December, 1968: three men traveled 240,000 miles to discover the moon and 'ended up discovering Earth.' Now, 411 years later, the crew of Voyager rediscover just how precious Earth truly is.
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Earthrise"All stop, Mr. Paris." Captain Kathryn Janeway sat in the command chair on the bridge of the USS Voyager, looking calm and controlled. She didn't feel that way. Her heart was beginning to pound in her chest. "Lieutenant Kim, viewscreen magnification on maximum."
Harry Kim acknowledged her order and immediately the scene on the viewscreen enlarged. The white, pockmarked curve of the moon - Earth's moon - filled the bottom third of the screen, with black space beyond. The domes and caps of Luna City were not in sight. The visible surface was as pristine and stark as it had been when Apollo 8 made man's first orbit around the pale globe.
Janeway touched a control for the ship-wide comm system. "Attention all hands," she said. "Everyone who can free themselves from duty for a few moments should look at a monitor or better yet, a forward observation port. There's something I think you all want to see."
Then she nodded to Paris. "Ease us forward, Tom. Slowly."
"Aye, Captain," the helmsman said with a grin. "Forward at one-eighth impulse."
With an effort, Janeway tore here eyes from the screen and looked around the Bridge. Her Bridge. Her people. After eight years, her family. The Doctor, whom she had invited to witness their homecoming from here, Harry Kim at Ops, Tom Paris at the helm, B'Elanna Torres at Engineering - how they had grown over the years. What a privilege to have witnessed it, she thought. How lucky I've been.
Her gaze fell upon Tuvok, standing at formal attention at his station. His eyes met hers for just a moment, and she felt her throat tighten. Lucky, indeed. We did it, my friend. We did it.
Finally she turned to Chakotay and found him already studying her. She smiled, and reached across the short space between them to squeeze his hand once and let it go. Her heart was too full for words.
"Look," Harry said suddenly, and she turned her head back to the screen. An arc of blue cleared the moon's horizon, growing and expanding as the planet rose in their vision. Slowly the Earth revealed itself to them, blue oceans and green forests and brown deserts and white clouds. Half in light and half in night, it gleamed brightly against the void.
The Bridge fell silent except for the soft hum of the engines. Kathryn rose slowly, feeling pulled toward the sight of the shining blue planet. Chakotay stood beside her, the back of his hand brushing hers lightly.
Home, she thought. We're really home. She'd thought it before, and each time it held a new significance. This time, with Earth right in front of her, looking so fragile yet brimming with life, the knowledge was almost overwhelming.
The quiet was suddenly broken by Paris. "In the beginning," he said softly, "God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good: And God divided the light from the darkness."
Kathryn shivered. She recognized the words, and the context. Of course Paris would remember.
Beside her, Chakotay continued, his hushed voice carrying clearly. "And God called the light Day and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day. And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters. And God made the firmament and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. And God called the firmament Heaven, and the evening and the morning were the second day."
Then Tuvok said, "And God said, Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together unto one place and let the dry land appear: and it was so. And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good."
Kathryn knew Chakotay and Tom both had a great fascination with the history of spaceflight, and everything connected to it, but she was surprised that Tuvok was the one who finished the sequence. She turned to him with a question on her face. Tuvok arched an eyebrow. "One need not practice the religion to appreciate the beauty of the words, or the aptness of the quote."
The aptness of the quote. Frank Borman, Jim Lovell and William Anders had spoken those words on another December day centuries before, when confronted with the same view. By the 24th century, the approach path to Earth was routine, the Earthrise mundane. But not now - not for the crew of Voyager. Like the Apollo astronauts, they had risked everything for a chance to see this. And like the Apollo astronauts, she knew that none of them would ever again take this view for granted.
She nodded once, and turned to Harry Kim. "Hail Spacedock, Lieutenant, and request entry coordinates." With a brilliant smile, she returned to her seat.
The image on the screen shifted to show an ensign in the new gray uniform with a gold turtleneck. "Voyager, you are to proceed to the landing pad at Starfleet Command. Admiral Hayes and a welcoming committee are already waiting for you. I am transmitting flight path instructions now."
"Received," Paris said.
The ensign on the viewscreen grinned. "You'll be hearing this a lot in the next few days, but welcome home, Voyager."
"Thank you," she replied as the screen returned to the view of space. Of Earth. "Well. HQ, and a welcoming committee. As I recall, Mr. Paris, there is a tradition for ships landing at HQ that goes back to James T. Kirk and his captured Klingon Warbird. I believe I would like to be traditional today."
Tom grinned. "Aye, Captain."
Chakotay smiled as well. "Showboating, Captain? There's bound to be a crowd watching."
"Exactly. Let's give them something to see." She reached for her armchair controls and scrolled through the music selections until she found the one she wanted. With a touch, the strains of William Walton's "Crown Imperial March" filled the air. Excitement surged through her, and she almost laughed from sheer giddiness.
The turbolift opened, and Neelix stepped onto the Bridge, carrying a large, steaming mug. "Captain," he said with a twinkle in his eye, "I was instructed to bring you this as soon as we entered Earth orbit."
The aroma reached her nose before the mug reached her hands. Coffee. Hot, blessed coffee. She noted the look that Chakotay and Neelix exchanged as she took her first sip in weeks, then closed her eyes in sheer bliss.
Remember this, she thought. Remember this moment because there will never be another one like it.
"The Enterprise is breaking off and heading for Spacedock," Harry said. "Captain Picard sends his regards."
