Finally (Almost) Home

Captain Kathryn Janeway was not having the best of mornings so far. There was, however, concrete medical data to suggest that once she had consumed the proper amount of black coffee to which she was undeniably addicted, the problem would rectify itself in short order. Not wanting to sully her image in front of the crew, the Captain nursed her lukewarm mug of java in the privacy of her Ready Room.

Her combadge chirped. "Captain to the bridge," Chakotay's voice said in a somewhat excited manner. Given the Commander's mostly wooden demeanor, any sign of emotion on his part was worth taking notice of.

With a sigh, Janeway rose from her seat and stormed through the door onto the bridge. "This had better be important," she growled, still not fully awake.

"It is," Chakotay assured her. "Harry, please repeat what you told me."

"Captain, sensors have detected, uh, a hole in space," Ensign Kim reported.

Janeway looked to the Ops station and gave Harry a withering look. "A 'hole,' Ensign? Can you be more specific?"

"There's a bit of space where the stars don't match the area surrounding it," he explained. His face split into a silly grin. "Our sensors do recognize the stars, though. It's the Alpha Quadrant!"

That got Janeway's attention. Her coffee, still in her hand, was now forgotten, and she was wide awake. "Onscreen."

The view screen lit up with a star field that was unmistakably wrong in a certain radius. The stars in that small window did not match. "Tuvok, what can you tell me about what's on the other side of that window?"

"Sensors indicate that the other side of the anomaly is within the outskirts of the Kabrel system, Captain."

"Kabrel," Janeway said wistfully. "That's just a hop, skip, and a jump away from Deep Space Nine. We may actually have a chance to meet some familiar faces. Mr. Paris, set course for the Kabrel system. Maximum warp! I don't want to miss this opportunity if I can help it."

"Aye, Captain!" Tom said enthusiastically. "I can't believe it! "We're going home!"

"Believe it, Tom. Take us through."

"Yes, ma'am!"

Within minutes, they had passed the threshold and had dropped to impulse. "Harry, run a sensor sweep of the surrounding systems. I want to be sure we're in the right place."

Before Harry could respond, the turbolift doors opened and Seven of Nine stepped out. "Captain. I was testing the most recent updates to the Astrometrics Lab when the stellar mapping systems experienced a defect."

"There's no defect, Seven. We found some sort of rift that led us back home. We're in the Alpha Quadrant."

Seven shifted about uncomfortably. "I was hopeful that my readings had been inaccurate."

"Why? This is your home, Seven! Surely, you don't want to go back to the Collective still? You just came face to face with the Raven again. That can't have been easy."

"It was not, Captain," the blonde ex-drone assured her. "But the prospect of living in a society of billions of individuals is an uncertain one."

"Captain," Harry said from Ops, "Sensors have confirmed that we are in the Alpha Quadrant, just outside the Kabrel system!" He had ridiculous grin plastered onto his face. "We're home! Just a bit further to Earth!"

"We should report in to the nearest starbase first. Follow all the protocols. We wouldn't want to ruffle any admirals' feathers," Voyager's matriarch said with a small grin. "Set course for Deep Space Nine. Warp three."

"Aye, ma'am," Tom said happily from his station.

"Captain," Tuvok said with traditional Vulcan calm, "a vessel is decloaking off our starboard aft."

Damn! Janeway had not come all this way, after almost four years of being stranded in the galaxy's armpit, just to meet some uppity Klingon or Romulan trying to make a point. "Shields up. Charge phaser banks and arm photon torpedo tubes. And put the ship on screen."

The view screen showed a small vessel that was unmistakably a Starfleet ship, but it didn't follow the traditional saucer/nacelle design.

"They are hailing us," Tuvok said, his eyebrows raised.

"Good. I'd like to get some answers. On screen," Janeway said as she sat back down in her chair."

The screen resolved into the image of a young brown-haired woman in a Starfleet uniform that was of a design that Janeway hadn't seen before. The shoulders were a faded purple-grey color, but the officer had a blue collar – or was it an undershirt of some kind? – indicating a position in the sciences. "Starfleet vessel," the young woman said, "identify yourself."

Janeway was not in the mood for dealing with a young science officer with an attitude. And Federation ships did not have cloaking devices. "I'm Captain Kathryn Janeway of the Starship Voyager. Mind if I ask who I have the pleasure of talking to? And why I'm dealing with a Federation ship that seems to be in illegal possession of a cloaking device?" she asked, her voice dripping with sarcastic hostility.

"Voyager," the woman said thoughtfully, ignoring Janeway's attempts to bait her. The other end of the conversation went mute as the woman in the command chair turned to consult with one of her officers. Only then did Janeway notice the spots running down her neck that marked her as a Trill. Maybe she isn't so young, after all.

