Sacred Ground
Chapter 1: Heartache
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
A/N: This is the first Voyager story I've written. I only have the first chapter written so far and I'm going on vacation for two weeks starting tomorrow, so I won't be able to update for a little while but I wanted to get this up and see what people thought of it.
"How is this possible?" Kathryn Janeway asked the Emergency Medical Hologram as he stood in front of her with a tricorter in his hand.
"If I'm not mistaken," the doctor began "When the sperm and the ova-"
"Not what I meant doctor," Kathryn cut him off dryly as she looked down. There was no way that this could happen. In nearly six years since Voyager had been in the Delta Quadrant, she'd never… well sometimes she'd wanted to… but she hadn't… except that one night with… "Is it alright?" she asked finally.
"She," the doctor corrected "Is doing fine."
"Good," Kathryn shook her head vigorously, trying to clear her thoughts and focus on her duty to the ship. She turned to leave sickbay.
"Captain," the doctor called, stopping her in her tracks. When she turned back to face him he continued "I'll need to see you next week to make sure that you and the baby are doing alright."
"Is that necessary?" she asked. It was no secret that she didn't like physicals and if she ended up coming to sickbay on a weekly basis, the crew would become suspicious.
"Pregnancy is a complicated thing," the doctor explained "Your electrolytes and vitamin balance must be carefully monitored."
Kathryn nodded "If you'll excuse me," she turned and left.
The doctor watched her go. From the look on her face, he was pretty sure who the father of her child was.
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"Mr. Paris," Kathryn wasted no time from the second she set foot on the bridge; she knew what she had to do "Contact the Rylian high counsel. Patch it through to my ready room."
Tom Paris nodded slowly though he felt the need to ask "The Rylians captain?" it has been a whole week since they had left Rylian space and they'd left something of themselves behind to boot. He didn't ever want to see that planet again.
"Yes, Mr. Paris," Kathryn said evenly "The Rylian's," and without another word, she turned and headed into her ready room.
Commander Tuvok followed soon after. He found the captain, sitting at her desk, looking as if she was about to burst into tears. He approached her "May I ask why you are suddenly interested in contacting the Rylians?"
"You may not," Kathryn looked up at him with something close to fury burning in her eyes "It's a personal matter."
"Captain, I do not believe it would be wise-"
"I know what you said," she snapped "Clean break, take the memories. You told me that it would be harmful for me to ever go back there and see…" she trailed off and turned to the window.
"You knew this would be difficult," Tuvok reminded her "It was you who said that Commander Chakotay would prefer to be buried on Rylos than a burial in space."
"I know," Kathryn whispered "But there's something I have to tell him."
Tuvok was silent for a short while, not knowing what to make of his captain's behavior. Finally, he spoke "I do not believe that it is necessary for you to be at the grave site for you to tell him," he intended his words to be soothing. Grief was a very powerful emotion and Tuvok himself had trouble denying its effects sometimes.
"I need to do this," she turned to him "I have to go there," the determination in her eyes sparkled and reminded Tuvok of the Kathryn Janeway that had existed until that fateful day on Rylos.
"I will tell Mr. Paris to change course immediately," Tuvok said and turned to leave.
"No," Kathryn stopped him "No, it's not necessary for the entire ship to change course for this. I'll take a shuttle craft."
"Captain," Tuvok began "I must advise against traveling to Rylos alone," he remembered the heavy phaser fire they had taken. The Rylian's of the southern continent had been at war with the Rylian counsel for centuries. Not even the sacred land where Chakotay was buried was spared from their attacks. "I must insist on accompanying you."
"It's not necessary," Kathryn protested but she knew it was useless to argue with her new first officer. She would have said something else but Tom Paris's voice came over the com.
"The head of the Rylian counsel is ready to speak with you captain."
"Thank you Mr. Paris," Kathryn replied, dropping back into her chair and pushing the button that activated the screen.
Without being told to, Tuvok took his leave and returned to the bridge.
"Hello captain," the Rylian counselor greeted "How may I or my people be of assistance to you?"
"I was thinking of coming back for a visit," Kathryn began.
"Oh," the Rylian counsel man said scratching his head "I suppose you'll want permission to set foot on the burial ground then?"
"Yes," she replied without missing a beat "That was the reason I decided to contact you."
"We will need to discuss this further upon your arrival," the counsel man told her "You will need to need to present your case to the counsel."
"Present my case?" Kathryn asked, surprised.
"The conflict has increased since you left I'm afraid," the counsel man sighed "The burial ground is a prime target for our enemies. Just the other day, a young woman died while she knelt at her son's grave. All who go to the burial ground now are given a substantial security escort. The expense to our government is too great to let everyone visit who wishes to."
"I understand," Kathryn nodded slowly "You can expect me within the week."
"Very good captain," the counsel man said "I wish you a pleasant journey." The screen went dark.
Kathryn put her head in her hands. She wanted to do this alone but she knew that Tuvok and the Doctor would disagree. And, knowing that she was pregnant, she was inclined to agree with them.