My goal is to link most, if not all, of the fifth season fall episodes. I would like to do the whole year...Whether I succeed or not, is still up in the air.
This will also be a continuation of Fortune's Foe--the episode additions to the last 7 episodes from last season.
They are already involved. Which is why I don't know if I can continue this...But I'm going to try.
Paramount owns the characters and universe, but I have read that they refuse to listen to the fans...So maybe they don't even know that fanfic even exists.
"Damn it Kathryn, what the hell were you doing?" Chakotay gripped the edge of her dresser tighter. He refused to look at her until he could bring his temper under control. He'd managed just barely to avoid either strangling or kissing her earlier.
"I did what I had to do...I am Captain..." She was still standing in the doorway.
"And you saw how the crew reacted."
"We can't let personal feelings get involved in command decisions."
He laughed--it wasn't a pleasant sound. "Now you sound like a Vulcan. And in case you didn't notice, Tuvok agreed with that same crew."
He didn't see her nod, but he heard her exasperated sigh. "You are impossible. But this is exactly why I...well why I..."
He turned to look at her. "Kathryn, we're Starfleet officers in the middle of...well no longer in the middle of no where. We both know there are risks. And that many of those risks are necessary. But this wasn't. This was you feeling guilty for stranding us here. You didn't. The Caretaker did. The Kazon did. You only confirmed what we already knew: we couldn't be responsible for the destruction an entire civilization."
"Chakotay...I..." She looked out her window. "Stars. As a child I dreamed of them, of traveling amongst them. Of making exciting discoveries...Little did I know."
He smiled, feeling a little less angry, but wouldn't let her change the subject. "Kathryn, you have a ship full of people who care for you...You can't cut them out of your life just because you feel guilty. We noticed, and everybody was wondering what they did wrong. Why you were angry with them. I wondered what was wrong." He held out his hand. "It was a time of contemplation--too much, but I wondered if perhaps I had..."
"Oh Chakotay, it wasn't you...Never you. It was me. How can I justify loving you, being happy..."
"You can't. But you can't justify being hated and sad either." She took his offered hand and he pulled her into his arms. "My people believe that where and when you are--where ever, whenever that is--is exactly where and when you are supposed to be."
She smiled slightly as she leaned against his shoulder. "Joyous we too launch out on trackless seas, fearless for unknown shores..." She paused. "Part of a poem I remember from another when, another where. That phrase stuck in my mind. It so describes life in Starfleet." She looked up at him, letting her eyes catch his. "A phrase that these past two months was the opposite of how I felt."
He kissed her cheek. "Just promise me that you will remember you aren't alone--"
She nodded, just as her combadge chirped. "Janeway here."
"Captain," it was Torres. "Warp engines are back on-line."
"Excellent work, Lieutenant." She sent the order to the bridge to proceed at warp 6 toward Emck's people's space. She looked up at Chakotay. "Where we are supposed to be?" He nodded. "That would mean we are here to help the Emck's people with their theta-radiation waste." She glanced toward her bed and smiled. The jacket he'd left the other night was still lying on the covers. He followed her gaze and laughed.
"So, I couldn't find it in the dark." She laughed too, a good laugh he decided.
"I wonder if anyone noticed?"
"No, everybody was too busy...This is still our secret."
#
#
"B'Elanna?" Tom asked for the third time. "Let me in." He shrugged slightly and shifted his feet when Megan and company passed him. A few hi's and they'd passed. He didn't want to explain why he was here...but also knew that everybody probably knew.
The fourth time she answered him. "Why? Did you schedule a fight time for now? I wish you would have told me."
"Be...Let me, this is rather public."
There was a laugh and the door opened. "Hello Lieutenant, may I assist you?" She didn't even look at him.
"B'Elanna--it was the void...Forgive me?"
She quirked an eyebrow but poured herself a glass of water. "The void? You do have a knack for excuses. Aliens, fathers, voids..."
"I...B'Elanna, I love you..." He reached for her hand. "I know I'm a pig..." This earned him a friendlier laugh.
"I suppose this time I wasn't very nice either." She smiled at him.
"Let's kiss and make-up?" He pulled her closer and proceeded to kiss her.
#
#
"Neelix, you're up late," Harry said as he shielded his eyes against the bright light.