The other starship un-muted its com system. "Voyager, are you aware that you were declared officially lost over a year ago?"

Janeway eyes went wide at the harsh truth that she knew the Trill was speaking. So all of the crew's friends and families all thought they were dead and gone. "I wasn't aware of that, no. We have been stranded in the Delta Quadrant for nearly four years. We just found an anomaly that led us here."

"I see," the Trill woman said, her face not giving anything away. "Voyager, you will accompany us back to Starbase 375 for a debriefing. But before your crew disembarks, you will all submit to blood screenings, and security details will comb your ship for any irregularities. Failure to comply will result in hostile action." The brunette's stoic face softened a bit. "Please, don't bring it to that. I really hope you are who you say you are. We need all the help we can get."

Janeway was perplexed by the science officer's remarks, but they did feel ominous. "Is Deep Space Nine not equipped to handle our needs?" Janeway asked sincerely.

The woman, who had still not given her name or rank, seemed on the verge of answering. "I'm not authorized to discuss that at this point. Report to Starbase 375 immediately, Captain."

This was getting to be bit much, and without her morning coffee, Janeway's patience was running thin. "I'm so sorry, but unless you have a means of enforcing your request… Are those Lieutenant Commander's pips on your uniform? Unless you plan to force us there, Commander, then I'm afraid I'm going to have to pull rank on you and order you to back off. And then I may have to report your theft of a cloaking device"

The Trill actually laughed at that. "Captain, let me be clear. You are officially dead. You have no legal standing, and you are in the middle of a war zone. My ship, on the other hand, is a critical military asset that is in full compliance with Federation law. Also, no Allied ship is authorized to travel alone right now, so you will be coming with us."

"Captain!" Harry called from his station, "Five more ships are decloaking! Four Klingon Birds of Prey and one Vor'cha-class cruiser. They have us surrounded."

Janeway looked back to the brunette Trill, who had not flinched during their encounter. "Keep your shields and weapons online during the trip, Captain," she said. "If we encounter the enemy on our way, I'd like to have your guns on our side."

We're at war? Allied with the Klingons? Against who? "I guess I don't really have a choice, do I?"

"No, you don't," the Trill said sadly. "And you can call me Commander Dax. Now, let's get going. I'm sure the brass are going to have a lot of questions for you."

Finally, after arriving at Starbase 375, a security team had beamed over to Voyager and started taking blood samples of the entire crew, starting with Janeway. Most of the team had been content just to see the blood at all, which made Janeway rather uneasy. But it was then scanned and downloaded into the Starbase's computers.

Janeway was still on the bridge, surrounded security teams in these new uniforms that she didn't recognize, though they almost universally had a yellow collar. This was not how she had envisioned coming home.

"Dax to Janeway," the Trill's voice said harshly over the com. "Please report to Cargo Bay Two."

Oh, damn. Janeway hadn't even thought about how she was going to explain the prevalence of Borg technology on the ship. If the paranoid officers who had greeted Voyager were any indication, this would not go well. "On my way," Janeway said, not liking being ordered about by a Lieutenant Commander.

Heading to the turbolift, Janeway noticed that she had an escort of two security guards. The ride down to Deck Eight felt a lot longer than usual. After disembarking, the Captain couldn't help but feel she was being taken to her own execution.

Arriving at their destination, the doors opened to reveal security teams combing through the various Borg technology with great care. Dax stood overseeing the efforts, her hands clasped behind her back in a manner not unlike Seven of Nine.

"Commander Dax," Janeway greeted the woman in person for the first time.

The trill turned to face Voyager's Captain. "Captain Janeway. I'm happy to say that with a few exceptions, we can verify the identities of your crew. Those who we can't identify are either ex-Maquis, a Human/Ktarian hybrid child, an alien unknown to us who claims to be your ship's cook." Dax's eyes turned steely and cold. "And a former Borg drone who claims to be a member of your crew. Tell me, Captain, were you aware of this level of Borg technology infesting your ship?"

Janeway sighed. She felt like she was about to lecture an ignorant child. "Yes, Commander. I am fully aware of every nanoprobe on this ship. We had to pass through Borg space during our journey, and the result was not one I would care to repeat. Still, we managed to rescue a young woman and have started to help her to recover her individuality."

Dax nodded approvingly, her hands still clasped behind her back. "Admirable goals, Captain, but why keep these alcoves active?"

"Seven of Nine still needs to regenerate. She's been a drone for most of her life, and her body still relies on a significant amount of Borg technology to survive."

