The Color of Truth
Disclaimer - Paramount and Viacom own the characters from Voyager, although they didn't often treat them right. The story line belongs to me.
A special thanks to: My friend and editor of all my stories, Mill3rs.
Streaks of purple slowly burned off the afternoon's haze as the shadows receded from the bright silver ship nestled next to the trees. The quiet of the glen was shattered by the high-pitched shouts of the childish voices moving through the forest. The children tumbled out from behind the trees like a litter of gaulwogs. Lessons were over until the end of the Gathering Period.
One by one the children stopped and stared in awe at the small ship. One could fly among the stars in a ship such as this. Silence descended on the group as Kyree slowly walked closer. The others stepped back, affording her the privilege due her as the eldest. She shyly reached up and touched the bright icons on the outer shell of the ship. The back slowly swung open rising towards the cloudless sky. The children scattered in fear and hid behind the stout Reland trees.
The violet sun shone down brightly as the back of the ship slowly closed. The clearing was once again silent and empty.
* * * * *
The flat, hard surface beneath him felt uncomfortably familiar. Over the soft drone of voices, one stood out above the rest. He didn't really want to open his eyes but he had to get it over with. Slowly, squinting against the bright lights, Tom Paris opened his eyes to view the drab, gray ceiling of sickbay that he knew all too well. He tried to look to the side without turning his head. Without alerting the Doc that he was awake. Too late, he realized that the voices had stopped. He looked up into the balding visage of Voyager's EMH.
"Well, I see you decided to rejoin the living, Mr. Paris." The acerbic tones, spoken a little too loudly, causing him to wince. The Doctor looked at him with that smug 'I've brought you back from the brink of death' look that he had mastered so well. Scanning him with a tricorder, he announced to the others in the room that Tom was just fine and could return to his duties at his next shift.
Tom slowly remembered the shuttle flight from the Krill's planet. He and Harry Kim had been returning from a fact-finding mission about locating the shortest route through the next planetary system. "Harry! Is he OK?" Tom sputtered as he tried to sit up. That was a mistake, his head started to throb and he sank back onto the firm surface of the biobed.
"Ensign Kim is fine. He heard Tuvok's calm voice off to his right. He must have been one of the other speakers, Tom had heard earlier. "As is the child."
Tom's brow wrinkled in bewilderment. "Ch..child. What child? There was a child on the shuttle? How did they get aboard?" He asked in a very confused voice.
"That's exactly what we want to know from you, Mr. Paris." The Captain's face came into his view. He closed his eyes, knowing that once again, without even trying, he was in trouble.
* * * * *
The week had started off like any other in the Delta Quadrant for the past six years. Tom and Harry met in the mess hall for breakfast before the morning briefing. They discussed the possible paths through the next system that the long-range scanners had found. As the two friends continued eating, the doors to the mess hall slid open and B'Elanna Torres strode into the room. She went directly to the replicators and ordered a large mug of hot coffee. Spotting Tom and Harry, she walked across the room and sat down next to Tom. Giving Harry a small smile, she leaned close to Tom and kissed him on the cheek. "Good morning, Harry, Helmboy. What are you two so engrossed in this early in the morning?"
Tom blushed slightly at B'Elanna's kiss, took a gulp of his coffee and looked up into her dark brown eyes. The two lieutenants had become quite close over the past year despite their volatile tempers. "We were discussing how we might get through the next planetary system in the shortest amount of time."
"There are over 45 planets in a rather tight configuration spread over 20 light years. Long-range scanners indicate that many of them show life signs. I just hope that the citizens are friendly." Harry shook his head slightly. Something always seemed to come up to further delay their return to the Alpha Quadrant.
B'Elanna finished her coffee, stood up, and gave Harry a sympathetic pat on the shoulder. "Come on. The briefing starts in ten minutes. Maybe Tuvok can explain that anomalous reading he found yesterday."
"You mean that displacement wave that showed up on his console?" Harry asked as they exited the mess hall. "It was only there for less than three seconds and didn't show up at anyone else's station."
"I'm sure there is an explanation for it, Starfleet. Now, let's go." B'Elanna linked arms with the two men as they headed for the turbolift.
* * * * *
Captain Kathryn Janeway stood at the large window in her briefing room waiting for her senior staff to enter. She gazed at the starscape outside. They were surely beautiful when seen at Warp 2, bright silver streaks in an inky black sky. But they were not the familiar stars of the Alpha Quadrant. Voyager had been traveling for six years and they were still over fifty years from home. Crew morale was at a low point. Even Neelix, who was perpetually cheerful, seemed down when she spoke to him in the mess hall this morning.
Janeway turned at the sound of the doors sliding open. Commander Chakotay stepped into the room followed by Tuvok and they took their usual places at the table. Seven of Nine strode in and approached the Captain. The tall blonde carefully placed the PADDs, she had been carrying, onto the table in front of the captain, and sat down. Janeway glanced around the room and thought of the hundreds of meetings they had held here over the past six years. The room, although spacious, seemed almost intimate as the crew had grown closer and her senior officers had become a family. Tom, Harry, and B'Elanna entered the room still arguing about how long it would take to detour around the next system.
"Captain, I have reexamined my sensor readings and there does not appear to be an explanation for the displacement wave. All readings for the Krill home planet are within normal range for an M-class planet." Tuvok stated as the last three officers walked in and took their seats.
Janeway looked at each of her senior officers in turn and then sat at the table just in front of the window. She smiled at her officers fondly as she thought of the message from the Governor of the Krill system.
Governor Barall had warmly welcomed Voyager to their star system. He stated that his navigational department would be more than agreeable in assisting them in plotting a course through the system. The captain suggested that Harry join Tom on the away mission to procure the star charts necessary to plot Voyager's course.
Tom smiled broadly as he thought of the away mission. He had felt cooped up on Voyager for several weeks now and looked forward to flying one of the sleek new shuttles. He and Harry were close friends and along with B'Elanna had designed and built two new smaller versions of the Delta Flyer. They only held four or five crewmen but could easily reach Warp 6 and Tom had only taken one of them out for a test flight. "Come on, Harry, let's see what this baby can do." Tom said as they entered the shuttle bay.
"Now, remember, Tom. We are on a diplomatic mission. We don't want to startle these people with any flying tricks." Harry returned Tom's smile. He too was looking forward to getting some fresh air. He had not grown up in the shadow of Starfleet and missed the sun and wind that could not quite be duplicated on the holodecks.
"Right, Har. No fancy tricks….this time." Tom entered the shuttle and began the preflight tests. They were cleared for take off and Tom smoothly guided the small ship out into the inky darkness of space.
to be continued…