"I thought a cup of tea would be good. Would you care for a cup?"
Harry nodded and slowly opened his eyes. "Do you think we could lower the lights a little?" There was a moment of panic on the Talaxian's face, before he ordered the lights dimmed by fifteen percent.
Harry took the offered cup and took a sip. Like many of Neelix's concoctions it was barely passable. "Not bad. Reminds me of this herbal blend my mother liked." Neelix beamed at the compliment.
"I hear you are writing a clarinet concerto?" Neelix said as they sat down at a table.
Harry shrugged. "I guess you could call it that. I was using Stravinsky's Concerto in Ebony as a model. It didn't even come close."
Neelix looked at him curiously. "I don't know this music. Does it make good dance music?" Harry laughed and shook his head. The piece, for lack of a better term, was weird.
Neelix muttered something, then took a sip of his tea. Neither spoke again until they'd finished. Neelix stood slowly. Everybody had been affected by the void--some more than others. Harry had been bored, but he'd not felt any of the nastiness that had affected some of the crew. Then some, like Neelix, had suffered from various nervous reactions. Today, the morale officer needed cheering up.
"Have you tried Tom's new holoprogram?"
Neelix shook his head. "He described it. It sounded too...weird." They both chuckled. "I was planning another party. Perhaps after we meet with that alien's people. Can you really believe he was willing to let all those aliens die to save his profit margin?"
"No..." Harry placed his cup in the recycler. "No, I can't." But such things happened. Emck would have made a good Ferengi. He glanced out the window and smiled. Neelix followed his gaze.
"Stars. I never realized just how much I appreciated being able to see them."
"Neither did I," Harry said with a smile. "Neither did I."
Tom sat back in the chair--more to put distance between himself and B'Elanna than because the meal was enjoyable. It wasn't. Since the destruction of the Borg vessel, there was an a feeling of melancholy on the ship. Those who had met and talked with One were feeling the loss. He glanced at the lone individual in the back. Especially Seven. The Borg's food was still untouched.
"If you like her so much," B'Elanna said with a snarl. "Go sit with the Borg Ice Princess."
Tom studied B'Elanna for several seconds before speaking. "She's hurting, can't you see that B'Elanna?"
"Really," she said sarcastically. "Just like how she would feel if we were all assimilated. Stop thinking of her in human terms--it will get us all killed." She stood quickly and slammed her cup on the table. The liquid flew out. "She's Borg. That's all she'll ever be." With that, B'Elanna stormed out of the mess hall, pushing an unfortunate ensign to the ground.
Tom shook his head sadly. "What the hell is wrong with you?" He asked quietly. Suddenly, the last of his meal did not appeal to him--not with every eye in the room on him. He stood and tossed the remaining food into the recycler and slipped out of the mess hall.
"What did you do to B'Elanna?" Harry asked from behind him. "She shoved me into the wall when I said 'hello.'"
Tom sighed. "Nothing, Harry. Absolutely nothing. She's been like this for a while. Since the void..." He thought a second. "Perhaps even before then." He shrugged as he turned to face his friend. He spread his hands for emphasis. "I don't know what's wrong with her. She's blowing hot and cold. And recently she's scaring me." The look of understanding on Harry's face surprised him. "What?"
"It's engineering. They've noticed too, and Joe is worried. He's been trying to cover for her mood swings."
"Has Janeway noticed?" If she had, B'Elanna might find herself in serious trouble.
"She probably has. She had problems with the void too." Harry placed a hand on the pilot's shoulder. "It'll work out."
"I hope so." He smiled sadly. "Thanks."
#
#
Janeway rolled over and smiled. "How is she?" Chakotay sat down on the bed and took her hand.
"I talked to her for an hour. I've never seen her like this." He squeezed her hand.
Kathryn took a deep breath. "Can she handle her job?" She hated these kinds of problems.
Chakotay didn't answer for a long time. Finally he took a deep breath. "Yes...For the moment. But I asked the Doctor to examine her."
She nodded. She would have recommended that too. "Do you have any idea what is bothering her? Is it Tom?" She added hesitantly.
"It's not Tom. And it is. It's seems to be everybody. And nobody."
"Maybe it's the void?"
