Tegan Chronicles STV Style 1

Line of Fire

9

Janeway walked into the medical bay after two weeks of not seeing the new doctor. Voyager wasn't big enough to warrant two weeks of not bumping into every single member of her crew at least once and since landing in the Delta Quadrant, Janeway prided herself on being around for her crew. She had however checked up on her enough to know she wasn't working too many after shift hours, at least not in the labs. Tuvok had given her Tegan's test results the day before which did indicate she was spending every waking moment she was away from the labs studying, unless she had an eidetic and she didn't think that was the case.

"Captain, what can I do for you?" Tegan put the medical file she was charting in aside before straightening to her full potential.

"As you were." Janeway waved her empty hand at her side. "How do you do that?"

"Do what?" She relaxed her posture.

"Know that it's me before you ever look up."

"Did I?" She honestly didn't remember if she did. She also didn't know how she knew, just that she did and that it didn't happen with anyone else.

"You did." Janeway put her hand on the edge of Tegan's work surface.

"It was a good guess then." She smiled lightly. "I haven't seen you in a few days."

"Try weeks, two weeks and a day to be exact." Janeway lifted the PADD she was holding in her left hand and waved in the air. "I've got your test results from yesterday."

Tegan frowned lightly. "It can't be good if you're delivering the news."

"On the contrary your scores where almost perfect, if Tuvok hadn't been present he might have questioned if you had cheated. Photographic memory?" She offered the results to Tegan.

"I wish." Tegan sighed as she looked over the test scores.

"Tuvok says if you continue at this rate you could be finished in another two months and time served would more than make up for the hours you'd spend in a classroom and field training."

"All this so I might become a real Starfleet officer in my mid to late 80s."

Janeway ignored the sarcasm. "As far as I am concerned you are a real Starfleet officer and I haven't given up on getting us back to earth as soon as possible."

"I'm sorry Captain, it's just it's not like I really have anything waiting for me back there." She looked away not wanting to appear weak in front of anyone but especially not Janeway.

Sensing her discomfort with the current subject she decided to move on to something else rather than point out they had already shaved several years off their journey. "We're about seventeen hours from what appears to be an uninhabited planet and I'm taking a small team down just to check things out before we continue on our way. I was wondering if you would like to be part of the expedition."

"Just to check things out?"

"Pretty much, Neelix is coming along to see if there is any edible plant life we can bring back. Since you passed your phaser training with flying colors, I thought you might want to get out and breathe some fresh air."

"I don't know." Tegan looked around the infirmary as she handed Janeway back her PADD. "We've been awfully busy around here lately."

"How many patients have you seen today?"

"Are you a patient?" Tegan gave her a mock curious look.

"No I'm not, not today anyway."

Tegan let out a sigh. "Then one and it was a routine physical."

"So you'll join us?"

"If you're giving me the option and not ordering me to go, yes."

"And if it was an order?" Janeway watched her carefully.

"My answer would be the same."

"Are you always so…" Janeway let her voice trail off not knowing exactly what word to put in there. Playful didn't exactly fit since there was just a hint of sarcasm thrown in at times.

Tegan waited for her to finish the question but when she didn't she decided to answer. "It kind of depends on how you finished that inquiry, but no I'm usually serious and completely boring when I'm on duty. Well that is until my last assignment."

"What changed in your last assignment?" This was the most Tegan had shared about herself outside of telling the story of losing her arm.

"My commanding officer was a little off beat. Great guy, laid back, out spoken at times, and his sarcasm would rival the Doctor's." Tegan really wished he would pick a name already. "But I'll work on getting myself back to ship shape Captain."

Janeway offered a small smile at the intended pun. "If I have a problem with your attitude or your performance you will be the first to know."

"Yes ma'am."

"In the meantime I will see you in the transporter room tomorrow at 0900 hours unless you hear otherwise."

"Yes ma'am."

She didn't know who the fourth member of the away team would be until she stepped into the transporter room the next morning to find Tom standing there talking with Neelix. "Glad you could join us Doctor, or do you prefer Lieutenant?"

"I believe it is proper to refer to her by her medical designation over her military one Lieutenant Paris."

Tegan turned to see Seven standing at the transport console. "Our ride isn't broken is it?"

Seven cocked her head to the side in thought. "The transporter is functioning just fine Dr. Kiser."

"I see you all made it." Janeway walked in and let her eyes travel over her crew.

"Wouldn't have missed it Captain." Tom smiled.

"Shall we?" She held her arm out in the direction of the transporter platform. Tom and Neelix stepped to the back leaving room in the front for Tegan and Janeway. Tom was just taking advantage of being able to check out Tegan's glutes in her uniform. He'd gotten stuck picking up the occasional swing shift in sickbay which put him with the droning EMH and not the lovely Tegan who he would much rather work with. Because the EMH was available 24/7 she hadn't requested a medical assistant.

