The Littlest Rogue-chapter 7
Torres had some major doubts that she was in the twentieth century, and had no clue as to who Mr. Seven or Miss Lincoln were, having never heard of either. For one thing, she knew for certain that technology to make a force field didn't exist in the century the young lady named Roberta said she was in. Indeed, there was scant evidence to prove that she was in that era from her point of view. Something must have read her mind, for the girl on the viewing screen spoke again, telling her that she would release her from the strange holding cell to prove it. She heard the force field go off and stepped out of the cell. She went down a short hallway and was met by the girl named Roberta and by a very worried-looking woman who looked just like her, except that she was human.
"Greetings, Miss Torres. This is Mrs. Bester, the mother of the little girl who just appeared on your ship. Come with me and I will prove to you that you are four hundred years in the past and on Earth."
Mrs. Bester stepped forward.
"How's my baby? Is she all right?"
Torres could see how distraught the older woman was and her human half felt empathy towards her. However, she knew very little about the small child, having only heard that she was found unconscious on the floor of Neelix's kitchen after consuming a tainted alien mushroom. However, she didn't want to needlessly increase the poor woman's anxiety.
"As far as I know, ma'am." She looked at Roberta curiously. If she was indeed in the twentieth century, the younger lady surely had dressed the part. She was wearing a white peasant blouse with embroidered flowers, a fringed tan leather vest and a matching mini skirt. Her legs were adorned with white fish net stockings and on her feet were white go go boots. She had seen this style of dress illustrated in a history book about the nineteen sixties. However, that still didn't prove that she was in the latter part of the twentieth century. For all she knew, the girl named Roberta could be a shape shifter or some sort of alien illusion, perhaps from an alien race that had tuned in to Earth broadcasts from four hundred light years away. Also, it would have been impossible for someone from the twentieth century to abduct someone from the twenty-fourth in the same manner that she had been.
As she was escorted into the next room by the girl named Roberta, they were met by an older gentleman who identified himself as Gary Seven, apparently some sort of intergalactic secret agent, sent to Earth by some unknown alien race to prevent the inhabitants of twentieth century Earth from destroying themselves before they could develop into a peaceful people. Torres knew from Earth history that it would take at least another two hundred years for that to happen. Mrs. Bester spoke up and said that she was from the twenty-third century in a parallel universe, and the dream of peace was still just that. She had also read her mind about the fate of her little girl, knowing that the half alien engineer from the starship called Voyager had very limited knowledge about her offspring. B'Elaana looked around the room in wonder. It appeared to be part office space and part living quarters. To her left was a large office desk. A small green blinking cube was set into it, beside what appeared to be pen holders. In front of her was a shelving unit containing wine glasses. To her right was a large leather comfortable-looking brown couch and next to that a book case. The man named Seven beckoned her to a window and she looked through it in puzzlement. She could see what appeared to be internal combustion conveyances on the street below. She tried to think of what they were once called…automobiles. Yes, that was it. There were lots of them. She had only seen automobiles in museums, not actual working models. She could see that the people on the sidewalks below were dressed in period clothing. She was almost convinced that what she had been told was true, except for the inconsistencies of the remarkably advanced technology of the holding cell she had just been in and the still inexplicable method of how she got to this place. She heard a low meow at her feet and looked down, seeing a beautiful black cat with a shimmering ribbon collar.
"Thank you, Isis. I will explain." Seven spoke to the cat. As if it understood what he was saying, the cat started to purr and then jumped onto a burnt orange colored chair. Torres watched with astonishment as the "cat" transformed into a woman. It smiled at her as Seven explained how she got there and how they had acquired such sophisticated technology. He even showed her the safe-like transporter they had apparently used to bring her here, hidden behind the shelves holding the wine glasses.
Chakotay and Harry Kim were at the controls beside the entrance to the holodeck when the two little girls arrived. Chakotay had been asked by the captain to program some educational material for Naomi, and now realized that he and Harry had two little students. He introduced himself to the new arrival, and then told the girls that Harry would be teaching the lesson today. The subject was Federation history; namely the last century and the Five Year Mission.
The two little girls walked onto an exact replica of the bridge of the starship Enterprise, Alice learning that the starship was commanded by someone named James T Kirk. Alice looked around in wonder. She cautiously touched the orange railings that were between the captain's chair and the helm and navigation. The man named Harry Kim told her that the black lady to her right was named Uhura and that she had been a communications officer. Being that the program was interactive, the lady asked what he meant by 'had been'. Harry smiled and told her 'never mind'. The lady turned back to whatever she was doing. A man with pointed ears was next to the lady, peering into a hooded viewer. Alice watched her new friend Naomi step down and stand beside the captain's chair, beckoning her to follow. She complied, noticing that there was something very familiar about the man seated at the navigation station. She knew that Naomi had been asked to find out more about her, so decided to project her last name into her mind, asking her to please not reveal it to anyone else right now. Naomi had an amazed expression on her face, and wondered what was so wrong with Bester as a last name. She didn't want to pry, however, and watched with interest as Alice touched the shoulder of the Chekov simulation. The holographic simulation turned and smiled sweetly at her, but Alice gasped and turned pale. Harry Kim asked her what was wrong as she started to scream in fright. She tried to find a place to hide, but could not, so went to a corner, curling herself into a little ball and crying. Naomi received another telepathic communication that told her that the man they knew as Mr. Chekov looked exactly like a much younger version of her father and that Alice was terrified of him.