"Return ours," she said. Then she touched the control for the shipwide comm again, muting the music as she spoke. "Ladies and gentlemen, we will be landing at Starfleet Headquarters in just a few moments. Disembarkation procedures will begin immediately upon arrival."
She swallowed the lump that suddenly formed in her throat. "This may be my last opportunity to address you as my crew. There are still many uncertainties facing us as we end this journey, but nothing that happens in the future can dim your achievements. We have been through difficult times together, perhaps more difficult than any Starfleet ship has faced before. Through it all, you have demonstrated your courage, your dignity and your integrity. I have watched you all rise to the occasion time and time again, overcoming the seemingly impossible. You have conducted yourselves in the finest tradition of Starfleet and it has been my honor and privilege to have been your captain."
Her voice gave out, and she stopped abruptly, blinking back threatened tears. She lowered her head as she returned volume to the music.
Seemingly oblivious to her state, Paris announced, "We're entering the atmosphere. Hang on, everyone. Here we go."
Voyager swooped down, cutting a smooth arc over the Atlantic Ocean and moving west across the North American continent. They crossed the Rocky Mountains and then flew over the city of San Francisco. They continued over the Pacific until Paris turned the starship sharply back toward the city and the Golden Gate Bridge, descending rapidly.
From the Engineering station, B'Elanna gasped. "We're heading for the bridge!"
"You bet." Tom didn't let his attention wander, but he grinned as he spoke. Voyager flew gracefully over the landmark, her hull only meters above the great suspension wires. As soon as they cleared the structure, the ship pulled up sharply over the Bay, turned and headed back for land. There was a slight shudder as the landing struts extended, but the ship set down as gently as a dandelion puff on a breeze. A large crowd was visible beyond the safety barriers, waving and cheering the ship.
"Nice landing," Chakotay said. "Better than the last one."
"On New Hope?" Tom swiveled in his chair and looked at him with a deadpan expression. "That wasn't a landing, it was a crash."
Kathryn stood, took a few steps and then turned to face them. "This mission isn't finished yet. Senior officers, please secure stations and oversee the disembarkation procedure for your departments. Commander Chakotay and I will be at the docking hatch to see you off, although I expect to see you again at one of the many debriefing sessions that await us." She steeled herself, forcing back the emotion she felt. "And - well done."
No one moved. It wasn't insubordination, Kathryn realized. It was shock, and an inability to believe that they were truly leaving Voyager. "It's time," she said at last. "Do it."
B'Elanna was the first to move. She stood, squared her shoulders and looked Janeway directly in the eye. "You kept your promise, Captain Janeway. You got us home. Thank you." Then she turned and walked to the turbolift without looking back.
Kathryn bit her lip.
Tom stood, all trace of his smile replaced by solemnity. "Thank you, Captain. For everything." He followed his wife into the 'lift.
One at a time, each of the officers on the Bridge - Samantha Wildman, Chris Rollins, Harry Kim, the Doctor, Neelix - faced her and said the same thing: "Thank you." Finally, only she, Tuvok and Chakotay remained. Before either of them could say anything, she raised a hand. "Not you. Not the two of you. Please."
"I will not thank you for keeping your promise, Captain," Tuvok said, not moving from his station. "I never doubted that you would."
"We did it together." She looked from one to the other, and wondered if she would ever feel this close to anyone ever again.
"Yes, but only because of your vision." Tuvok clasped his hands behind his back in the Vulcan form of attention. "You showed me that trust is sometimes a matter of faith and that faith is often a matter of courage. For that, I do thank you."
He turned and left the Bridge, leaving her dumbfounded.
Chakotay had not moved from where he stood, directly in front of the first officer's chair, a good three meters from her. "Don't," she said to him. "Don't you dare. I can't take any more of this. And I refuse to greet the Admiralty with red eyes."
His gaze caught hers and held. "It's the end of an important chapter in our lives, Kathryn. It deserves recognition. You deserve it."
"We're not done yet." Her voice harsh with the effort to control her emotions. "We've got a crew to protect, Chakotay. I won't let them be demeaned, not after what they've been through."
He was silent for the span of three heartbeats, simply looking at her. Then he nodded. "Yes, ma'am. I'll meet you at the docking hatch."
When he reached the turbolift, though, he turned and looked around the Bridge once more. "You never answered my question."
The seeming non sequitor caught her off guard. "What question?"
"If the circumstances had been different, could you have served under me?"
A chuckle caught in her throat. He had asked that, what, eight years ago? "I guess we'll never know," she said.
Smiling, he turned and left.
Alone on the Bridge, she stood for a moment, simply looking around. Sounds from the past seemed to echo around her - sounds of battle, sounds of laughter, sounds of grief. Her life on this ship had been so intense that surely the best part of her soul had leeched into it. No matter what lay ahead, there would always be a part of her here.
She walked back to her chair and ran her hand along its arm. Then she raised her head and spoke. "Thank you. I'll miss you."
Captain Kathryn Janeway left the Bridge.
to be continued in "In The Course Of Justice" -
Author's Note: The picture of the Earth rising above the moon comes from the NASA archives of the Apollo 8 mission (image AS08-14-2383) and is used here in accordance with NASA guidelines. Familiar now, it was a vision of awe and wonder for those of us who saw it first broadcast from space; in a time of cold and hot war, change and unrest, it was a dramatic reminder that we are a single species blessed with an extraordinary home. As the mission's lunar module pilot William Anders said, "We came all this way to explore the moon, and we ended up discovering Earth."