Deceitful
by Ewige Studentin
Rating: T (PG-13)
Pairing: friendship Janeway&Paris, hints to Janeway/Chakotay
Summary: The away team is trapped on an alien planet with Voyager in no hurry to rescue them. However, nothing is what it seems to be.
A/N: I wrote this story for the Secret Exchange 2009. The opening sentence was suggested by joywriter. Many thanks to polomare for her thoughtful comments and her wonderful beta!
Pain flooded her head as it connected hard with the wall behind her. Janeway fought to stay conscious, but the dark room faded away and her battered body sagged in restraints.
She woke up in a small tidy room. A smiling woman was humming while putting flowers in a vase beside the bed. Janeway squinted her eyes to look over the place. There was nothing in there apart from her bed. The woman stepped away, and her medical gown brushed Janeway's hand. It jerked; the movement was caught by restraints, and Janeway couldn't feign sleep anymore.
"Who are you?"
"Oh darling, you keep asking every time! It's me, Gedda! Are you feeling better today?"
Janeway pulled on the leather bands that tied her wrists to the either side of the bed.
"What am I doing here and why am I restrained?"
"It's for your own sake, darling. You suffered an emotional break down. It must be hard to lose your friends."
"What?" Janeway sat up in her bed.
The nurse hurried towards her and pressed a metal object to Janeway's neck.
"Shhh, shhh… It's alright…"
A wave of weakness covered Janeway. She whispered.
"Who sent the flowers?"
"They are from Minister Caul, darling. He really hopes you will remember the answer to his question."
Janeway passed out and didn't hear the clink of the lock when the nurse left the ward.
Gedda followed the dark corridor to a larger room in front of the stairs. She passed the key to the guards.
"You idiots, don't break her bones next time. It is depleting the power cells of the osteogenic stimulators."
=/\=
Tom Paris was struggling for air but he kept running. The barks of the hounds and the hooting of the men were coming closer with every minute. A burst of laser fire burned the grass right in front of Paris. He jerked sideways, stumbled, and rolled over beneath a bush. In sudden darkness, his body was in a free fall for a moment, then he hit the water surface. The subterranean waterhole was not deep enough to soften the impact with the ground, but cold enough to force him stay conscious in spite of pain.
Paris lay still in the shallow, bubbling spring, feeling cold water soaking through his uniform. He allowed himself to crawl out to a dry spot only when the sounds of the pursuit had silenced above him. He examined the surroundings. There were two narrow passages out of this chamber. Paris followed the brook without hesitation, feeling his way through the dark catacombs.
It became colder; if it was nighttime, he must had been crawling for five hours at least. Suddenly he heard voices. The men passed by, and he turned around slowly, feeling the rocky walls around him. There was a wobbly boulder several feet back. In the crack above it, Paris could see the night sky.
A hum of a local shuttle caught his attention. It was preparing for the landing. A slight shimmer above the tree tops faded away for a second and was back in place immediately after letting the shuttle through. There was a force field Paris hadn't noticed before. If a shuttle couldn't get through, it was little wonder Paris couldn't get his comm badge to work. Consumed by his chat with the Captain, Tom hadn't noticed a force field when approaching the Minister's villa. A sharp feeling of guilt stabbed Paris. He had brought them into this trouble and then run away. He gritted his teeth in despair. Cold wet clothes that stuck to his body prevented him from heated actions. Besides, he had a plan.
=/\=
Janeway felt through a delirium that she was dragged by her elbows. Her shoulders were dislocated and her knees knocked against the uneven ground.
She was thrown on the floor and her chains were fixed somewhere above with a clink. Two glowing disks moved towards her. She stood up, straightened her shoulders despite the pain and hitched up her chin, ready to face whatever would come.
The disks moved closer. A sweet voice came from behind them.
"Captain Janeway. You know you can't withstand. The more you fight, the more it hurts. The more it hurts, the more I learn. You just can't remember."
The man placed the disks on Janeway's temples and she gasped. The metal burned her skin, making her shake her head in a futile attempt to throw the disks off. A sudden blow hit her jaw and her mouth filled with blood. The specification of the warp field popped up suddenly in Janeway's mind – and she felt it slipping away through her temples into the burning disks. Then she remembered what the man wanted from her: Voyager command codes.