"But you haven't limited use of Borg technology to just one regeneration alcove, Captain. You were in the process of constructing an entire new section of your ship with Borg technology in key areas."

Janeway tensed at the implications. "If you're referring to the Astrometrics Lab, that was meant as a way to reduce the time of our voyage home, which started off as a 70,000 light year journey. We got damned lucky in cutting that so short. And I've just about had it with your insinuations about me and my crew. I think it's time that you gave me some answers as to what the hell I've seemed to miss during my time away from home!"

Dax arched an eyebrow, but seemed to decide that the Captain deserved some answers. "What do you know about the Dominion?"

"The Dominion?" Janeway had to scour her memory for any bits of information. "Not much. Weren't they a recently-encountered Gamma Quadrant power?"

The Trill smiled without humor. "You could say that. Almost a year ago, they invaded the Alpha Quadrant with thousands of ships. They've allied themselves with the Cardassians, and have declared war on the Federation and the Klingon Empire. The only reason we haven't been totally overrun is that we managed to mine the entrance to the Bajoran wormhole. But the Dominion still has shipyards, factories, and hatcheries throughout Cardassian space. And in the opening battle of the war, they captured Deep Space Nine."

Janeway blanched at the implications of Dax's words. The Federation wasn't only at war, but even with the Klingons as allies, they were losing? "How did things get so bad?"

"The Dominion spent the years leading up the war infiltrating various Alpha Quadrant powers and pitting them against each other. Martial law was even declared on Earth for a brief time after a bombing there."

Martial law on Earth? The situation was far worse than Janeway had any right to expect. "We'll help in whatever way we can," she promised.

Dax actually smiled, and it reached her eyes. "Glad to hear it. You'll want to report to Admiral Ross as soon as you can. Fortunately for you, in my expert analysis, your vessel isn't in any danger of assimilation, and if you can vouch for your Borg crewmember, then I imagine her expertise would be enormous and invaluable."

Janeway smiled at that. "We've found that to be true so far."

"Then report to the Admiral, Captain. He's expecting you," the Trill said. "And let me be the first to say that it's damned good to have you back."

THREE WEEKS LATER

Seven of Nine stood at a station between Ensign Kim and Commander Tuvok on the bridge, which had seen better days. Many panels had overloaded, and debris littered deck one. "Captain, the enemy fleet is changing course," she reported as the fire suppression systems finally came online. "They are falling back to Cardassian space." The ex-drone guessed that without the timely arrival of Klingon reinforcements, the battle would have been lost, and Voyager destroyed.

The Borg had encountered Dominion ships only sporadically over the past several hundred years during probing missions to the Gamma Quadrant, and they had consistently held their own against the Collective. Admittedly, nothing larger than a Sphere had ever been sent in that direction, but the Dominion's resistance quotient was still quite high.

"Captain," Tuvok said from his station, "We are receiving a transmission from the Defiant. The fleet is to rendezvous at Deep Space Nine. It appears that the Dominion has been routed."

"Routed, but not defeated," Janeway noted. "Well, it's a start. You heard the orders. Let's get to DS9. If you'll excuse me, I'll be in my ready room."

Seven watched the Captain depart, and felt a wave of uncertainty wash over her. She was far beyond the Collective's reach, so going back was not an option, even if she wanted to. Individuality had its appeal, but it was also chaotic at the best of times. Things were difficult enough on a single starship, but now the ex-drone was about to enter an entire society of individuals. The prospect was unsettling.

As Voyager set course for Deep Space Nine, the blonde went over her knowledge of the facility in her mind. It was once a Cardassian mining station that had been ceded to the Bajorans after the Cardassian Occupation of their world had ended almost six years ago. It was now under Federation management, if not ownership.

It had become a center of trade and commerce for numerous species and nations, and was now likely to be a critical military installation. And it was also likely that Voyager would be stationed out of DS9 for the foreseeable future. How will life on a space station differ from life on a starship? Seven wondered.

She had been accepted as a non-threat by the admiralty, and had indeed been labeled an asset. Her expertise with various technologies was likely to be helpful, but her exact role was still unclear. She was not a member of Starfleet, though she served on one of their ships.

In approximately four hours, they would arrive at Deep Space Nine. Despite having been assimilated at a young age, and having undergone numerous trials during her short time aboard Voyager, Seven was fairly certain that her baby steps into the world of individuality were about to be replaced by a very deep plunge. I am not ready. But I will adapt.

This chapter was primarily a stage-setting one. The other 'chapters' will mostly be one-shot stories taking place within the environment established in this chapter.

Star Trek is not mine in any way, shape, or form.

Reviews, comments, criticisms, etc. are always appreciated.

Many Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoy!