”
Harry looked disappointed but Chakotay flashed a smile of approval and understanding. Harry noticed and his spirits seemed to lift.
Chakotay turned to Seven who immediately locked eyes with his, unblinking. “Seven, I want you to scan the region for any M-class planets. Report to me when you find anything.”
“Yes sir.” Seven agreed.
He turned to B'Elanna. “You’ll work with Seven.”
B'Elanna shot him a look that could have disinigrated him. Her eyes begged, “no”. Chakotay knew how much Be’lanna rejected even the thought of working with Seven, but he stood by his order.
Her tenacious face reluctantly gave in. “Yes sir.”
Chakotay was just about to dismiss the group when Tom interrupted his thoughts.
“Commander, I think you should ask Neelix if he has ever heard of these Aliens. It’s a small possibility but he might know something.”
Chakotay thought that he saw the Doctor grimace at the mention of Neelix’s name but he probably imagined it. The Doctor’s face was worn with so many expressions that Chakotay could have been mistaken.
“Good idea Tom, I’ll go check in with him tomorrow. It’s been a long day, go clean yourselves up and get a little sleep. We’ll get a fresh start tomorrow morning. Dismissed.” The senior staff filtered out of the room until there was no one there save for Chakotay.
He sat there for a moment, his mind racing with thoughts and images. Putting his elbows on the table, he rested his head in his strong hands. Slowly he let out a breath of frustration. How would he find her? Kathryn could be anywhere in the Universe by now. Those Aliens had such advanced technology they could be on the other side of the quadrant by now.
The chances were one in a million of finding Kathryn, his dearest friend, and confidant.
Running his fingers through his jet black hair, he closed his eyes. He cleared his head of every thought and every image and concentrated soley on the stillness of silence. He was exhausted, it had been a hell of a day.
He shook his head, throwing the events of the last five hours out of his brain. Walking away from the conference table, he turned and faced the tall windows. Looking out at the stars, entranced by their light and power, he made a vow.
I will find her, I’ll find Kathryn.
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