In the dark, two men changed places. A metal rod swished the air with a hiss. The skin on Janeway's forearm cracked, drawing an muffled cry. A series of slashes followed. Every one sucked a memory out of Janeway's mind: candles on Phoebe's birthday cake; a delicate touch on her inner thigh; Voyager's manifest; Voyager's schematics.
The men felt they were almost there. The rod hit Janeway's forehead, barely missing her eye. She felt warm, sticky rivulets running down her cheek before the consciousness left her. Her body soared freely and she felt no more pain. The influence of the drug was interrupted, and her mind closed shut.
One of the men spit on the dirty floor in silent temper. They left Janeway alone in darkness, in no hurry to tell somebody to look after her wounds.
=/\=
Tom Paris shifted a little in his hiding place. His original impatience to hail Voyager and get beamed onboard while the force field was deactivated, faded out somewhat. No shuttle had crossed the boundary in the past few hours. He had stopped feeling his wet uniform hours ago; it was not good, not good at all. Tom smiled bitterly. Many years back during his survival training in the Academy, he'd been dreaming about an away mission where he would actually get to share bodily warmth with a pretty girl. He rolled his eyes. The reality was so much better.
Tom's mind traveled back to his conversation with the Captain in the shuttle. He'd been surprised by her wearing her dress uniform.
"Am I the last one to know there'll be a party?"
"For a change." The Captain smiled.
"Ah, I see. You needed a chauffeur, not a companion." Tom tried to pout but failed to his own amusement. "What about the Big Guy? Or is he over his shuttle quota for this month?"
Janeway elbowed him lightly.
"Don't make fun at Chakotay's expense. Not a single shuttle crash was his fault."
"Yeah, if you say so." Suddenly Tom became serious. "No really. Is everything fine between you two? I've heard you arguing in the ready room."
Janeway waved the question away. Paris pushed the matter.
"Everybody on the bridge heard you arguing. He wanted to go instead of me, right?"
Tom remembered being a little scared of the captain's reaction. A pensive, grave look crossed her face. She kept her answer to herself.
"I think it's time to prep for the landing, Mr Paris."
Tom didn't have enough information at that moment to understand. Chakotay didn't want to go in his place. He wanted to go in hers.
A hum of a shuttle interrupted Tom's reverie. He activated his comm badge. Finally the shimmer of the force field disappeared, but static was still the only noise to hear.
"Voyager, Paris here. I need a transport. Are you reading me?"
The force field was already back in place, but Tom hailed again and again until the sound of heavy steps not far away made him deactivate his comm badge. His plan appeared to be too simple. He curled up in his hiding place. The tension of the last hours left him finally, giving way to exhaustion.
=/\=
Janeway forced her eyelids open. She was in a tidy ward. A robust woman, probably a nurse, had been rearranging her bed-clothes. Janeway moistened her dry lips with the tip of her tongue before she spoke.
"The chains…" Janeway listened carefully to her body. To her surprise, everything felt alright.
"The chains? Darling, you must have been hallucinating."
"Who are you?"
"You keep asking every time. I'm Gedda."
Janeway paused for a moment before the next question. Something was strange about this woman. Her permanent smile didn't reach her black eyes. Her movements were too calculated for a nurse. An attentive observer would recognize the contour of a pistol beneath her medical gown.
"Why I am here?"
"You are one of the survivors of the attack on Voyager. We've healed your wounds, but you're still instable mentally because of your loss, darling. Voyager is damaged, but she is an imminent menace for our civil settlements nonetheless. You can help us. Minister Caul is hoping very much that you will remember."
"What?"
"The command codes, darling."
Something clicked in Janeway's head. The Doctor's drug suppressant kicked in, and all of a sudden she became perfectly aware of her situation.
"A captain never forgets the command codes. I trust your government will do everything needed to stop the terrorists and bring Voyager back. Do you have a recording device? You will need my voice signature to obtain the command over the ship."
=/\=
A ray of the morning sun reflected in a vein of a milky mineral that fractured the dark walls of the underground passage. Paris had seen this mineral before. It was used in the primitive signal dampeners in this sector. Tom cursed under his breath. He had no chance to contact Voyager while staying in this rabbit hole. He had to go out to be well away from the mineral before they deactivate the force field for the next time. He only hoped he wouldn't be shot before he could even open the comm link.
At the next hint of the characteristic hum, Tom pushed the boulder with all his body. The day's light blinded Paris for a second as he dashed out of the tunnel. He heard agitated voices behind him but didn't dare have a look. His eyes were fixed on the shimmering sky. One more second, and the field disappeared.