Janeway looked at Seven and nodded, within seconds they materialized on the planet's surface. "Ok let's pair off. Tom you and Neelix head that way, and Tegan and I will head over to the water source we identified from orbit."

"Yes Captain."

"We'll meet back here in one hour." She watched as Tom nodded.

As they headed through the densely forested area to the river Janeway kept one eye on their surroundings and the other on Tegan who suddenly put her hand on her phaser and spun around. Janeway mirrored her just as a precaution, but there was nothing there. "Jumpy?"

"I could swear we were being followed." Tegan centered her breathing and tried to focus on just what it was.

"Our scans didn't pick up on any life forms on the planet."

"Have they been wrong before?"

Rather than answer the question she asked one of her own. "What did you see or hear?"

"Nothing—I mean, I don't know. I might have heard a twig snap."

"Might have?"

"Yeah, but it's more than that." She turned her head slightly in Janeway's direction. "Call it a feeling."

"I don't like feelings." Janeway mumbled.

Tegan saw the flicker and without thinking propelled herself in front of Janeway while yelling. "Watch out Captain."

Janeway saw the flicker, she was looking right at it when it happened. A being they hadn't encountered before appeared six meters in front of her and just as quick as it was there it was gone again. A yellow flash discharged from it before it disappeared. She heard Tegan's voice as if it was distorted by the slowing of time and saw a blur of blue and red and black in front of her as Tegan used her own body to shield her from the blast which sent her flying back knocking Janeway off her feet. Before she dared assess Tegan she hit her com badge. "This is Janeway beam us to the sickbay now."

She looked around as she heard the EMH's standard greeting. She had hoped Tom and Neelix had been beamed back with them but they weren't there.

"Please state the nature of the medical emer…" He didn't finish the last word as his eyes landed on Janeway who was sitting there looking around with one leg under Tegan's back. But it was Tegan's appearance that had stopped the doctor's normal greeting. Half her face, most of her neck and a large portion of her chest were severely burned and her uniform had melted away, possibly into her skin. He quickly grabbed his medical tricorder and started running it over her. "Captain, are you injured?"

"No I'm fine doctor." She looked dazed to him but took her at her word.

"I need help getting her on that bed." He pointed to the single bed in the back of the infirmary. "Do you think you could help me?"

Janeway pulled her leg out from under Tegan and nodded as Chakotay came rushing into the room. "What happened?"

"I'll explain later, we need to get her to a bed and get Tom and Neelix to back on board."

"They're trying but they've been unable to get a lock on them." Chakotay scooped Tegan up like he would a small child and put her on the bed for the Doctor.

"We've got to get them off that planet." Janeway looked down at Tegan.

"Captain." The EMH shooed her away with his eyes before calling Seven to ask for her assistance.

"What happened?" Chakotay asked again as she stepped out of the doctor's way.

"It was cloaked." Janeway kept looking over at the unmoving form the Doctor was working on. "She knew there was something there, said she had a feeling, she might have heard a twig snap. I don't know, it flashed for just a second like the cloak failed or maybe it couldn't stay cloaked when firing its weapon. Tegan must have seen it because she threw herself between it and me. I don't know if there are more."

Chakotay put a strong hand on her shoulder. "She's in good hands."

"I know." She looked back at her one more time before stepping completely back into her Captain persona; her missing crew members needed her. "Doctor."

"I'll let you know." He continued his work as she and Chakotay headed out.

Forty minutes later Janeway was in the transporter room when Tom and Neelix were beamed back aboard. Tom rubbed the back of his neck while sporting a confused look. "I thought we were meeting back in the clearing?"

"Where were you? Why didn't you answer your coms?" Janeway barked much like a mother whose child just ran out in traffic and missed getting hit by a car by mere millimeters.

"We didn't hear anything come across our coms." Tom looked at Neelix.

"We found some night blooming ruby berries in a cave." Neelix held up a large bag of the berries as if they were a treasure.

"The cave must have blocked the signal." Tom stepped off the platform with Neelix on his heels. His brow knitted together with concern. "Captain, what's going on?"

She explained what had happened on the planet as she headed back to the lift to return to sickbay. She left Tom and Neelix standing there with the shock clearly written across their faces, they hadn't had any problems on the planet.

She waited for the doctor to finish what he was doing and approach her before speaking. "Doctor, how is she?"

"I can treat plasma burns to her face, neck and chest, but she has received severe neural injuries. It appears the weapon has destroyed all her neural pathways." He glanced back over his shoulder before lowering his voice to a whisper. "I have to be honest Captain, I'm not sure I can save her."

Janeway tore her eyes away from the prone woman in order to look directly at the EMH. "You have my complete faith doctor, as I remember you saved me from a similar situation after the encounter with species 8472."

"That may be Captain but things were touch and go with you, and thus far I haven't been able to get any type of response from her. Only her most basic systems are still functioning."

"I understand, but if anyone can do it you can. Keep me apprised of the situation." She gave Tegan one last look and walked out.