"Could be..." He smiled at her. "It affected everybody in some way." She blushed slightly. Then yawned.
"Past your bedtime?" She just nodded.
#
#
Seven stared at the machinery. His...One's regeneration chamber.
For the second time in months, she'd rejected a chance to return to the collective. Maybe she was becoming human...
"But it hurts." She wiped her eyes and stepped into her chamber.
B'Elanna took another bite of her banana pancakes, the warm, familiar flavor brought another laugh. Comfort food, her grandmother had called it. Food one ate when one was in a bad mood or...or...Depressed. The smile disappeared as she remembered why. All her friends--the closest thing she'd had to a family--dead. She angrily thrust her fork into the pancakes and shoved the plate off the table. There was a satisfying crash as it landed on the floor. "Kahless! Why!" Her fists hit the table, then her head as she sobbed out the names of her former comrades-in-arms.
#
Neelix entered the darkened kitchen, his mind working on what he needed for this morning's breakfast. He opened a cupboard and pulled down several containers. It had been an odd few days...
Then there was B'Elanna. He'd been mentally berating himself for not noticing earlier--way earlier--just how bad off she'd been. "Some morale officer..." He stopped and listened. There it was again.
He closed the cupboard door quietly and made his way into the dining hall. B'Elanna was asleep, her head cradled in her arms. He tapped his combadge and advised Tom where she was. Then he went and got a mop. No point in making a fuss.
#
#
Janeway looked up from her report when the doors slid open. "Ah, good morning Commander. I was just reading your report."
Chakotay stopped at the edge of her desk and smiled at her. "And good morning to you too. Kathryn, are you all right?"
"Huh?"
"You broke our dinner date--remember? And you have spent the morning hiding in your ready room."
"A captain's work is never done. I'd gotten behind in reports...Speaking of which, your decision to let Lieutenant Torres go on the mission..."
"She deserved the chance...and considering..."
Janeway shook her head. "I sent you. It's not your place to make changes without my permission."
"I would never have come up with the patch and everything else she did. It's just as well..."
"I'm not complaining--I should have been informed. I spent the morning reading the various reports about Lieutenant Torres' health. I need to know that she will not endanger the ship; and decide if I should relieve her of duty."
"Captain, you can't..."
"She was found in the kitchen this morning. Neelix had to clean up the mess."
"I saw Tuvok's report. That is actually a good sign..."
"I know. I know." She smiled sadly at a distant memory, then gave herself a slight shake. "She will remain on duty, but the Doctor will continue to monitor her. I'm not sure your methods were exactly orthodox...but she needed a bucket of cold water to bring her back to us."
"I'll tell her."
Kathryn smiled. "Keep talking to her. She needs someone to talk to, a friend, someone who knew them well."
Chakotay nodded. "Aye Captain. I'll do that." He turned to leave. "I could ask her to join me for dinner."
"Lunch, Commander...make it lunch. I missed dinner last night. You owe me."
He was chuckling as he exited her ready-room.
She ran her fingers over the soft petals and smiled. The technology to create this artificial rose was incredible. She had the PADD containing the process in front of her. B'Elanna, Seven, the science departments, even Neelix had copies. It had some very exciting possibilities. The thought of being able to use the technology to create real plants...real food plants from the alpha-quadrant was a very tantalizing thought...
"If you pet it enough, will it purr?"
She looked up quickly. "Commander, I didn't hear you enter. Hmmm. I wonder, do you think we could create a cat? Or even better, a dog?"
"Anything is possible. But you might worry about those who are thinking of cows and pigs."
She rolled her eyes. "Tell Tom, only if they live in his quarters." He laughed while she put the rose on the table. "I wonder, if this will work, or are we deluding ourselves?"
"Peace is a matter of trust...In our case we have to trust and hope..."
"Trust and hope. And learn." She stood slowly and walked to her window. "A year ago, I thought I did the right thing...Now, I don't know. The Borg or 8472...The Borg were an interesting ally..."
"And untrustworthy." She glared at him, then shrugged.
"Somewhat. But are 8472 more trustworthy?"
"We may never know, but I think Boothby and Valerie...Commander Archer both learned something about humanity while in their guises. Maybe others did as well."