"Voyager, are you reading me?"
"I can hear you clearly, Tom."
"Harry, beam me onboard – now!"
Chakotay cut in.
"You are staying where you are, Mr Paris. That's an order."
A net caught Tom's feet in the next moment, and he fell into the dirt with his face first. Two men came running. One of them grabbed Tom's hair and jerked his head upwards. Then he spoke into his transmitter.
"We have our runaway."
A woman's voice replied through the light interference.
"I don't need him anymore. Throw him to your hounds."
The two dragged Paris away. He barely resisted, too consumed by the realization of the betrayal that had probably killed Captain Janeway and would soon kill him.
=/\=
Voyager was in grey mode. Silent alert on the screens informed about the breech of the plasma containment field in Engineering that had never taken place; neither had the casualties on all decks. Most of the crew was in stasis; the few officers on the bridge had been wearing their environmental suits to mask their life signs. Nobody was in the mood for a chat.
"Open a secure channel, audio only."
"Aye, Captain." Kim tipped the controls. "Inspector Ellan in waiting, Sir."
"Here are the coordinates that Caul sent Voyager to, Inspector." Chakotay transferred the file from his console, masking it as a residual energy trace first. "He is sure the ship is under his control. How long will you need to be there with your troops?"
"It's on the most southern continent… We'll be able to encircle the terrorists in 25 minutes."
"Voyager will stay on route to these coordinates for the next 25 minutes, then. Afterwards we turn around and rescue our people." If they are still alive, added Chakotay under his breath. He clenched the arms of the Captain's chair.
He had been successfully masking his fear and anger for the past two days. The most safe plan bore the danger for only one person – an easy sacrifice for the sake of millions of innocent people. An easy sacrifice for the one who goes to the enemy's lair, not for the one who stays behind. She made him back off. She tramped their friendship and mutual respect into the dirt when she forced him to watch her leave to be tortured. He said he wouldn't forgive her. She said he'd make a good captain.
=/\=
Everything was over half an hour later. Chakotay carried an unconscious Janeway out of the dungeon where she had been chained next to rotten bodies. He hugged her close, careful not to inflict more pain upon her.
On comm, Inspector Ellan had been reciting the honors to Voyager's crew for their help against the imminent threat; the terror cell had its people in the top levels of the government and its well-hidden main body could never be neutralized without Voyager. Chakotay didn't even make an attempt to listen. He closed the channel, rather impolitely, when he reached sickbay with the precious load. He let Kathryn down on the biobed but couldn't let go of her hand. The Doctor hurried over, pushing Chakotay aside.
The diagnostic arch closed around the still body.
"She'll be fine. Come back tomorrow morning. She'll be able to talk to you then."
Chakotay backed away unwillingly. Tom Paris had been sitting on the biobed in the opposite corner, with B'Elanna holding him close. Chakotay made several steps towards them, unsure whether he should leave them alone.
"How are you, Tom?"
"Way better now since I know there was no mutiny onboard." Tom grinned but looked still shaken. "Man, you came just in time. Both for the Captain and for me."
"Tom, look, I am really sorry we couldn't warn you – "
"I understand."
"Have some rest and get better."
"Aye, Captain."
"I truly hope you never have reason to call me that again."
=/\=
Pain flooded her head as it connected hard with the wall behind her.
An unbearable sorrow shone through in Chakotay's eyes when he heard about their mission.
The glowing disks on her temples sucked her inmost memories out of her mind.
Tuvok confirmed the transition of the command codes to Chakotay.
Janeway felt somebody's hand on her shoulder and jerked into the sitting position, alerted. In the dimly lit sickbay, Tom Paris stood beside her in his patient's gown.
"A bad dream, huh?"
Janeway breathed out loudly. "Is it over yet?"
"Yes, most definitely."
"Tom, I am sorry. I had to – "
"No, it's okay. I understand. I would have volunteered anyway."
"We've saved a whole nation, Tom…"
Her voice was so sad. Paris remembered involuntarily the argument in the ready room. He looked in her eyes.
"It still hurts, right?" He fetched something from the console next to her bed. "Look… Chakotay was here around midnight. He left you this…" Four pips shone in Tom's hand. "He whispered that he had forgiven you. He forgave you, Captain."
Janeway turned her face away. "I can't imagine how hard this was for him."
"Me neither. Give him something back. Show him you are alive."
"I will, Tom. I will."