"Hope." She continued to stare at the stars. "Commander Archer seemed to be an interesting person. Did you have an nice date?"
"Typical first date. A lot of talking, nervousness..." He laughed. "She had a lot to learn about kissing."
She turned to look at him. "And you were willing to teach her?" She smirked slightly
His smile grew bigger. "Kathryn, I was undercover...I had to play along."
"Not that much, you didn't." She frowned as he stepped toward--there was a dangerous gleam in his eye. "Commander, not in my ready..." The rest of her protest was cut-off when he kissed her.
#
#
Harry sat staring at the Kaltow set he'd replicated. Outside of a perverse desire to prove he could solve the puzzle, he found it oddly relaxing. And after the past couple of days, he needed to relax. Badly. Since their encounter with 8472, he'd been plagued by nightmares again. Remembering lying on a biobed and hearing voices--understanding everything being said. The pain, not being able to sleep...Knowing he was dead...But not dead.
His hand reached for one of the pieces, then stopped. There was a kind of irony to the situation. Was it really possible that 8472 were not horrible monsters bent on the destruction of the galaxy: that they were just misunderstood. Had misunderstood. He pulled the stick and sat back in amazement as the pieces arranged themselves into a harmonious balance. He stared at it for several minutes.
"How the hell did I do that?" He wasn't going to bed until he understood what he had done.
#
#
B'Elanna grunted, then scrolled back several paragraphs and grunted again. The data was extremely complex--biochemistry and genetics were not her fields. She'd not liked them at the academy. She preferred engineering, physics and quantum mechanics...But her years on Voyager had forced her to spend some time studying in those fields. That was probably the primary reason she did not like the gel-packs.
"How long are you going to read that document?" Tom asked from her bed.
"Just another minute. This is actually fascinating. They're using Dorian Recombinant DNA techniques...or at least a variation."
"B'Elanna, you said another minute fifteen minutes ago--and fifteen minutes before that..."
"You're the one who wants to replicate a cow..."
"I didn't mean tomorrow." There was a noise from the bed as Tom sat up.
"What do you know about--" She asked as she highlighted two paragraphs of text.
"Right now, nothing. You need to sleep...Otherwise the Doctor will be hollering..." He squinted slightly. "In fact, I wonder why he hasn't called to complain."
She smiled. "I think he's reading this too. Anyway, he told me this afternoon that I had a clean bill of health." She yawned. "I'm Klingon--sleep is irrelevant."
Tom laughed. "Fine, I'll reserve a time for you at the Regeneration Hotel..." He ducked quickly as she reached for another PADD.
"You're learning." She shut off the PADDs. "Lights off." Instantly the room went dark. "Computer, set alarm for zero-four thirty."
#
#
Samantha placed the tray in front of Naomi and sat down at the table with a sigh as Naomi poked at her food, then put her fork down. "I want brumble pie!"
"That's not breakfast, sweetheart."
"I don't care..." The little girl's voice was louder. Samantha noticed several of the crew look their direction.
"Naomi..." There was a warning in her voice. The past couple of weeks she'd been late for duty five-times because of the child.
Naomi looked down, but picked up her fork and started to poke at her food, finally taking a small piece into her mouth. "Blech..."
Sam stared at her hard, the little girl's eyes watered, but she slowly ate the rest of her meal.
#
Seven sat on the bio-bed, waiting for the doctor to finish the scans. She had better things to do than sit here. "Doctor, I must be in astrometrics. I am meeting with the Captain to discuss our recent meeting with 8472."
The Doctor glanced at her. "You have a low erythrocyte count, again." He reached for a hypospray. "I suspect you have not been eating properly. I can prepare *another* list of foods you need to be eating."
"I have the one you gave me. It is too much food."
He shrugged. "You are still underweight."
"I do not like the food in the mess hall."
The Doctor rolled his eyes. "It is healthy, nutritious...And as you are so fond of saying. 'Taste is irrelevant.'"
"I have learned that is a fallacy. I prefer brumble pie." She stood. "If you will excuse me, I must meet with the Captain."
The Doctor shrugged, then opened his eyes wide as she walked out the door. "Brumble pie? That is almost seventy-five percent sugar. It has no nutritional value what-so-ever."